Review of the Efficiency of Tanzania’s Representation and Participation in the United Nations System

Prepared by Muhammad Yussuf
Geneva 2007

CONTENTS

Paragraph Page
Abbreviations and acronyms………………………………………… iv-v
Executive Summary…………………………………………………. vi-xiv
Introduction…………………………………………………………. 1

I. HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE……………………………… 2
A. Constitutional Prerogative…………………………………… 4-6 2
B. Foreign Policy as a Reflection of Domestic Policy………….. 7-9 2

II. TANZANIA PARTICIPATION IN THE UNITED NATIONS 4

• Tanzania’s Role and Influence in the United Nations………. 10-15 4
• The Absence of Strategic Policy Document………………… 16-17 5
• Failure to Benefit from the Activities in the Budget Document 18-21 6
• Original Methodology for Selection of Delegates ………….. 22-27 7
• Random Selection of Delegates to UNGA……………………. 28-35 9

III. TANZANIA’S STRATEGIC PARTNERS……………………. 36-44 12

IV. ELECTIONS AND CANDIDATURES………………………… 45 15

• Membership to the Subsidiary Bodies………………………. 46-47 15
• Election for Membership to Various Expert Bodies…………. 48 16
• Lessons Learned……………………………………………… 49-54 17
• Reasons Behind Tanzania’s Loss in the JIU Election……….. 55-56 19
• Delaying Tactics……………………………………………… 57-58 19
• Uncalled for Remark………………………………………… 59 20
• Bad Precedent……………………………………………….. 60-61 20
• Double Standard…………………………………………….. 62-64 21

V. TANZANIA’S REPRESENTATION IN VARIOUS UN SYSTEM ORGANISATIONS……………………………………………. 65-68 22

• Tanzania’s Policy of Recruitment to the UN system……….. 69-72 24
• Presidential Good Offices…………………………………… 73-76 25
Recruitment of Junior Professional Officers (JPOs)……….. 77-78 26

VI. THE ROLE OF TANZANIA MISSIONS TO
THE UNITED NATIONS……………………………………. 79 28

• Tanzania Mission to the United Nations in New York…… 80-81 28
• Factors Contributing to the Mission’s Robust Performance 82-88 28
• Shift of Emphasis…………………………………………. 89-92 30
• Tanzania Mission to the United Nations in Geneva……… 93-101 32
• Tanzania Mission to the United Nations in Vienna………. 34
• The Threat of Nuclear Weapons………………………….. 102-107 34
• Drug Control and Crime Prevention……………………… 108-111 36
• Promotion of Industrial Development……………………. 112 37
• Other Organizations of the UN system in Vienna………… 113-116 37
• Tanzania Diplomatic Missions Abroad…………………… 117 39
• Tanzania High Commission in Nairobi…………………… 118-122 39
• Tanzania Embassy in Rome……………………………… 123-127 40
• Tanzania Embassy in Paris……………………………….. 128-134 42

THE WAY FORWARD………………………………………… 135-138 45

ANNEXES

Annex 1 – Organigram for Tanzania Mission in New York….. 47
Annex 2 – Organigram for Tanzania Mission in Geneva……… 48
Annex 3 – Organigram for the Proposed Tanzania Mission
in Vienna ……………………………………………. 49

Abbreviations and Acronyms

ACABQ Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions
CHS Commission on Human Settlements
CPC Committee on Programme and Coordination
CSD Commission on Sustainable Development
CSW Commission on the Status of Women
CHR Commission on Human Rights
COI Committee on Information
CSOCD Commission on Social Development
CEDAW Commission for Elimination of Discrimination Against Women
ECOSOC Economic and Social Council
ICSC International Civil Service Commission
ICTR International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda
ILC International Law Commission
ITLS International Tribunal of the Law of the Sea
ICJ International Court of Justice
ICAO International Civil Aviation Organization
ILO International Labour Organization
IMO International Maritime Organization
ITU International Telecommunication Union
IFAD International Fund for Agricultural Development
IAEA International Atomic Energy Agency
MUNOC United Nations Mission in Congo
JIU Joint Inspection Unit
OECD Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development
OSRSG/WS Office of the Special Representative of the SG in Western Sahara
UNCC United Nations Compensation Commission
UNECA United Nations Economic Commission for Africa
UNAT United Nations Administrative Tribunal
UNHQ United Nations Headquarters
UNDP United Nations Development Programme
UNICEF United Nations Children’s Fund
UNFPA United Nations Population Fund
UNEP United Nations Environmental Programme
UNESCO United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
UNJSPF United Nations Joint Staff Pension Fund
UN-HABITAT United Nations Agency for Human Settlement
UNODC United Office for Drug and Crime
UNIDO United Nations Industrial Development Organization
UNCTAD United Nations Conference on Trade and Development
UNMIK United Nations Mission in Kossovo
UNMIL United Nations Mission in Liberia
UNAMSIL United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone
UNOIC United Nations Operations in Ivory Coast
UNMEE United Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea
UNSMH United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti
UNHCR United Nations High Commission for Refugees
UNOG United Nations Office in Geneva
UNOV United Nations Office in Vienna
UNON United Nations Office in Nairobi
WIPO World Intellectual Property Organization
WTO World Tourism Organization
WFP World Food Programme

Executive Summary

OBJECTIVE: To identify factors and weaknesses inhibiting Tanzania’s effective participation and representation in the United Nations system and propose concrete measures to enhancing its effective participation and representation in the organizations of the United Nations system.

MAIN FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

A. Tanzania’s participation in the United Nations has improved significantly over the past few years especially with regard to the exceptional and increasingly satisfactory role it played during its recent membership to the Security Council. There is, however, a general consensus that in order for Tanzania to enhance its effective participation and representation in the United Nations system as a whole, some concrete and concerted measures have to be undertaken in terms of strengthening its participation and representation so as to go hand in hand with the new imperatives of the present day political realities affecting both the domestic and global agenda.

