Hussein Bashe, a 47-year-old politician from the Nzega District of Tanzania, who serves as the country’s Minister of Agriculture, has initiated an agricultural trade spat with South Africa. He argues that South Africa (and Malawi) have restricted the imports of bananas from Tanzania for years.
As a result, on Wednesday, April 23, Tanzania temporarily prohibited agricultural imports from South Africa. The ban has now been lifted, effective April 25, following a request from South African authorities to Tanzania.
But how accurate were Bashe’s claims from the start that South Africa restricts bananas from Tanzania?
I have checked with South Africa’s authorities, and the message from Dipepeneneng Serage, the Deputy Director-General for Agricultural Production, Biosecurity, and Natural Resources Management in South Africa’s Department of Agriculture, is that Tanzania has never requested market access for its bananas in South Africa.
This is a vital step and a formal procedure for importing agricultural products. It is not just applied to Tanzania but to all countries.
This partly explains why South Africa has not imported a notable volume of bananas from Tanzania in over two decades. When examining South Africa’s banana imports, it is clear that to supplement domestic production, the country relies heavily on Mozambique, which accounts for 74% of the US$48 million worth of imported bananas. Trailing Mozambique is Eswatini, accounting for 19%. The Seychelles account for 4%, Zimbabwe accounts for 2%, and the remainder consists of small volumes from various countries in Southern Africa.
One must also question whether bananas from Tanzania can be seriously price-competitive relative to the above suppliers and domestic production of bananas.
Given the above, I believe Bashe has overreacted to all these banana issues. Temporarily blocking agricultural imports from South Africa was not a productive way of engagement and is not a substitute or shortcut for formal market access procedures.
One also has to wonder if such restrictions do not violate the Southern African Development Community Free Trade Area rules.
Any ban on products from a particular country would need some scientific justification and be temporary. The current rationale is not satisfactory.
How damaging would Tanzania’s ban be to South Africa’s agriculture?
Tanzania is a significant player in certain commodities, but it is not a major player in South Africa’s agricultural sector. Of the US$13.7 billion in South Africa’s agricultural exports, Tanzania accounted for approximately 1% (US$74.6 million).
Still, South Africa has an agricultural trade surplus against Tanzania. For example, in South Africa’s agricultural imports of US$7.6 billion in 2024, Tanzania accounted for 0.4% (or roughly US$28 million). This minimal participation by Tanzania is understandable, as South Africa imports products not produced in large volumes in the region. These include wheat, rice, palm oil, poultry, and whiskies from the world market, all of which are not primarily produced by the African region.
Tanzania’s 18th-largest agricultural market is South Africa, accounting for 1.4% of its US$2.4 billion in farm exports in 2023. Thus, it makes sense to promote its agricultural products and engage with South Africa’s Department of Agriculture on any scientific issues, rather than imposing restrictions on South African agricultural exports.
Tanzania’s main agricultural exports to South Africa are tobacco, tea, nuts, coffee, and ginger, not bananas. Thus, initiating trade friction over a hold-up on a product that is not a significant export to a country may not be ideal.
Beyond the Tanzania banana issue, South Africa’s current stance is to foster stronger regional agricultural trade and refrain from introducing restrictions.
South Africa also promotes collaboration in agriculture and the sharing of knowledge to enhance regional value chains. This is the same approach South Africa shared with Botswana when the country temporarily restricted the imports of South African vegetables and fruits.
Thus, I believe the whole issue may result from inadequate communication and engagement rather than a deliberate attempt to restrict trade. The appropriate course of action for Bashe’s officials is to engage with South African agricultural authorities.
After this step, Tanzania will have to market the bananas in South Africa and find buyers. Unlike some countries, the food trade in South Africa is primarily conducted by the private sector, rather than the government. Therefore, once their formal market access request is processed, Tanzania will need to focus on promoting its product to South Africa and identifying potential buyers.
For now, I am glad this whole issue of the ban is off the table.
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