USADF Signs Grant to Support 6,000 Tea Farmers in Tanzania:

WASHINGTON - July 13, 2009 

WASHINGTON, D.C. – July 13, 2009 – In an effort to support grassroots groups in Tanzania, the United States African Development Foundation has signed a grant which will benefit the Lupembe Farmers Cooperative Joint Enterprise Ltd (LFCJEL).

After the grant was signed, USADF President Lloyd Pierson stated, “By directly funding this cooperative, USADF is promoting economic development at the grassroots level for thousands of tea farmers in Tanzania to help increase their quality of life.”

Located in the Iringa Region, LFCJEL is composed of nine cooperative societies consisting of 6,000 smallholder tea grower members who grow, process, and market green tea leaves for exports.  The Cooperative is looking to expand its central tea farm, creating jobs and a higher income for farmers.

The four year grant is designed to assist LFCJEL establish tea nurseries, purchase vehicles, provide working capital for farm rehabilitation and expansion, and training in tea agronomical practices, post-harvest tea handling, and tea marketing.

USADF began programming in Tanzania in 1986.   Tanzania’s current portfolio stands at twenty-nine investment projects totaling more than $4.2 million.  For more information about the portfolio, please visit the country’s quick source page at http://www.adf.gov/USADF-QuickSourceCountryPortfolioPage-Tanzania.htm.

The United States African Development Foundation (USADF) is a United States Government agency dedicated to expanding access to economic opportunity in Africa. Currently USADF operates in 20 African nations.  Over the past 25 years, USADF has funded nearly 1,500 projects representing in excess of $150 million in support of African enterprises and local African communities.  For more information on USADF, its programs and application guidelines, visit www.usadf.gov.
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