A study of agricultural development in Morogoro region: an historical perspective.

Then importance of agriculture in Tanzania' s socioeconomic development cannot be over-emphasized, both the Party and Government have duly recognized the importance of agriculture in the people's development process and the Arusha Declaration, Tanzanian' s blue print for socialist construction, emphasizes role of agriculture as the only basis for Tanzanian development. The policy documents "Socialism and Rural Development" and "Siasa ni Kilimo" further clarified the issues of rural socialism and socialist production in agriculture. In recent years Tanzania has experienced a rapidly changing, structure of rural development policy and the author felt obliged to examine the successes and failures of the new policies, particularly those relating to agricultural production. The study employs an historical analysis of agricultural development of Morogoro Region starting with the attainment of constitutional independence to the present day (1979). In Looking at this historical development of agriculture within these eighteen years of Tanzania's existence as an independent state, it has been found desirable and indeed necessary to delve further into the past, into the colonial days since the present situation of agricultural production owes its form and direction to this past period. For instance at the time of independence in 1961 the Tanzanian economy extremely skewed in favour of the export enclave, This was because colonial agricultural policy deliberately planned it that way since its objective was to obtain cheap raw materials in the metropolitan industries. Thus cash crops received the Lion's share of attention both in financial and manpower resources. In this study documentary research was the basic source of information. This research was carried out in the Offices of the Regional and District Development Directorates, in the TCA and NMC Regional Offices in the University Library and at the Ministry of Agriculture's Head Office Library. To supplement the information gained from documentary research the researcher carried out informal field surveys in Ulanga, Kilombero and Morogoro districts in order to identify current problems of agricultural development in the Region. The new policies which began to be implemented after the Arusha Declaration aimed at removing the imbalance in the agricultural production so as to achieve self-sufficiency in food. They also aimed at the implementation of the collectivisation of the peasantry into planned villages in which communal agricultural production would be institutionalized. The villagisation programme has given opportunity to villagers to improve agricultural production and to be provided with social services and amenities, though sore negative consequences have been observed. Morogoro region is evidently one of the areas in the country with highest agricultural potential. It is the contention of this study this potential is not being adequately tapped in order to benefit the people of the region and the nation as a whole. Accelerated agricultural production is only possible if the mobilisation of peasants is backed up by correctly worked-out plans and agricultural supportive services such as peasant education agricultural extensions, relevant research mechanization and modernisation, etc. We found that most of the supportive services are ineffective, as most officials do not go out to the villages frequently enough, in order to solve the problems facing the peasants since they prefer to stay in their offices. Irrigation agriculture and flood control are important in increasing agricultural production of the region, but there is very little work has been done towards this direction. And even the little work, which has been done regards irrigated agriculture, is ineffective because of unsound planning and faulty implementation. Communications and transport are a serious constraint to the region's development and therefore its resolution is a necessary precondition. Equally important is the issue of properly qualified manpower in development which is crucial in bringing about accelerated development.