• TAHA launches HortiMarket to digitize Tanzania’s horticulture trade
• Platform links producers, buyers via web, app, WhatsApp, and USSD
• Low rural internet access may hinder platform’s wide adoption
  

The Tanzania Horticultural Association (TAHA) has launched a new digital platform to connect producers, buyers, exporters, and service providers within the horticulture sector. The platform, named HortiMarket, is accessible via a website, a mobile application, a WhatsApp chatbot, and a USSD code, local media outlet Tanzania Invest reported on Monday, Oct. 20.

The new digital portal will serve as a centralized online marketplace where horticultural value chain actors can interact, exchange information, and complete transactions. HortiMarket is designed as a strategic response to persistent market access challenges that hinder the growth and competitiveness of Tanzania's horticulture sector.

According to TAHA, the digital service will enable stakeholders to access new opportunities, make informed decisions, and improve supply chain coordination, thereby boosting the overall efficiency and profitability of horticultural trade.

This pursuit of more efficient marketing channels is part of a broader strategy to grow the sector's export segment. In June, TAHA announced its goal to increase fruit and vegetable export revenues to $2 billion by 2030. This figure is nearly five times the annual average of $382 million generated by the sector between 2021 and 2024, according to data compiled by the country's central bank.

A key challenge for TAHA will be effectively integrating the over 500,000 smallholder producers active in the local horticulture industry through the new digital platform. The deployment of a digital service in the agricultural sector raises concerns about accessibility in rural areas, where the use of the internet and smartphones remains limited.

Data from the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) shows that 31.9% of the population in Tanzania has internet access, suggesting that nearly two-thirds of the population remain unconnected. This digital divide could limit the platform’s adoption, particularly as nearly 60% of Tanzanians live in rural areas where agriculture is essential to their livelihood, according to World Bank data.

Stéphanas Assocle