Tanzania: How spices farming drives conservation efforts in Pemba

GROWING spices in Pemba Island is pushing forward environmental conservation efforts in the island, as farmers engage in traditional farming method. The Tourism and Antiquities Officer in the Zanzibar's Ministry of Agriculture, Natural Resources, Livestock and Fisheries, Mr Khalid Kombo Hamisi noted in the island that the ministry was putting great emphasis on the organic farming. "The kind of agriculture we advocate for and that many farmers have embraced has huge benefits, some of them being growth of many trees that lead the island get enough rain and hence much needed water," said Mr Hamisi in his office at Pemba town. Spices grown in Pemba include cloves, vanilla, allspice, black and mango pepper and all are being farmed without any use of chemical fertiliser and even in the process of storage and preservation they do not use chemicals. Mr Hamisi who was speaking to journalists who were on a field trip organized by Journalists' Environmental Association of Tanzania (JET) and ...