Competitive African Rice Initiative (CARI) Tanzania

Rice is the fastest growing food source in Africa. Demand for rice has been growing at a rate of about 4.6% per annum between 2000 and 2010 – faster than anywhere else in the World and far outstripping the sub-region’s population growth of 2.6%. This trend is predicted to continue for the next 8-10 years mainly due to population increase, urbanization and changes in consumption patterns.

Tanzania is the main rice producer in the East African Community (EAC), producing over ¾ of all rice produced in the EAC. Rice also is the second most important food crop in Tanzania after maize. As in other African countries, rice consumption is rising rapidly, in excess of 25 kg/person/year. The figure is even higher in urban areas. In 2011, consumption of milled rice in Tanzania was 1.3 million MT, based on FAO data, part of which was imported, while small volumes (about 36,000MT) were exported to neighboring EAC countries. The leading regions in rice production are Shinyanga, Tabora, Mwanza, Mbeya, Rukwa, Arusha and Morogoro.