Isles keen to ensure justice in allocation, ownership of land

THE government is keen to ensure justice prevails in the allocation and ownership of land by all citizens in the country but complaints are rife due to limited availability land, the House of Representatives was told here.

Agriculture, Irrigation, Natural Resources and Livestock Minister Shamata Shaame Khamis told the house that Zanzibar as islands has high demand for land for various social and economic activities, including farming, livestock keeping and fishing, “But, the available land is limited.”

He was answering a question by Pandani Representative Professor Omar Fakih Hamad who decried injustice in land allocation, demanding to know why the government has failed to treat equally all wananchi in land allocation. The back bencher also questioned the impact of training that the government provides to farmers, livestock keepers and fishermen.

The minister said the recent evaluation has indicated positive impact of the training, with encouraging availability and timely supply of farm inputs to farmers.

However, good prices on farm produce remain a serious challenge due to reliance on seasonal crops whose prices depend on production level and market demand at the time.

Minister Shamata accepted and promised to work on a proposal by the legislator to establish a special fund on agriculture to avail farmers and livestock keepers with access to funds to boost their activities. Professor Omar had proposed the establishment of an agricultural bank to ease financial services to farmers, livestock keepers and fishermen.