The Partnership shall be open to a wide group of members with an interest in the development of the Southern Agricultural Growth Corridor of Tanzania. Any organization wishing to become a member to the Partnership shall apply to the SAGCOT Centre Ltd, and will be admitted by the partnership evaluation committee as a member to the Partnership. The members will include:

• Central and local Tanzanian government agencies
• Local private sector actors including national and district-based farmers’ organizations, input and output trading companies and stockists, Producers and Procesors, finance institutions, agricultural and related projects and programs, and private sector service
• International private sector companies
• Civil Society actors
• Development Partners

Upon admission, every member to the Centre will be bound by these Partnership Principles.

In order to appreciate properly the context of the SAGCOT Partnership Principles, it is important that prospective members understand the work of the SAGCOT Centre, the institution that will uphold the Principles of the Partnership. The SAGCOT Centre is the Secretariat to the SAGCOT Initiative; and will coordinate activities and investments that support large-scale, emergent and small-scale farmers, and agri-business in targeted high potential areas in the corridor (called “Clusters”). All activities and investments will be designed to be socially and environmentally responsible (please visit https://sagcot.co.tz/index.php/sagcot-clusters/ )

The SAGCOT Partner Evaluation Committee (Evaluation Committee) was established in June 2014 to formalize the on-boarding process of potential partners and ensure they are a perfect fit with the SAGCOT Partnership and its objectives. Prior to this, partner registration was approved by the Senior Management Team (as of 2013) and by the Board and Kilimo Kwanza executive committee (2011-2012). It was realized that there was limited engagement of evaluators who have experience in investment facilitation, private sector engagement and enabling environment challenges. Therefore, it was recommended that SCL should have external evaluators in the committee. Since 2017 the Partner evaluation committee has a responsibility to recruit potential partners, monitor progress of the partnership and exit partners who do not adhere to the partnership principles as stipulated in this document. In addition, the committee approves annual recruitment strategy of partners, based on the partnership needs. SCL acts as a secretariat to this committee, in addition to having the role of presenting potential partners to the committee. Members of the SAGCOT Partnership will also be expected to act as ambassadors for the overall SAGCOT Partnership and its objectives, to provide support for other members as appropriate, and to suggest additional competent members to the SAGCOT Partnership whenever possible.

Each SAGCOT Partnership member will be required to abide by the Partnership Principles:

Partners will be invited and are required to sign up and become members of Strategic Value Chain or Thematic partnerships (themes such as Soil Health, Finance, Green Growth). These are high impact strategic partnerships within the larger SAGCOT partnership within which actors along value chains will share information, value chain-specific concerns, lessons and opportunities, and where each member provides critical feedback to the SAGCOT Centre. Members sign up to an agreed terms of reference (TOR); plan together annually on issues to tackle together, and agree to review their plan regularly. Strategic partnerships are convened at Cluster Level; however, specific policy and regulatory issues emanating from here are escalated to key government stakeholders/institutions (plus other appropriate channels) concerning the business environment and constraints to commercial investment in the value chain of concern, and seek to identify ways in which these challenges will be addressed.  Other issues and progress are tabled at the annual Cluster Review Meetings where all priority value chain progress and issues of concern are tabled to a wider  audience of public and private partnership by signing and annually reviewing the Cluster COMPACT. All strategic partnership members are required to be signatories to the Cluster COMPACT.

Members who subscribe to the Partnership Principles and pay the partnership fees ( see Section 9) will have full access to information, networking, professional services and other opportunities as can be provided or brokered by the SAGCOT Centre. Specific benefits to members of the SAGCOT Partnership will include:

• Improved linkages with commercial agribusiness
• Access to information on current best agricultural practices to increase productivity and competitiveness, and contacts for specialist support if needed
• Connections to improved marketing systems and finance
• Opportunities to link with other farmers – both small-scale and large-scale

• Introductions to areas where a critical mass of commercial agriculture is being developed
• Identification of commercial opportunities and potential clients interested in short and longer- term finance
• Guidance to areas where complementary finance – such as matching grants or other instruments – are required
• Lower transaction costs due to available background information and analysis

• Identification of target areas and activities for coordinated programs to enhance private sector development that supports linkages to smallholders
• Access to analysis and feedback on priority policy, regulatory, fiscal and legislative constraints currently hindering agricultural profitability and further private investment
• Identification of effective entry points for improved environmental management, responses to climate change and support to women, youth and the disadvantaged in

• Facilitating access to relevant finance
• Coordination of infrastructure development to support commercial investments
• Access to an enlarged potential client-base
• Support for an improved business environment for agriculture
• Access to analysis of value chain issues
• Linkages to complementary companies and new opportunities for risk sharing partnerships

• Identification of focal points for prioritized and targeted public investment to enhance commercial agriculture
• Identification of priority infrastructure needs
• Access to analysis and feedback on priority policy, regulatory, fiscal and legislative constraints currently hindering agricultural profitability and further private investment
• Feedback of practical suggestions on how to improve the business environment for agricultural growth

• Identification of entry points to enable provision of their specific services and support where complementary activities are already underway
• Participation in key discussions on key policy and regulatory issues
• Opportunities to link with and add value to commercially driven agri-business activities in the clusters

If partnership members have substantial concerns or complaints about the Centre’s actions or the way in which it is operating, they can formally register them in writing to the Chairman of the Board of the SAGCOT Centre Ltd. These will then be discussed at the next Board Meeting for any appropriate action. Alternatively, Partners can register their grievances via  http://sagcot.co.tz/index.php/grm/#1527193282350-12fb1456-1660

Membership to the SAGCOT Partnership, which will be gained through an application to the SAGCOT Centre, will be subject to payment of an annual partnership fee according to the potential member’s institutional status. Membership, which is subject to approval by the Partner Evaluation Committee, will provide participation to the SAGCOT Partnership meetings and access to the Partnership activities such as taskforces, information sharing, and meetings.
The purpose of the partnership fee is to ensure only serious, committed organizations join the partnership through the Centre. The fees will be paid into the SAGCOT Centre Ltd and used for specific operations such as the SAGCOT Partnership activities.
The following partnership fee scales will be applied:

• All member organizations agree that their membership of the SAGCOT Partnership can be advertised by the SAGCOT Centre in relevant communications including the SAGCOT Centre’s website.
• The SAGCOT Centre will not provide contact details to third parties without member’s prior
• No member shall claim to represent the SAGCOT Partnership without the express agreement of the SAGCOT Centre

• Members must never intentionally injure, directly or indirectly the professional reputation, prospects or business of the SAGCOT

• Any breach of these Principles should be brought to the attention of the SAGCOT Centre CEO
• The SAGCOT Partnership, through the SAGCOT Centre, retains the option to withdraw membership for serious breaches of these Principles without any refund of partnership fees paid based on majority agreement of Partner Evaluation Committee members.
• Failure to pay annual partnership fees is construed as a breach of the SACGOT Partnership principles and will trigger a review of the partnership/relationship by the evaluation committee to assess whether or not to suspend investment facilitation support to the partner until annual partnership fee payment.