• Talks held with Tanzania’s Kiluwa Group on local production
• Growing mechanization boosts demand for tractors and farm equipment

Belarusian agricultural machinery maker Minsk Tractor Works (MTZ) is considering setting up a tractor assembly plant in Tanzania.

BelTA reported on Jan. 21 that the plan was discussed at a meeting in Minsk between MTZ executives and a delegation from Tanzania’s Kiluwa Group, an industrial conglomerate with operations in steel, construction and real estate.

The talks follow Tanzania’s earlier request to purchase new MTZ machinery models and attachments suited to local farming needs. In July 2025, a government delegation led by former Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa visited MTZ’s facilities to negotiate commercial contracts.

MTZ has been supplying tractors to Tanzania for years. In 2025, the company said it had shipped nearly 140 tractors to the East African country in recent years. If the project goes ahead, it would strengthen MTZ’s local presence, expand production capacity, and better meet rising demand for farm machinery and after-sales services.

Opportunities in a dynamic market
 Agricultural mechanization is expanding in Tanzania. In its 2023/2024 annual report, the Ministry of Agriculture said the area of land prepared using tractors has more than doubled since the 2019/2020 season, reaching 4.35 million hectares.

The report attributes the trend to wider adoption of mechanized land preparation among smallholders and commercial farmers, supported by public-private partnerships and investment incentives.

Despite that progress, land cultivated using animal traction was estimated at 4.69 million hectares, suggesting significant room for mechanization to expand in the coming years.

Stéphanas Assocle