All the competent Tanzanian authorities should consider seriously the merit and benefits of implementing all the recommendations contained in this report for the purpose of rendering Tanzania’s participation and representation in the United Nations system organizations much more efficient and effective.

B. It is a well-accepted notion that the foreign policy of any given country is a reflection of its domestic policy. Article 41(3) of the Constitution of the United Republic of Tanzania provides, among other things, that “a person shall be nominated to contest for the Office of the Vice-President on the basis of the principle that where the President of the United Republic hails from one part of the United Republic, then the Vice-President shall be a person who hails from the other part of the Union”. One would have assumed, therefore, that this constitutional prerogative that reflected the domestic reality of Tanzania’s two-tier system of government would be replicated at the international level. Unfortunately, that has not been the case. Consequently, as a gesture of tremendous goodwill on the part of the President, the implementation of the following recommendation will not only help to recognize Zanzibar’s unique identity within the Union, but will also help, to a larger extent, to contain the independent separatist sentiments from the anti-Union elements and from the opposition in general.

RECOMMENDATION 1

The President of the United Republic of Tanzania should, in future, consider the merit of appointing two ambassadors: i.e. a Permanent Representative and a Deputy Permanent Representative of Tanzania to the United Nations in New York – one hailing from one part of the United Republic; and the other hailing from the other part of the Union. For the purpose of ensuring maximum effectiveness and increased efficiency, such appointments should be made strictly on the basis of merit rather than political consideration.

C. Since independence, successive Tanzanian Presidents have continued to provide a formidable leadership in the articulation and direction of Tanzania’s policies with regard to various issues on the international agenda. The document on Tanzania’s Foreign Policy adopted in 2004/2005 provides a broad perspective on the goals and objectives to be achieved. But in order to ensure the effective implementation of the goals and objectives reflected in the TFP document, there is an urgent need for the Ministry to provide a clear-cut direction and strategy for its effective implementation. In the course of doing so, some deliberate efforts should be undertaken in terms of identifying concrete positions on each and every item on the Agenda of the United Nations. The implementation of the following recommendation will help to provide a clear-cut direction and a concomitant strategy for the implementation of the TFP document.

RECOMMENDATION 2

The Permanent Secretary, in consultations with the Minister of Foreign Affairs, should prepare, as soon as possible, a strategic framework document that would provide a clear-cut directive to the Missions abroad in terms of strategy for the effective implementation of the TFP policy document. The document should be concise, action-oriented and time bound.

D. One of the most lucrative business activities being implemented by the United Nations is procurement. In response to periodic injunctions by the General Assembly for increased procurement from developing countries and countries with economies in transition, the United Nations Procurement Division (UNPD) has been inviting Member States to host Inter-Agency Procurement Working Group’s meetings held every two years in the developing countries as well as organizing seminars in the developing regions in which representatives from local business communities are being afforded with the opportunity to exchange views and ideas with the heads of procurement units from various organizations of the United Nations system on the best ways and means to doing business with the United Nations. Such meetings and seminars appear to have afforded opportunities for increased participation of recipient countries in the procurement business of the United Nations. Importantly, hosting such meetings will augur very well with Tanzania’s declared policy of economic diplomacy. The implementation of the following recommendation will help to ensure Tanzania’s effective participation in the procurement business activities of the United Nations as well as reaping to the maximum the economic benefits derived from it.

RECOMMENDATION 3

The Permanent Secretary, after considering the merit and benefits that might be accrued, should take the necessary measures to ensure that Tanzania responds positively to the invitation from the United Nations to host the forthcoming Inter-Agency Procurement Working Group’s meeting.

E. The random selection of delegates and the absence of a well-defined mandate for each delegate on mission to the UNGA session in New York creates some kind of chaotic situation and makes home-based delegates resorting to the tendency of overcrowding the corridors at the UN with no clear task and duties to be performed. Indeed, delegates should be allowed to remain in New York throughout the duration of the UNGA session in order to allow them to effectively familiarize themselves with all the important issues contained in the programme of work of the General Assembly. Indeed, their prolonged stay will land a needed helping hand to the New York-based delegates/staff who, as a one-man delegation in their respective committees, are already overwhelmed with too much work during the main part of the General Assembly session. The implementation of the following recommendation will help to ensure that delegates to UNGA are selected on the basis of their merit and need and are fully accountable for the task and mandate to be performed by each one of them.

RECOMMENDATION 4

The Permanent Secretary should review the original methodology for the selection of delegates to the UNGA with the view to re-instating it; taking into consideration the need to provide a well-defined mandate and task to be performed for each delegate on the basis of identifying issues that have an important bearing and relevance to Tanzania’s strategic interests.

F. The implementation of the result-based management framework (RBM) as commonly practiced in most African countries provides that the implementation of any activity in the approved budget document should be linked to the achievement of specific performance criteria. The inclusion of officials to the list of delegates to UNGA should, therefore, be made with a proviso that the official/staff concerned will be required, on his/her return, to prepare a detailed report on the experience gained and lessons learned and make concrete recommendations to the Permanent Secretary on the best ways and means to improving the Ministry’s various policies relevant to the mandate or line of duty of the official/staff concerned. The implementation of the following recommendation will help to improve the Ministry’s policies on various issues of interest and strategic importance to Tanzania.

RECOMMENDATION 5

The Permanent Secretary, in the process of making selection of delegates to UNGA, should make sure that any delegate selected will provide a detailed report on the experience gained and lessons learned and make concrete recommendations to him on the best ways and means to improving the Ministry’s various policies relevant to the mandate or line of duty of the official/staff concerned.

