Effectiveness Of Collective Action In Reducing Transaction Costs For Smallholder Farmers In Tanzania

Agriculture in Tanzania is an important occupation for over 75% of inhabitants. It is the mainstay of the majority of the households. The country has a total land area covering 94.5 million hectares out of which 44 million hectares are suitable for agriculture. The population is approximately 50 million people, with 45 percent under 15 years of age and annual population growth rate is 2.8 percent (Mbiseet al., 2011). Paddy, maize and sorghum are the most important cereal crops in the country. As for paddy, statistics indicate that approximately 24% of the national total production area is in the Southern Highlands and produce about 33% of the national rice produce (RLDC, 2009).