Africa-Press – Tanzania. LAST Saturday Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa issued a strong warning against individuals indulging in embezzlement, theft and misappropriation of funds and properties of Cooperatives.
The Premier issued the warning at the climax of the International Day of Cooperatives held at national level in Tabora region, insisting that the government would throw its weight into protecting properties belonging to Cooperatives.
In his speech Prime Minister Majaliwa directed the Ministry of Agriculture to address various challenges affecting the development of Cooperatives in the country to enhance their sustainability.
He ordered the ministry to ensure that it builds cooperatives capacity to operate competitively and strengthen ways of finding markets for their produce.
Tanzania’s cooperatives have a long and proud history which goes back to the early 1930s. In the first decade of independence, the movement was particularly strong, with a complex structure of primary coops, secondary coop organizations and a national cooperative bank.
For those with fresh memory will remember how communities in Kilimajaro region flourished through the Kilimanjaro Native Cooperative Union (KNCU). Coffee growing communities in the region recorded significant achievements for selling the produce to the Cooperatives.
Equally farmers in Kagera, Mwanza and cashewnut growing regions had their Cooperatives which significantly contributed to improving their standards of living.
According to experts in cooperative matters, cooperative businesses are community-owned private enterprises that combine consumers with owners, and buyers with sellers in a democratic governance structure.
Cooperatives solve the general economic problem of under or over production, business uncertainty, and excessive costs. Cooperatives address market failure and fill gaps that other private businesses ignore; such as enabling members to have access to affordable credit and banking services.
In Tanzania, things started getting worse when the country began liberalizing markets with private sector taking a centre stage.
The change in market policy prompted some leaders to start swindling funds and other properties that belonged to the Unions, rendering them completely bankrupt.
However, later the government threw its weight into reviving the Cooperatives through several measures. Some individuals who were involved in misappropriation and theft of properties belonging to Cooperatives were arraigned to court while others returned the properties to the Co-ops.
It would be recalled that in November last year, the government returned over 61bn/- worth assets to Nyanza Cooperative Union ( NCU) that were illegally acquired by some of the Union’s dishonest staff some years back.
The measures taken is the manifestation of the government resolve to bring back the lost glory enjoyed when Co-ops were vibrant. Today, there are a number of Cooperative societies and Union serving farmers across the country.
Tanzania now implements an industrialization drive, an agenda that will strive if conducive environment is created for farmers who produce raw materials to feed the industries.
Creation of conducive environment for farmers involves sustaining Cooperatives through which they sell their produce. What Prime Minister said on Friday in Tabora should serve us as a wake-up call that what befall Coops years back should not recur.
