New drying racks boost seaweed value chain in Somanga

LINDI: A new milestone has been achieved in strengthening the seaweed value chain in Somanga Village, Kilwa District, Lindi Region, after 15 groups of seaweed farmers received newly constructed drying racks valued at 50m/- from the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Tanzania office.

The support forms part of the Mangrove Management for Climate Risk Resilience and Improved Livelihoods initiative, supported by the NORAD Mangrove Project, which is jointly implemented by WWF and local governments in three districts—Kilwa in Lindi Region, Mafia and Kibiti in the Coast Region.

Microfinance and Enterprise Officer at WWF Kilwa, Mr James Golola, told the ‘Daily News’ during an interview yesterday that the drying racks were designed to enhance proper post-harvest handling and improve the overall quality of seaweed products, enabling farmers to fetch better prices in both local and international markets.

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“The aim of providing farmers with these drying racks was to produce clean and safe products, reducing seaweed postharvest losses, which were previously estimated at about 40 per cent because farmers used local drying methods. This is now a thing of the past, as farmers are drying their seaweed in proper environments,” he stated.

He further disclosed that seaweed farmers in Somanga Village earned a total of 23m/- from the sale of seaweed products—such as seaweed powder, soaps and various value-added products—between July and September this year.

“Likewise, in Mafia District, farmers earned a total of 19m/- from selling similar products. This has been a significant achievement, mainly due to the value-addition training we provided to the farmers,” he said.

Ms Zuhura Omari, Chairperson of the Somanga Seaweed Farmers and Processors Association, expressed her gratitude to WWF Tanzania for constructing the drying racks, noting that farmers’ income is expected to rise as post-harvest losses decrease.

She also urged members of the Somanga seaweed farmers’ groups to take proper care of the equipment to ensure its longevity and sustained benefits.