Terms of use

1. The service

Mavuno+ eCom is a marketplace that connects buyers of cashew and related produce with sellers, independent quality assessors and carriers. Unless a listing says otherwise, the contract for goods is between the buyer and the seller, and the contract for a service is between the buyer and the assessor or carrier. We provide the platform, payment instructions, the bank holding arrangement, vetting and dispute handling described in these terms.

2. Accounts and eligibility

• You must be at least 18 years old and able to enter into a binding contract. If you act for a business, you confirm you are authorised to do so.
• Give accurate information and keep it up to date. You must verify your email before using your account.
• Keep your password confidential. You are responsible for activity on your account. Tell us at once if you suspect unauthorised use.
• Choose the right account type. Local buyers are based in Tanzania. International buyers buy from outside Tanzania and use the export flow described in section 6.

3. Listings and sellers

• Sellers must describe goods honestly, including grade, quantity, origin, price and minimum order, and keep stock levels accurate.
• A verification badge means we checked the seller's details at the time of review. It is not a guarantee of every lot.
• Traceability codes must refer to the real batch being sold.
• Sellers pay the commission rate shown in their account for each completed sale. The rate that applies is the one recorded on the order.

4. Orders and goods payments

• Check quantity, price, delivery choice and the order total before you place an order. Placing an order does not charge you.
• Goods are paid by bank transfer using the control number shown on your order. Pay the exact amount, once, through the channels shown. Never pay a seller directly outside the instructions on your order page.
• The goods total is held by the bank and is not paid to the seller until the order is verified as set out in these terms. A held payment is not a deposit with us and earns no interest.
• A payment is confirmed only when the bank confirms it. If you have paid and the order still shows as waiting, do not pay again; contact us with your payment reference.
• Prices are in Tanzanian shillings. International buyers should confirm exchange rates and bank charges with their bank before paying.

5. Quality assessment and transport

• Assessors and carriers are independent providers vetted by us. They set or accept a flat service fee shown before you pay.
• Service fees are paid separately by mobile money. Approve the payment prompt on your phone; a prompt that is waiting or being checked must not be paid again.
• A paid assessment must be reported within eight hours unless the order shows a different deadline. The report records grade, kernel recovery, moisture and defects and is shared with the buyer before money is released.
• Carriers must hold valid insurance and licences and record loading and delivery evidence on the order.

6. International purchases

• International buyers see listings from verified exporters and resellers.
• For export orders paid through the bank holding arrangement, the seller has 72 hours from the bank's confirmation to load the full order for export and submit independently verified loading evidence. The period covers loading, not arrival at the destination.
• If the deadline is missed, a full refund of the goods total is requested from the bank. The refund is complete only when the bank confirms it.
• For a direct resale order, payment and shipment follow the sale terms the buyer accepts on the order page. Payment and receipt confirmations are recorded separately on the order.
• A buyer abroad may act through an authorised local representative, who must follow these terms.

7. Release, problems and refunds

• Money is released to the seller after the steps on the order are complete, which may include a quality report, buyer review, loading or delivery evidence and bank confirmation.
• Report a problem from the order page as soon as you notice it and keep your evidence. We may pause a release while we review.
• Whether a refund is due, and how much, depends on the order, the work done, the evidence and the law. Refunds are made to the original payment route.
• Returning goods to stock is handled separately from the refund and is recorded on the order.

8. Acceptable use

You must not:

• give false information, upload false evidence or impersonate another person or business;
• ask for or make payment outside the instructions on an order;
• misuse another user's contact details or messages;
• list goods you do not have the right to sell, or that are unsafe or illegal;
• interfere with the security of the platform, probe it for weaknesses, scrape it or overload it;
• harass, threaten or deceive other users.

We may remove content, pause orders or suspend accounts while we investigate a breach, protect users or comply with the law.

9. Our responsibility

• We take reasonable care to run the platform and the payment instructions correctly. We are not the seller of goods listed by others and do not guarantee their quality beyond the reports recorded on the order.
• We are not liable for losses caused by events outside our reasonable control, by a user's breach of these terms, or by information a user gives us that is false.
• To the extent the law allows, our total liability for any claim about an order is limited to the fees we earned on that order. Nothing in these terms limits rights that cannot be limited under Tanzanian law.

10. Content and intellectual property

You keep ownership of the photos, descriptions and documents you upload, and give us a licence to store and display them to run the marketplace. The Mavuno+ eCom name, design and software belong to Rahami Agri Group.

11. Closing your account

You can ask us to close your account at any time. Orders and payments already in progress must be completed or resolved first, and we keep records the law requires. We may close an account that breaches these terms.

12. Governing law and disputes

These terms are governed by the laws of the United Republic of Tanzania. We will try to resolve any dispute through our support and review process first. If that fails, the dispute may be referred to the competent courts of Tanzania.

13. Changes to these terms

We may update these terms. The new effective date is shown at the top. For significant changes we will tell signed in users before the change applies. Orders placed before a change follow the terms in force when they were placed.