G. For quite some time now, Tanzania’s positions with regard to various issues before the United Nations agenda have continued to be linked with the positions taken by Tanzania’s strategic partners, i.e. the Group of 77, the Non-Aligned Movement and the African Group. But, the history of these groups to date has been marked by the ability of a few countries within the Groups to exercise an overriding influence over other countries on policy direction. Incidentally, Tanzania’s positions on a number of issues have continued to be directly linked with these Group’s positions. On the other hand, if Tanzania is to reap the benefits of multilateral system effectively, it must insist on playing a much stronger part than at present in the decision-making processes of these Groups. In other words, in order for any country to be seen to participate actively and effectively in any deliberations, it must have a solid position of its own. The implementation of the following recommendation will render Tanzania’s participation in the Groups’ deliberations and its influence in the decision-making process much more effective.

RECOMMENDATION 6

The Permanent Secretary, in the course of undertaking discussions with Tanzania’s strategic partners, the G-77, NAM and the African Group on various issues on the United Nations agenda, should make sure that Tanzania is well prepared to come up with its own solid positions based on a few carefully selected items for earnest negotiations with its traditional strategic partners before reaching any consensus positions. See also Recommendation 2.

H. Over the years, Tanzania has continued to serve in a number of subsidiary and expert bodies of the General Assembly, the ECOSOC and the Security Council. Membership to multitude of bodies hampers Tanzania’s effective participation within the United Nations system. It should, therefore, be preferable if Tanzania were to join as member to a few but carefully selected bodies based purely on the strategic interests of Tanzania, the sub-region and Africa as a whole. The implementation of the following recommendation will help to ensure that Tanzania’s participation in the work of various bodies of the United Nations is well coordinated and followed-up in a much more systematic, effective and efficient manner.

RECOMMENDATION 7

The Permanent Secretary should undertake a review of Tanzania’s membership to various bodies within the United Nations system with the view to identifying them and make some concrete recommendations in respect of Tanzania’s possible membership thereto taking into consideration the above-mentioned observation.

I. It is a well-accepted principle that elections for membership to various bodies of the United Nations system are conducted on the basis of equitable geographical distribution and reasonable rotation. Consequently, a well-established practice is now being applied in the Central African sub-region to allow a Member State to field a candidate for the election for membership to a UN subsidiary body provided that the candidate does not run for more than two consecutive terms of office. Since 2003, this practice is also being implemented in the East and Southern African sub-region. The implementation of the following recommendation will contribute immensely in terms of getting the African Group and/or the sub-region concerned to agree on a single candidate for endorsement; and hence avoid the prospect of giving other regional groups the power to determine the choice of candidate(s) for election.

RECOMMENDATION 8

The Permanent Secretary should take the necessary measures to ensure that Tanzanian candidates for the election to various subsidiary/expert bodies of the United Nations are allowed to run for no more than two consecutive terms of office.

J. The failure of Tanzania’s strategic partners from the SADC sub-region and from the African Group as a whole to rally support behind Tanzania’s African Union endorsed candidate as exemplified by the recent election to the membership of the JIU should be seen as more of a wake-up call than anything else. Perhaps it will not be a bad idea if, in future, Tanzania were to examine the merit and benefit of forging closer relationship with the 53 Commonwealth Group of Member States at the United Nations in New York including the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of Member States for the purpose of elections. The implementation of the following recommendation will give Tanzania more room for maneuver in terms of support for the purpose of elections and hence increasing its chances for success.

RECOMMENDATION 9

The Permanent Secretary, in consultations with Tanzania High Commission to the United Kingdom, should undertake a review on the merit and benefit of forging closer relationship with the Commonwealth Group of Member States in New York for the purposes of elections.

K. For a number of years, Tanzania has continued to espouse its long-standing policy aimed at the recruitment of Tanzanians at the United Nations system organizations. But, unfortunately, no concrete action has been taken to ensure the systematic implementation of that policy. In other words, it was more of rhetorical nature than an action-oriented effort. While individual Tanzanians can apply directly for vacancies via Internet through the United Nations Galaxy system, however, in order to give credence to the Government’s policy of getting more Tanzanians recruited in the United Nations, there is an increasing need to devise a strategy and mechanism for its implementation. The implementation of the following recommendation will, not only give credence to Tanzania’s policy of recruitment, but will also provide a concrete strategy for its implementation.

RECOMMENDATION 10

The Permanent Secretary should consider the merit and benefit of creating a recruitment section/unit within the Ministry’s Division of Administration and Personnel (DAP) and the establishment of a database of Tanzanians who are in possession of the necessary qualifications and experience for recruitment and placement purposes in the United Nations system organizations. Importantly, the Ministry should undertake deliberate measures aimed at encouraging qualified Tanzanians to apply for various positions within the UN system.

L. For a number of years now, the recruitment of junior professional officers (JPOs), also known as associate experts, within the United Nations system organizations has helped, to a larger extent, young professionals from mostly developed countries to learn and appreciate the good work of the United Nations. Most organizations of the UN system have considered them to be a valuable resource injecting vitality and fresh ideas into the system. Their accumulated experience after a two to three-year attachment with the UN system organizations have allowed them to acquire a certain degree of comparative advantage over the other prospective candidates.

M. As a result, a modest number of JPOs have been able to land permanent jobs in various organizations of the UN system. Over several years, some donor countries have been making substantial voluntary contributions in terms of the recruitment of JPOs. For instance, the governments of the Netherlands, Germany, France and Japan, apart from financing the recruitment of their own nationals, they have also been singled out as an exemplary source of contributions for recruitment of JPOs from the developing countries as well. Unfortunately, for a poor country like Tanzania, contributing to the recruitment of young Tanzanian professionals is more of a dream than a reality. The implementation of the following recommendation will provide young professionals from Tanzania with opportunities to learn and appreciate the good work of the United Nations as well as enabling them to acquire a degree of knowledge and experience that will help to land them permanent employment within the organizations of the United Nations system.

RECOMMENDATION 11

The Permanent Secretary, in consultations with the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Finance, may wish to examine the possibility of making a special request to the governments of the Netherlands, Germany, France and Japan for the purpose of financing the recruitment of JPOs from Tanzania in the context of annual bilateral consultations.

