Policy Forum speech at multi-stakeholder meeting on MKUKUTA II
Our dear guest, the Permanent Secretary Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs, Mr Ramadhan Kija, Deputy Permanent Secretary Ministry of Finance, Dr Likwelile, Ambassadors and Members of the Diplomatic Corps, Permanent Secretaries, Members of Parliament as representatives, Distinguished guests, Ladies and Gentlemen.
I am pleased to have this exceptional opportunity to address you on this significant day as we unveil the most critical strategy for the development of our nation that, will guide our concerted efforts as stakeholders of Tanzanians development over the next five years.
On behalf of the civil society organisations, that took part in gathering opinions and consulting development actors from every region in Tanzania, across regions, zones and finally consolidating national civil society inputs to the MKUKUTA II review process, I would like to extend a vote of thanks to the Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs especially the Poverty Eradication Department for their willingness to provide an avenue for collaborating, listening and exchanging critical views, expertise and solutions that has shaped the MKUKUTA II strategy. This event today indicates that Government can collaborate with Civil society.
We would also like to thank particularly, the European Union, The Foundation for Civil Society and UNDP, Swiss Development Cooperation (SDC), CIDA, HIVOS and Google.org for providing the necessary financial and technical support to enable civil society to engage citizens. We have reached over 2100 actors on one to one consultations and are gathering more through a media campaign titled, ‘Kila Sauti Lazima Isikike’ –Every voice must be heard.
The citizens of this country have spoken through these consultations and they have outlined some key priority areas. I am glad that most of these priorities have been included in this final MKUKUTA II draft , but we must none the less take this opportunity to highlight what we are pleased to note was included and what has been left behind that we cannot do without.
In that regard, we have outlined key issues that we want addressed in this statement on behalf of CSO’s consultation review outcomes that can be used to measure whether MKUKUTA II will indeed provide the necessary apparatus to create a conducive environment to reduce income poverty and accelerate growth, promote welfare and wellbeing, and put in place the necessary checks and balances for good governance and accountability to succeed.
MKUKUTA II must first of all be pro-poor, pro –community, sustainable, just and equitable. These big words may seem too abstract for many but we will outline during the course of this speech as we have in the inputs we have given in the MKUKUTA drafting team, how they can be translated to pragmatic solutions that may indeed transform the sad state of affairs that we as a nation live in now.
By pro poor, we mean we must serve the interests of the 33 percent of people of whom a majority 80 percent live in rural areas that suffer from abject poverty. This statistic, can and must be transformed. The provision of basic needs such as food, clothes, shelter, safe drinking water and sanitation, proper housing and access to quality healthcare is not an empty claim but a legitimate need for survival and dignity .
Naturally, for a country that 70 percent of its people are employed in the agriculture sector which includes livestock keeping and aquaculture must resonate with the KILIMO KWANZA strategy. Agriculture must focus on increasing domestic production and better food storage ofcourse, but that alone is insufficient. Small holder farmers, the majority of which are women and young people, must access capital at low interest rates, to enable them to add value to their produce, and accrue profit from their efforts that will subsequently, increase domestic purchasing power.
Value Chain addition is key in all sectors where we utilise natural resources such as mining as well as forestry and wildlife. Whether the produce is used locally or internationally, the focus must be on adding value prior to export and prior to the product being introduced to domestic markets . If small holder farmers and miners are given the necessary capacity, capital and access to markets then they can contribute a greater share in the national economy. Furthermore, promoting growth in the lower strata of people living in poverty will accelerate micro-growth that is the ultimate goal as a nation, to propel Tanzanians to prosperity. Empowering small holders of farming, mining and fishing is not merely a sound economic strategy, but one that is just, equitable and sustainable.
Yes, we agree that foreign investments is critical for the growth of the economy, that they must first be given the opportunity to recover the costs of doing business in Tanzania where we acknowledge that we have poor infrastructure and high energy costs. However, providing a tax haven and attractive offers for their profit making without considering the communities that they evade, the environment that they utilise nor the share of profits that we as a nation accumulate from such arrangements will not, and can not help us achieve real, tangible growth. Neither will it alleviate the conditions of the majority of Tanzanians. Partnerships between foreign and Tanzanian investors must be encouraged so that we can accrue the know-how that will eventually be used to push our own economic agenda. We must also safeguard national interests by drawing contracts that ensure we benefit from the upcoming oil and gas prospects, the current mining extraction as well as fishing, wildlife and forestry sectors.
