With more than 22,000 shareholders, Tanzania Breweries Ltd is one of the largest companies in Tanzania.

 At the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange, TBL shares are second to none in demand and have maintained their high value. 

They are followed by those of the Tanzania Cigarette Company (TCC) and those of the Tanzania Tea Packers (Tatepa). As for Tanzania Oxygen Ltd, its shares have been declining ever since it suffered a management crisis some three years ago, and are now selling below the initial public offer price.

 The latest shares to be traded at the bourse are those of the Tanga Cement Company, which trade as Simba shares. 

According to the TBL audited annual report for the 12 months ending March 31 this year, turnover grew 8 per cent and profit before tax improved 18 per cent, the company's tax holiday having ended on August 1, 2002, a benefit it has enjoyed since 1996. 

This resulted in a corporate tax payment in excess of Tsh6 billion ($6 million) for the eight-month period. Due to the change in the company's tax status, profit after tax was Tsh2 billion ($2 million ), 7 per cent below the previous year.

 During the period under review, TBL had a turnover of Tsh135.06 billion ($135.06 million) up from Tsh125.08 billion ($125.08 million) last year, with the profit before tax having risen from Tsh29.121 billion ($ 29.121 million) to Tsh34.255 billion ($34.255 million). 

This success is attributed to professional management and reinvestment that followed its privatisation in 1994, when it was bought by South African Breweries Ltd (SAB). 

The company has continued its expansion programme, investing Tsh827 million ($827,000) in 2001 and more than doubling this amount during the year under review, investing Tsh3.3 billion ($3.3 million). 

The TBL Group has also added Tsh110 billion ($110 million) to its manufacturing, distribution and selling activities through converting raw materials such as barley, malt, sugar and starch into consumer products. 

Out of this, 95 per cent has been distributed to its shareholders, with the most significant portion accruing to the government, which received 64 per cent in form of direct and indirect taxes. Shareholders received 22 per cent by way of dividends and employees 9 per cent by way of remuneration.

 During the year, the Group invested in the community, focusing primarily on education, health and welfare across Tanzania. The TBL board of directors has proposed a total dividend of Tsh109 (10 US cents) per share in respect of the twelve months ended March 31, 2002. This is a slight increase over the Tsh107 per share paid last year, which included a special dividend of Tsh25 (2.5 US cents) per share. 

The Group has acquired Kibo Breweries from East African Breweries Ltd. TBL has also managed, since its privatisation, to revive brewing of Ndovu Lager, which had ceased 20 years ago. The lager has been well received in the market. 

The chairman of the TBL board of directors, Paul Bomani, says that the TBL Group's investments – which include three brewing plants at Dar, Arusha and Mwanza, a distillery, an opaque beer brewery (Kibuku) and barley farms – have enabled TBL to capture 80 per cent of the total market share. The other 20 per cent goes to a smaller brewery and beer imports, wines and spirits. TBL also exports its beer brands to Kenya. 

The brewery's strategic investor has invested heavily in expansion and modernisation of the aged brewery, installing a new bottling plant, bottle washing facilities and a packaging plant. It has also installed a Tsh3 billion ($3 million) beer canning facility.

 It produces such beer brands as Safari Lager, Bingwa, Kilimanjaro, Balimi, Konyagi Ice and Ndovu. Other brands produced under licence from SAB include Castle Lager, Castle Milk Stout, Redds Premium Cold, and 49ner – an alcoholic fruit drink. The TBL Group also produces spirits as Tanzania Distillers Ltd including Konyagi, Vladimir Vodka, Valeur Brandy, Regency Whisky and Amarula. At its Darbrew Ltd plant, the firm brews the opaque beers Kibuku and Mwamba. 

TBL has established a new company, Mountain Side Farms, to enhance barley production to ensure continuous supply of the product to the malting plant in Moshi. 

This is in addition to the barley grown by over 5,000 farmers in northern Tanzania. In 2000, farmers earned a total of Tsh2.4 billion ($2.4 million) from selling their produce to TBL. 

Unlike in earlier years, TBL has strongly supported local suppliers by purchasing such items as glass bottles from Kioo Ltd and Carnaud Metal Box.

 "These companies have increased their turnover and are now exporting world class Tanzania products," says Mr Bomani, adding that TBL now even prints its annual reports and sources stationery locally, thus contributing to job creation. 

Apart from benefiting shareholders, TBL contributes financially to communities and sports developments and social growth, Mr Bomani says. 

"We have concentrated on supporting local communities... clearing roads in inaccessible areas, improving water supply and malaria eradication programmes, building a police post, building a pre- and post-natal care clinic and sponsoring many sports events."

 TBL assists the education sector from primary to university level. It currently has a programme with the University of Dar es Salaam in which it sponsors engineering students in Masters degree programmes. It has also made a Tsh50 million ($50,000) investment, to be implemented over a period of five years, to supply computers to the Dar es Salaam University library.

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