N. With the assumption to power of Ban Ki-moon as the new Secretary-General of the United Nations in January 2007, the emphasis of the United Nations agenda will most likely shift to the most highly dangerous situations in North Korea and Iran – situations whose consequences and ramifications may have adverse effects on the maintenance of international peace and security; and to the more complex issue of management and reform which include, among other things, governance and oversight, and for which Kofi Annan, for obvious reasons, failed to get the General Assembly to reach a decisive conclusion before his departure.

O. In fact, the Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon has already elected to delegate much of the management and administrative work of the Secretariat to Dr. Asha-Rose Migiro, the newly appointed Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations . There is no doubt, therefore, that any decision on the question of reform will have a huge impact on the future role of the General Assembly as an inter-governmental watchdog of the whole with the legislative authority to oversee the Secretariat in the implementation of all the mandated progammes and activities of the United Nations worldwide. More importantly, given the fact that Tanzania’s role in peacekeeping is increasingly gaining ground as reflected by the Government’s recent decision to send peacekeeping troops to Lebanon, the task of the Head of Mission in New York will also increase in scope and magnitude. The implementation of the following recommendation will help to provide the Mission with the necessary human resources as well as enabling it to adequately build its capacity for increased efficiency in the effective implementation of its enormous tasks and responsibilities.

RECOMMENDATION 12

The Minister of Foreign Affairs should recommend to the President the maintenance of the post of the Deputy Permanent Representative on a permanent basis. At the same time, the Permanent Secretary should approve the creation of two additional posts, i.e., the Military Attache and a Special Advisor to the Permanent Representative in order to help the Head of Mission to effectively manage the multitude of new tasks and challenges at the United Nations.

P. The enormity of the task to be performed at the Tanzania Mission in Geneva could be seen from the perspective of the actual mandates and activities of all the United Nations system organizations located in Geneva. Indeed, the Mission has to cover a total of 12 organizations of the United Nations system including WTO and UNOG; and to actively participate in more than 8000 meetings/conferences convened at Geneva annually. As a full-fledged member to all these organizations, Tanzania continues to exhibit huge interests in terms of not only the implementation of their respective mandated programmes and activities, but also in terms of the benefits that could be accrued and generated therein. Importantly, any decision on the issue of management and reform will also have a huge impact on the administration and management of the Geneva-based organizations of the UN system. Indeed, with the election of former President Mkapa as the new Chairman of the South Center based in Geneva, there is an increasing need to have someone at the Mission to act as a Special Representative of the Chairman. With the current staff of five including the Permanent Representative himself, there is no doubt, therefore, that the Mission is faced with an acute shortage of human resources. The implementation of the following recommendation will provide the Mission with the necessary human resources for increased efficiency in the implementation of its huge and enormous responsibilities.

RECOMMENDATION 13

The Minister of Foreign Affairs should consider the merit of recommending to the President for the appointment of a Deputy Permanent Representative of Tanzania to the United Nations in Geneva taking into consideration the observations on paragraphs 88 through 95 of this report. At the same time, the Permanent Secretary should approve the creation of two additional posts at the Mission in order to help the Head of Mission to undertake effectively the huge tasks and enormous responsibilities.

Q. UNOV is the third largest United Nations Office away from the Headquarters after UNHQ in New York and UNOG in Geneva. Organizations such as IAEA, UNIDO, UNODC, OOSA, ITLD, UNCITRAL, CTBTO, IMOLIN and INCB have their offices located in Vienna. More importantly, Vienna is a place where important issues such as the threat of nuclear weapons, the use of nuclear energy to peace and sustainable development, drug control and crime prevention, promotion of industrial development in developing countries, useful uses of outer space, the codification of international trade law, etc., are being discussed and important decisions are being taken. Tanzania cannot, and should not continue to stand idle by watching other Member States making important decisions that may have adverse effects on the maintenance of international peace and security, or on the drug control and crime prevention, and on the promotion of industrial development. In other words, Tanzania must have a voice on these and many other issues. It can only do so by being an active participant in the discussions and negotiations, rather than by being a mere spectator. The implementation of the following recommendation will enable Tanzania to participate effectively in the work and the decision-making process of all the Vienna-based organizations of the UN system; as well as benefiting immensely from a wide range of expertise, knowledge and institutional memory associated with the work of those organizations.

RECOMMENDATION 14

The Minister of Foreign Affairs should consider the merit of recommending to the President on the urgent need to establish a Tanzania Mission to the United Nations in Vienna taking into consideration the observations contained in the relevant paragraphs of this review.

INTRODUCTION

1. Although Tanzania’s representation and participation in the United Nations has improved significantly over the past years especially with regard to the exceptional and increasingly satisfactory role it played during its recent membership to the Security Council, there is, however, a general consensus that in order for Tanzania to enhance its effective participation and representation in the United Nations system as a whole, some concrete measures and concerted efforts have to be undertaken and deployed respectively in terms of strengthening its participation and representation so as to go hand in hand with the new imperatives of the present day political realities affecting both the domestic and global agenda.

2. Consequently, the author, after some extensive consultations with various Tanzanians working in various bodies of the United Nations system organizations, and with some few carefully selected members of the Tanzania Diplomatic missions abroad, has undertaken this review and come up with some concrete recommendations for the purpose of trying to help the Tanzania Government to enhance its representation and participation so as to render it much more effective, dynamic and efficient. Indeed, in doing so, the author has elected to deliberately focus on highlighting issues which he believes have an important and direct bearing on Tanzania’s national, sub-regional, continental and global interests in general.

3. The author wishes to take this opportunity to express his sincere thanks and appreciation to all those who have made some invaluable contributions and assisted him in the preparation of this review.

I. HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVES

A. Constitutional Prerogative

4. Tanganyika became a member of the United Nations in 1961 immediately after independence from the Great Britain. Zanzibar joined the United Nations in 1963 after gaining its independence from Britain. After the 1964 Revolution, which toppled the Sultanate Government of Zanzibar, Tanganyika and Zanzibar were united to form the United Republic of Tanzania. Since 1964, Zanzibar forfeited its membership to the United Nations and the two sovereign independent united countries assumed a single membership to the United Nations.

5. More importantly, in accordance with the interim constitution of the United Republic of Tanganyika and Zanzibar which was put in place at the time of the merger of the two countries, and in order to protect the smaller partner from the possibility of being completely swallowed by the more powerful bigger partner, it was provided that if the Presidency of the United Republic was occupied by a Tanzanian citizen hailing from one part of the Union, the Vice-Presidency should be occupied by a Tanzanian citizen hailing from the other part of the Union. Accordingly, soon after the Union in April 1964, Mwalimu Julius Nyerere, the President of the United Republic, appointed Mzee Abeid Amani Karume to be the Vice-President of the United Republic.

6. More significantly, Mwalimu Nyerere did not stop there. In the course of his successive administrations, as well as throughout his 23 years as President, Mwalimu had consistently upheld the practice of appointing Ministers and Deputy Ministers in the Union Ministries, such as Foreign Affairs, Defense and Home Affairs along similar lines. Indeed, this practice has continued to be religiously upheld and implemented until today more than 42 years since the Union came into force. Even recently, after his landslide electoral victory in December 2005, President Kikwete had deliberately elected to appoint Tanzanian citizens hailing from Tanzania Mainland as Ministers; and Tanzanian citizens hailing from Zanzibar as Deputy Ministers in all the Union Ministries, i.e., Foreign Affairs, Defense and Home Affairs respectively.

Foreign Policy as a Reflection of Domestic Policy

7. Consequently, since it is a well-accepted notion that the foreign policy of any given country is a reflection of its domestic policy, one would have assumed that this constitutional prerogative, which reflected the domestic reality of Tanzania’s two-tier system of government, would be replicated at the international level as has continued to be the case with regard to the Federal Government of Canada. It should be noted here that Canada, which has only recently recognized the French-speaking people of Quebec as a nation within a united Canada , has also continued to recognize the bilingual nature of the country at the international level by requiring its representatives to deliver their statements in the two official languages of the country, i.e. English and French. There’s little doubt, therefore, that the move could be conveniently described as a gesture of tremendous goodwill to recognize Quebec’s unique identity, ancestry and cultural heritage within Canada.

8. By the same token, since Zanzibar forfeited its seat at the United Nations, the President of the United Republic would have been logically expected to consider the possibility of appointing two ambassadors; i.e. a permanent representative and a deputy permanent representative of Tanzania to the United Nations in New York – one hailing from one part of the United Republic and the other from the other part of the Union in order to recognize and safeguard the unique identity of the people of Zanzibar, their cultural heritage and as a semi-autonomous entity within the United Republic. Indeed, for the purpose of ensuring maximum effectiveness and increased efficiency, the author wishes to emphasize here that such appointments should be made strictly on the basis of merit rather than political considerations. (Recommendation 1)

9. More importantly, it is a common practice for certain Member States of the United Nations to allow leaders of regional or provincial authorities from their countries to address the United Nations General Assembly. For instance, Dr. Sultan Bin Mohammed Al-Qassimi, the Emir (Ruler) of Sharja has, in many occasions, addressed the General Assembly on behalf of the United Arab Emirates . The governments of India and Canada have also allowed their members of parliament and senators respectively to address the General Assembly on behalf of their governments . It will not be a bad idea, therefore, if special arrangements could be made to allow the President of Zanzibar, once in a while, to address UNGA on behalf of the United Republic of Tanzania. More importantly, concerted and deliberate efforts should be made to ensure that more leaders/officials from Zanzibar are afforded with the opportunity to participate actively in international forums. While the author recognizes the fact that such practice is actually being implemented by the Government, however, its frequency and sustainability needs to be much more enhanced.

II. TANZANIA’S PARTICIPATION IN THE UNITED NATIONS

A. Tanzania’s role and influence in the United Nations

10. From the late 1960s through early 1980s Tanzania’s role and influence at the United Nations was remarkable. Tanzania’s permanent representatives to the United Nations during that period, ambassadors John Malecela and Salim Ahmed Salim, played a significant and pivotal role in articulating Tanzania’s positions on a number of important issues affecting the well being of human kind. As undisputed chairmen of the famous De-colonization Committee, also known as Committee of 24, these two extraordinary sons of Africa have done what it took to convince the world body through the General Assembly that it was time for the colonial powers to recognize the inalienable right to independence of all those countries and peoples under foreign domination, subjugation and colonialism.

11. Under Mwalimu Nyerere’s able chairmanship of the Frontline States at sub-regional level, the OAU Liberation Committee at the continental level, coupled by the extraordinary efforts deployed by Tanzanian envoys at the United Nations in terms of sensitizing international opinion at the global level, countries like Zimbabwe, Angola, Comoros, Mozambique, Guinea Bissau etc, gained their independence one after the other. Even the United States famous policy, under President Ronald Reagan, aimed at attempting to link the independence of Namibia with the withdrawal of Cuban troops from Angola did not stop Namibia from gaining its independence .

12. In recognition of the role played by Tanzania and more specifically by ambassador Salim, in 1979 the General Assembly elected him as its 34th President by acclamation. In his capacity as General Assembly President during the period 1979-1980, Salim also presided over the 6th Emergency Special Session on the Situation in Afghanistan; 7th Emergency Special Session on the Question of Palestine; and the 11th Special Session on the Critical Economic Situation of Many Developing Countries. It is during this very latter special session when the General Assembly, after spirited discussions and protracted negotiations, adopted its famous resolutions on the New International Economic Order, and the New International Information Order. Indeed, if it was not for the United States’ consistent veto against him, Salim could have become the first African Secretary-General of the United Nations.

