Category: Tanzania Sustainable Soybean Initiative (TSSI)

🌱 Tanzania Sustainable Soybean Initiative (TSSI)
Unlocking the Full Potential of Soybean for Tanzania’s Economy and Farmers

🟢 Overview
The Tanzania Sustainable Soybean Initiative (TSSI) is a flagship SAGCOT program transforming soybean from a marginal crop into a key economic and nutritional powerhouse. With demand rising in the feed industry, export markets, and local food systems, TSSI is building a competitive, inclusive, and climate-smart soybean economy that works for Tanzania.
Despite potential to produce over 1 million metric tons annually, current national output is below 18,000 mt. TSSI is closing that gap through production scale-up, investment mobilization, and structured coordination under the Soybean Commodity Compact.

🎯 What TSSI Aims to Do
TSSI focuses on three pillars to unlock systemic impact:
✅ Build a Business Case Across the Value Chain
From seed to processing, feed to food, TSSI is creating viable commercial models at every stage.
✅ Unlock Financing for Scalable Investment
Working with banks, investors, and development partners to fund the full chain from inputs to processing.
✅ Strengthen Governance through the Commodity Compact
Coordinating stakeholders, aligning policies, and resolving systemic barriers through structured collaboration.

⚙️ How We Drive Impact
• Grow Big, Grow Smart: Scaling production to 250,000+ mt with 150,000+ smallholders using quality inputs and climate-smart practices.
• Link Farmers to Reliable Markets: Securing demand from feed manufacturers, processors, and exporters.
• Power Key Ecosystems:
o 🐔 Feed the Poultry Boom
o 🌾 Fix the Soil through Crop Rotation
o 🍛 Fuel Nutrition with Soy-Based Foods
• Attract Investment: Creating a bankable, de-risked pipeline for processors, traders, seed companies, and input suppliers.
• Push Policy Forward: Advocating reforms to improve market conditions and incentivize local production.

🌍 Why Soybean Matters for Tanzania
• 🌿 Climate Resilience: Grows well under changing conditions, improves soil, and fits maize rotations.
• 📦 $1 Billion Export Opportunity: Massive demand in China and the region for Tanzanian soy.
• 🐓 Local Feed Security: Reduce imports of 90,000+ mt of soymeal and grow domestic feed capacity.
• 🥗 Nutrition for Households: Fortified flour, soy milk, and plant proteins for healthier diets.
• 💼 Jobs and Inclusive Growth: Creates economic opportunities for youth, women, and rural communities.

🗺️ Where We Work
TSSI is active in:
Mbeya, Ruvuma, Iringa, Njombe, Morogoro, Rukwa, Songwe, With expansion into: Dodoma, Kigoma, Lindi, Katavi, Arusha, Manyara As SAGCOT transitions to AGCOT.

🤝 Partners Driving the Initiative
Coordinated by SAGCOT, with support from the Royal Norwegian Embassy and the Government of Tanzania, TSSI brings together a broad and growing coalition:
• Research: IITA, Wageningen University (WUR), TARI
• Field Implementation: FtMA, Farm Africa, NAFAKA Kilimo
• Policy & Market Systems: ASPIRES Tanzania
• Private Sector: Off-takers, processors, input suppliers, aggregators
• Government: MoA, MoLF, LGAs, COPRA, TFRA, TOSCI
• Finance: TADB, NMB, PASS Trust, Equity Bank, and others
TSSI remains open to new partnerships to drive innovation, investment, and growth.

📊 What Success Looks Like (5-Year Vision)
• 👨‍🌾 150,000+ Farmers producing soy as a profitable crop
• 📈 250,000+ mt of market-ready soybean annually
• 🌍 Feed, processing & export markets fully supplied
• 💰 Returns for investors in seeds, inputs, finance & machinery
• 🧾 Bankable models for aggregators and processors
• 📉 Reduced imports and increased export earnings
• 💼 Private equity and venture capital flowing into the value chain

📢 Join the Movement
TSSI is building a national soybean economy and there’s space for every stakeholder.
📌 Are you a processor, investor, policymaker, or farmer group?
📌 Want to partner with us to build one of Tanzania’s most strategic agri-value chains?
Contact us and let’s grow this together.
📧 Email: info@sagcot.co.tz │ a.msambachi@sagcot.co.tz
📞 Phone: +255 (0) 22 260 1024