We must also not forget to empower our own entrepreneurs and provide them with the necessary supportive environment to compete and grow. There are many things that are within our reach, to break the viscous circle that condemns our entrepreneurs to poverty, high taxes (VAT 18% + income tax 30%) and in addition high interest rates (up to 30%) compounded together with the high costs of doing business, only robs the disposable income that they could save or reinvest and grow. Empowering our local investors is true investment to our future and to addressing local poverty and advancing Tanzania’s interests.
Infrastructure development is critical to accessing markets. We cannot be competitive as a country if we do not strengthen our infrastructure. The rail system, which is known across the world to be the cheapest form of cargo transportation, will help revive the nation’s economy and facilitate trade with our landlocked neighbours. Faster and more efficient port services can accelerate Tanzanias’ growth as a trading hub. Domestically, moving our produce from one part of the country to the other can help alleviate food deficiency challenges from areas that produce excess to areas that experience low yield. This is an equitable strategy of distribution that also gives Tanzanians access to markets beyond their borders.
The education system needs greater emphasis on quality. The number of teacher to student ratio must be smaller, but the quality of teachers must be greater. CSO’s that gathered opinions, found that communities demand quality rather than quantity alone. The generations to come must be critical thinkers who can connect their knowledge with their environment and provide solutions to problems that their communities face. We acknowledge, the current effort by the incumbent government to strengthen access to education at primary and secondary level. However, we cannot celebrate and gloat about quantity that is not parallel with provision of quality education. Infact, if we are not careful, our efforts could easily be futile. Higher education especially for young women must be a priority, since only less that 4 percent of girls who start primary will have access to tertiary education. Women and indeed young girls are a demographic opportunity, and so greater effort to their knowledge has been shown through previous research to be an unparallel catalyst for development.
Access to greater healthcare must emphasis the needs of children, youth and women and people with disabilities. Health is not an isolated concept, but rather looks at how we ensue quality of life at birth, throughout our lifespan and delay death. Over the past five years, Longevity has increased from 49 to 56 years. This is indeed a success. But over the next five years, we must increase this further especially by emphasising maternal health challenges that have not changed over the past 20 years. Women or rather according to statistics, young girls, must be protected. Their child bearing debut must be delayed to 20 from the current 16. Clearly this is not merely healthcare challenges but one that must address the ignorant and often downtrodden circumstances force young girls to early sexual activities including early marriage. Shorter distances to health facilities, affordable and quality health cannot be achieved by addressing healthcare challenges in isolation, but when access to quality clean water, sanitation and toilets, safe and standardized housing are ensured.
Over the past five years we have experienced greater transparency in governance and we must take this opportunity to congratulate his excellency President Kikwete , for his leadership especially in giving the media and indeed CSOs’ the opportunity to unveil to the public the corrupt practices of institutions and individuals. As much as we acknowledge that this is a great step forward, as CSO’s we insist that we must encourage Tanzanians to first, realise that we are each other keepers, that when we lose, we lose together, we stand a better chance of progressing if we do so together, and thus when we appoint leaders who are meant to be custodians of our welfare and wellbeing we must curb corruption at its inception, and only if we put in place measures for accountability and good governance that are in themselves accountable. The current MKUKUTA II sadly, does not do so. We cannot, and i repeat cannot afford to lose the opportunity to put in place a framework of ethics as well as pragmatic measures that will afford us the necessary trust in our governance structures to deliver what is just, what it must and what we need to eliminate poverty and develop as a nation.
Let me also take this opportunity to thank some of the people and institutions/ Policy Forum members that have been critical in conducting the review process. Mr Semkae Kilonzo Policy Forum Coordinator, the Policy Forum Staff, our consultants Mr Reginald Munisi and Ms Ngasuma Kanyeka, all members of the steering committee and technical team, Zonal coordinators UNA Tanzania, Haki Elimu, SPW and World Vision, Agenda Participation 2000, thematic consultations hosts IDGE, TYC, TENMET, MKUKUTA disability network and all who made this possible.
On that note, our dear guest, Ladies and Gentlemen. Thank you for listening.
Moses Kulaba
PF Chairman
Blue Pearl Hotel – Ubungo - Dar-es-salaam
7th June 2010