13. More importantly, Tanzania’s role in the Security Council was also impeccable and extremely outstanding. Elected to the Security Council for the first time for a two-year term (1975–1976), Tanzania, under the able leadership of ambassador Salim, presided over the deliberations on a number of critical issues which had direct bearing and/or concern to Africa and to the developing countries of the South in general. On the other hand, Mwalimu’s leadership role was a key and very instrumental in Tanzania’s diplomatic achievements and successes at the international level. In other words, Mwalimu gave the direction in terms of the issues that should constitute the country’s foreign policy; he identified goals and objectives to be achieved. For instance, the struggle for the liberation of the countries of Southern Africa; the war against Idi Amin of Uganda; and the need for a new international economic order. The Ministry, in its part, translated that direction into a concrete policy framework document and the strategy for implementation.

14. In recent years, Tanzania’s participation in the United Nations has begun to improve significantly after a short spell of absolute inaction and irrelevance due to the lack of clear policy direction and the strategy for implementation. However, since the election of President Jakaya Kikwete last year and Tanzania’s election to the Security Council in 2005-2006, Tanzania’s leadership role, as personified and epitomized by ambassador Agostino Maiga at the United Nations, has been able to make some important achievements in the area of the maintenance of international peace and security. For example, as President of the Security Council, Tanzania delegation made maximum use of its presidency to articulate its position on the sensitive issue regarding the urgent need for reconciliation, peace and political stability in the war-torn countries of the Great Lake region on the explicit argument that Tanzania cannot be at peace if its neighbors were at war.

15. As a result of this clear cut policy direction, African leaders from the Great Lakes region, which included its outgoing chairman, President Kikwete, meeting in Nairobi last December have signed a $2bn security and development pact aimed at preventing further bloodshed in the region. Among other things, the treaty also covers issues such as security, governance and economic development. It also includes measures to disarm remaining rebel groups, prevent arms trafficking and help millions of refugees . More importantly, the recent appointment of Dr. Asha-Rose Migiro as the Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations makes her the highest-ranking woman from Tanzania at the United Nations. While Tanzania should take much pride for this important appointment, however, it should not expect Dr. Migiro to do much in terms of tackling important issues regarding the maintenance of international peace and security since her mandate, as clearly spelled out by Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon himself, will be limited to handling administrative and management issues at the UN secretariat. In fact, the post of the Deputy Secretary-General was established by the General Assembly resolution 52/12 of 9 January 1998 in order to assist the globe trotting Kofi Annan in “managing the operations of the secretariat and to elevate the Organization’s profile and leadership in the economic and social spheres” .

B. The absence of a strategic framework document

16. Since independence, successive Tanzanian Presidents have continued to provide a formidable leadership in the articulation and direction of Tanzania’s policy options with regard to various issues on the international agenda. While the policy framework document on Tanzania’s Foreign Policy (TFP) as currently enunciated and adopted in 2004/2005 is largely comprehensive, however, it needs some fine-tuning and updating since it lacks specificity in terms of strategy for its implementation. Indeed, since the policy framework document is attempting to articulating policies in a much more broader terms, there is, however, an urgent need for the Ministry to prepare a complimentary framework document with a concomitant strategy for the effective implementation of the Tanzania Foreign Policy document. In other words, the Ministry must provide a clear-cut direction and a strategy in terms of identifying concrete positions on each and every item on the Agenda of the United Nations. This can only be achieved if a strategic framework document to compliment the TFP document could be prepared at the Headquarters with, of course, some inputs from Tanzania missions abroad. But it would be wrong to continue the practice of making use of the inputs and briefs from the Tanzania Missions abroad, as is currently the case, in place of a well-prepared strategic document for implementation.

17. In any case, the author will not attempt to focus on the substance of the envisaged strategic framework document for implementation since to do so will be outside the scope of this review. However, in the course of formulating the said framework document, some deliberate efforts should be undertaken in terms of conducting exhaustive consultations with various relevant sectoral Ministries with the objective of getting the competent officials to spell out clearly their views and ideas; and what exactly they would like to see being incorporated in the document as a genuine reflection of what the Ministries want to see being accomplished at the international arena. In other words, the document should include a clear-cut direction on issues having an important bearing on Tanzania’s strategic interests. The document should be concise, action-oriented and time-bound. (Recommendation 2)

C. Failure to benefit from the activities in the United Nations budget document

18. In the absence of a clear framework document and strategy for implementation, Tanzania has been unable to benefit meaningfully and adequately from all the mandated programmes and activities as reflected in the successive United Nations programme budget documents. It should be noted that in accordance with the United Nations budgetary process, once the Proposed Programme Budget for a given biennium has been approved by the General Assembly, the programme managers in various departments of the United Nations begin to systematically implement the programmes and activities so mandated by the General Assembly. One of the most lucrative business activities being implemented by the United Nations is procurement. For example, procurement activities in the United Nations system accounted for US$ 4.6 billion in 2002, or 37 per cent of the combined regular and extra-budgetary resources of the organizations. If account is also taken of public procurement for development projects financed by the multilateral financial institutions, such as the World Bank Group and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the value of procurement business represented by the international multilateral system approaches US$ 30 billion per annum .

19. In response to periodic injunctions by the General Assembly for increased procurement from developing countries and countries with economies in transition and the need to widen its sources of procurement as much as possible, for years now the United Nations Procurement Services has been inviting Member States to host Inter-Agency Procurement Working Group’s meetings held every two years in the developing countries as well as organizing business seminars in the developing regions in which representatives from local business communities are being afforded with the opportunity to exchange views and ideas with the heads of procurement units from various United Nations system organizations on the best ways to doing business with the United Nations.

20. In fact, these meetings and seminars appear to have afforded opportunities for increased participation of recipient countries in the procurement business of the United Nations system. For example, since hosting the IAPWG meeting in 2003, Poland has increased its business with the United Nations in terms of procurement business volume from a meager US$ 1 million in that year to over US$ 6 million in 2005 . Unfortunately, this has not been the case for Tanzania despite the tremendous efforts made by a Tanzanian working in the United Nations procurement services to make the maximum use of the opportunities offered.

