<p>Cashew nut farmers have been urged to open bank accounts to avoid unnecessary disturbances when receiving their payments. The call was sounded on Tuesday in the House, by deputy minister for Agriculture, Food Security and Cooperatives, Godfrey Zambi when responding to a supplementary question put forward by Jerome Bwanausi (Lulindi, CCM).The legislator had wanted to know when the accounts will be opened and government’s plan to educate the farmers on the importance of holding bank accounts.</p> <p>Zambi added that the government understands the delay of payments for cashew nut farmers done by some cooperatives unions in various districts including Masasi in Mtwara Region. However, he said this is partially a result of some cooperatives seeking loans from commercial banks for purchasing motor vehicles, tractors and farm inputs without repaying back.Reports say cashew nut production in the country’s south eastern regions is dwindling and the crop might lose its status as the area’s money spinner in the coming ten years due to a number of factors including delayed payments and the rising production costs.</p> <p>Investigation done by this paper mid this year in Mtwara showed that the cost of production in an acre of cashew nut stands at 30,000/-. Comparatively, that is higher than that of sesame which costs 16,000/-.Cashew nut is currently Tanzania’s leading cash crop. In its 2010 strategic plan, the Cashew nut Board of Tanzania (CBT) had targeted to achieve production of 180,000 tonnes but failed to do so.</p> <p>Statistics from the ministry of Agriculture, Food Security and Cooperatives show that cashew nut production in Tanzania now stands at 127,939 tonnes per annum, the country hovering between number two and three in the production of the crop in the world after India.According to CBT, there are many challenges facing farmers and the industry in general, including inadequate application of inputs and insufficient extension services.</p> <p>The initiative by the government through the ministry of Industry and Trade to introduce the warehouse receipt system in cashew nut growing areas has enabled the farmers to fetch good price on raw cashew nuts. Under this system all cashew nuts are sold to primary co-operative societies hence eliminating the buyers and their middlemen to go to the villages as it had been before.</p> <p> </p>