“Through Alliance One’s continued growth in Tanzania’s tobacco growing industry we have been fortunate enough to welcome new farmers from the Serengeti District. As a good corporate citizen the Company engages with farmers in a business relationship that also considers a positive community contribution. As part of demonstrating our commitment to our partner farmers and Tanzania, we were very happy to help develop the potential of young minds at Geitasamo Primary School. I am very pleased that we could contribute in a very tangible way to community development in the Serengeti District,” said Mark Mason, AOTTL Managing Director and chairperson of the Community Development Projects Committee (CDPC).
The Company’s CDPC meets in Morogoro to review requests received by the Company from the communities growing tobacco in the districts. The support for communities growing tobacco is part of the Company’s strong commitment to its Community Social Responsibility Program which focuses on communities in the areas AOTTL operates. The Company’s Community Social Responsibility Policy focuses on supporting education, health and environmental conservation. AOTTL’s support for the communities is an initiative to complement the Tanzanian Government’s efforts to provide social services to its people.
According to Mr Andrea Paul, Head Teacher of Geitasamo Primary School, before AOTTL’s donation of the desks almost 50% of the children at the School sat on the floor during lessons. Now every child at the School has a desk to study from during lessons. “The request from Geitasamo was for 157 desk and we have delivered 157 desks valued at 5.4 Million Shillings. Nothing was reduced from the request. Regarding education we provide more than just desks for learners, in the past we have also offered text books to some schools,” remarked Mr Liana at the hand over highlighting Alliance One’s level of commitment to educational development.
Alliance One Tobacco Tanzania Ltd (AOTTL) with its headquarters in Morogoro municipality at Kingolwira area is a subsidiary company of Alliance One International (AOI) of the USA, with its headquarters in North Carolina. It is one of the three tobacco buying companies in Tanzania buying more than 35 million kgs of tobacco from 182 Primary Cooperative Societies with more than 39,800 farmers in Tabora, Urambo, Kahama, Manyoni, Iringa, Kasulu, Songea and Mara.