NCU to invest 25bn/- in development projects

MWANZA: THE Nyanza Cooperative Union (NCU-1984) plans to invest over 25bn/- in the current financial year starting April to implement development projects aimed at strengthening the cooperative and boosting productivity among its members and farmers.

Speaking in Mwanza City, NCU General Manager, Mr Daudi Mwasantaja said the investment will be financed through internal revenues and bank loans ahead of the cotton buying season expected in May. He said NCU has increased its internal revenue to over 1.8bn/- in the current financial year, compared to 1.6bn/- collected in the previous year.

He said the revenue has been generated from various sources, including rental income from the union’s buildings and other economic activities.

According to Mr Mwasantaja, the union plans to purchase eight million kilograms of cotton worth approximately 14bn/- during this farming season, with the funds sourced from financial institutions.

He listed the loan distribution as follows: Cooperative Development Bank (5.8bn/-), NMB Bank (6bn/-) and Tanzania Commercial Bank (TCB) (2.5bn/-).

“Last season, we did not have sufficient preparations for cotton purchasing, we only bought a small quantity for trial runs at our processing factory,” he said.

On infrastructure development, Mr Mwasantaja said NCU is in the final stages of constructing its cotton processing factory in Magu District, which is currently 60 per cent complete.

He added that most of the factory’s machinery has already arrived in Mwanza Region, with installation expected to be completed within 60 days.

“We have received five containers of machinery at the port and expect the factory to start operations by July this year,” he said, noting that this will enhance the union’s capacity to process cotton and other commercial crops, thereby adding value and increasing benefits for members and farmers.

He explained that more than 80 per cent of the funds used for the construction of the factory have been generated internally, mainly from rental income collected from buildings repossessed and and leased out by NCU.

According to him, the funds are kept in a special escrow account and are used to finance development projects.

He added that the rehabilitation and upgrading of the cotton factory have cost 3bn/-, of which only 961m/- was obtained through loans from financial institutions.

“All the funds used were generated from the union’s buildings that were returned and rented out,” he clarified.

Mr Mwasantaja urged NCU members and farmers in the Lake Zone to prepare to sell their cotton through the union, following a resolution passed at the general meeting in January this year requiring all cotton to be marketed through NCU.