ARUSHA, Tanzania, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Tanzania is set to increase earnings from cotton exports in the next two years, a senior official said on Tuesday.
Mary Mwanjelwa, the east African nation's Deputy Minister for Agriculture, told the National Assembly in the capital Dodoma that the plan is to increase cotton exports from the current 30 million U.S. dollars to 150 million U.S. dollars by 2020.
"We have a number of strategies that have been implemented since 2017 to ensure cotton production surpass the 600,000 tonnes mark," said Mwanjelwa, adding that the improved quality of the seeds also added value to the commodity.
She noted that the plan is a new blueprint adopted by the government and other stakeholders to improve the production of cotton in the country, and the government is working to re-establish some internal systems starting with the production of seeds.
Currently, there are 17 regions that grow cotton in the east African nation.
According to the deputy minister, during the forthcoming farming season in 2018, cotton farmers will be required to use improved seeds such as UKM08 seeds rather than the use of substandard seeds.