21. For example, as of 2005 Tanzania has only managed to get a meager US$194.060.00 (0.01%) worth of procurement business with the United Nations whereas Kenya, after having once hosted the IAPWG meeting with the support of the private sector, recorded a modest business volume in the neighborhood of US$ 3,293,583.00 (0.20%). According to some reliable sources, Kenya is believed to have exhibited deep interest to host the IAPWG seminar once again in the very near future. On the other hand, due to its aggressiveness in business activities, Uganda made a robust procurement business worth USD$ 6,237,949.00 (0.39%) during the same year . The author, therefore, strongly recommends that Tanzania should seriously consider the merit and the benefits that might be accrued if it were to host the Inter-Agency Procurement Working Group meeting as soon as possible. In fact, hosting the said meeting will augur very well with Tanzania’s declared policy of economic diplomacy. (Recommendation 3)

D. Original Methodology for the Selection of delegates to UNGA

22. While the quality of Tanzania’s participation in the deliberations of the United Nations General Assembly sessions has, over the years, continued to be quite good, unfortunately the current methodology for the selection of delegates to UNGA has rendered Tanzania’s participation somewhat uneasy and increasingly chaotic. During the past years, the list of delegates to UNGA included the President of the United Republic, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Principal Secretary, the Director of Foreign Affairs, Zanzibar, the Director of Multilateral Division, the Head of Section and the Desk Officer from the DMC. The list also included one or two Members of Parliament and Tanzanian ambassadors to Geneva and Addis Ababa. In some rare cases, the list also included one senior officer from one of the other divisions of the Ministry on a rotational basis.

23. It should be noted that the President used to participate only on special sessions, such as the 21st Special Session on the Review and Appraisal of the Implementation of the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development; or the 24th World Summit for Social Development and Beyond: Achieving Social Development for All in a Global World; or the 26th Special Session on HIV/AIDS, etc. In other words, the President was not used to attending the UNGA session every year, which, fortunately, is also the case today. The Minister’s two-week participation has always been necessary since he/she was the one who was required to make the general policy statement to the General Assembly outlining Tanzania’s positions on various issues before the General Assembly.

24. The Principal Secretary, who also stayed in New York for not more than two weeks, provided guidance as head of delegation in the absence of the Minister. He also provided moral and administrative support to the staff and, in some rare cases, was required to make a statement to one of the main committees of the General Assembly. Importantly, it was a well-established practice that the Director of Foreign Affairs, Zanzibar attended UNGA deliberations each year and remained in New York throughout the duration of the session. His main mandate was to cover the deliberations of the plenary and provide a detailed brief to the President of Zanzibar immediately after his return on what has transpired and be made aware of Tanzania’s positions on various issues on the United Nations agenda.

25. On the other hand, the Director of the Multilateral Cooperation was, indeed, the true engine behind Tanzania’s participation in UNGA. His main task was to give the correct interpretation of the policy document and direction to the delegation on all the issues before the UN agenda. The Head of Section’s main mandate was to cover the plenary and prepare a report on the deliberations that had transpired throughout the duration of the general debate and the entire session. As a special assistant to the DMC, the Desk Officer’s role was to take the notes on all the bilateral and multilateral meetings attended by the DMC during the entire UNGA session and prepare a report thereon.

26. The logic behind the inclusion of members of parliament in the list of delegates to UNGA was to impress them on the enormous challenge and important work undertaken by the Government in representing the interests of the country at the United Nations and afford them with the opportunity to learn about the processes involved in the adoption of resolutions and decisions by the General Assembly. On the other hand, the rational behind the inclusion of Tanzania envoys in Geneva and Addis Ababa in the list of delegates to UNGA was precipitated by the need to make the maximum use of their knowledge and expertise on a multitude of complex issues pertaining to Africa’s development and to ECOSOC – issues which normally figure prominently in the agenda of the United Nations General Assembly.

27. Finally, the inclusion of the senior officer from the other division of the Ministry outside the DMC on a rotational basis was necessitated by the need to give other officers in the Ministry the opportunity to build up their capacities in the area of multilateral diplomacy. Indeed, such practice has contributed a great deal in terms of not only building the staff’s capacity and boosting their moral, but it has also helped in terms of giving them the necessary tools and incentives for increased performance.

E. The random selection of delegates to UNGA

28. Unfortunately, the original methodology used for the selection of delegates to UNGA is no longer being applied. Instead, the author learned that delegates are selected randomly without taking into consideration the above criteria and rational behind their selection. The list of delegates is usually long and includes Directors from other divisions of the Ministry and some senior as well as junior staff. What is even more astonishing is the fact that these senior officials and staff are required to remain in New York for only two weeks. The most often invoked argument in defense of this new practice emanates from the so-called lack of travel opportunities in other divisions outside the DMC; hence the presumed need for giving incentive and motivation to staff whose line of duties did not provide them with the opportunity to travel abroad on missions. But, authorizing staff to travel to New York for only two weeks through a random selection does not seem to be a viable solution. What is required here is to give the staff genuine incentive and motivation that will enable them to increase their performance as well as become effective delegates in the future.

29. In other words, in the absence of a well-defined task for each staff on mission in terms of clearly defined objective to be achieved, the author does not see how such a random selection of staff to attend and participate in the UNGA sessions for two weeks will serve that purpose. Indeed, staff cannot be expected to make a robust performance within two weeks of their arrival in New York only to find that, in no time, they are required to prepare for their departure back to the capital!

