We try to keep abreast of current events in East Africa, both because we’re interested and because we want to continue learning more about our target market. Recent good news in the East African today suggests that Tanzanian economic growth has accelerated over last year, to 5.7% from 5.0%, and may be recovering from the worldwide economic slump.
A significant portion of recent growth was due to good harvests. In a country where 80% of the population lives in rural areas and a majority of those people are subsistence farmers, a healthy crop is the greatest gift that a year can bring.
The seasonality of farming also translates into seasonal purchasing patterns, whereby many consumers earn a majority of their income when selling the year’s produce and are more likely to purchase goods at this time.