30. As a result of this chaotic situation, home-based delegates have the increasing tendency to overcrowd the corridors at the United Nations with no clear task and duties to be performed. They are more inclined to shopping around than performing real task that have not been defined to them in the first place. As a matter of fact, they should not be expected to do anything when the New York-based members of the staff are extremely busy covering their respective main committees in fulfilling their task in accordance with their job description. In the author’s humble opinion, this is, indeed, a blatant waste of both human and financial resources at its worst.

31. On the contrary, the original practice for the selection of delegates to UNGA did provide a genuine solution to the problem and it should, therefore, be reviewed and re-instated. Importantly, delegates should be allowed to remain in New York throughout the duration of the UNGA session in order to allow them to effectively familiarize themselves with all the important issues contained in the programme of work of the General Assembly and being able to make a timely rigorous follow-up thereon. Indeed, their prolonged stay will land a needed helping hand to the New York-based staff who, as a one-man delegation in their respective committees, are normally overwhelmed with too much work during the main part of the UNGA session. (Recommendation 4))

32. Another important aspect that should be considered in the selection process of delegates to UNGA is the need to align the process with the issues that have important bearing on Tanzania’s strategic interests. The item on Human Resources Management Reform in the United Nations, which comes every year, is a classic example worth mentioning. It should be noted that, for quite sometime now, Tanzania has been embarking on implementing its own civil service reform policies. Consequently, there is little doubt that deliberations on this important subject at the United Nations will have some bearing on Tanzania’s own civil service reform policies in terms of lessons to be learned thereon. It will, therefore, be extremely useful and beneficial if, for example, in the nearest future, the Director or the senior officer of the Ministry’s Division of Administration and Personnel (DAP) would be included in the list of delegates to UNGA with the proviso that he/she is required to prepare a detailed report on the experience gained and lessons learned and make concrete recommendations to the Permanent Secretary on the best ways and means to improving the Ministry’s own human resources management policies.

33. In other words, any inclusion of staff and/or senior official to the list of delegates to UNGA should bear this consideration in mind. As a matter of fact, the author was made to understand that this is already a requirement for each delegate although there may be a few recalcitrant individuals. Consequently, each year one or two senior officials/staff outside the division of DMC should be authorized to travel to New York with specific mandate and task to be performed and be required to make a detailed report on his/her return on the experiences gained and lessons learned and make specific recommendations to the Permanent Secretary on the best ways to improving the Ministry’s various policies relevant to the mandate or line of duty of the staff concerned. (Recommendation 5).

34. In this context, the author wishes to draw analogy to the implementation of the so-called results-based management framework (RBM) as commonly practiced in most African countries and the world over. According to this framework, the implementation of any activity in the approved budget document is linked to achievement of specific performance criteria. Indeed, as recent events have demonstrated, Tanzania is no strange to this framework. For instance, the decision to send Ambassador Patrick Mombo to New York last year to attend the UNGA session with specific mandate of ensuring the re-election of Tanzania’s candidature to the Joint Inspection Unit (JIU) was a good example of the implementation of the result-based management framework. This is important because ambassador Mombo had been mandated to undertake specific task and to implement a well-defined strategy with a clear indicator of achievement. In other words, ambassador Mombo’s indicators of achievement were, among other things, to ensure the re-election of Tanzania’s candidature to the JIU. Unfortunately, Tanzania lost this election; but it was not his fault since he did what was necessary under the prevailing circumstances to accomplish his task.

35. Another example of the implementation of the result-based management framework is the recent decision to send Deputy Minister Seif Ali Iddi to New York for the purpose of delivering a statement before the Security Council on behalf of the Minister of Foreign Affairs. It is clear here that the Deputy Minister was mandated to undertake a specific task with clear indicators of achievement that were quantifiable. He delivered the statement as was expected of him and returned to the capital after having accomplished his task that brought him to New York in the first place.

III. TANZANIA’S STRATEGIC PARTNERS

36. Over the years, Tanzania’s strategic partners at the United Nations have always been the Group of 77, the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) and the African Group. Tanzania’s positions with regard to various issues have continued to be linked with the positions taken by these Groups. As matter of fact, the history of these Groups to date has been marked by the ability of a few countries within the Groups to exercise an overriding influence over other countries on policy direction with regard to various issues on the United Nations agenda. In the light of this situation, Tanzania has been associating itself with the positions pronounced by the Chairmen of these Groups in an attempt to shape the Groups’ positions to be more in line with the interests, priorities and political preferences of those few influential members. Even when it assumed the chairmanship of the Group of 77 in 1997, Tanzania’s positions on a number of issues on the agenda of the United Nations were directly linked to the Group’s positions.

37. For instance, those who followed the G-77 deliberations on the Fifth Committee issues would discover that when it came to the issue of the Financial Situation of the United Nations, it has always been the position of Brazil opposing the implementation of the recommendations of the Working Group on Financial Situation of the United Nations aimed at the possible imposition of sanctions against Member States that failed to pay their assessed contributions in full and on time that came into play because of the country’s huge arrears caused by the non-payment of its assessed contributions in full. Similarly, on the same item on Financial Situation of the United Nations, it has been the positions of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Fiji and Nepal aimed at vehemently opposing the secretariat’s continued policy of cross-borrowing of financial resources from the peacekeeping budget to finance regular budget activities that came into play because of the United Nations Secretariat’s failure to reimburse these countries in due time for their contributions in equipment and troops serving in various peacekeeping missions worldwide. Importantly, having exhausted its quota in the recruitment of staff at the UNHQ and its Offices away from the Headquarters, Philippines’ proposal aimed at converting GS posts to professional category in the context of discussions under the agenda item on Human Resources Management has continued to enjoy wide support in the Group of 77.

38. More importantly, as far as the deliberations in the Non-Aligned Movement were concerned, Cuba’s position has always carried the day every time when the item on the United States Economic Embargo Against Cuba cropped up while China’s position with regard to Human Rights issues dominated discussions in the plenary where most NAM countries, out of solidarity with Beijing, found themselves supporting such position despite the country’s alleged unsatisfactory human rights record. With regard to Israeli-Palestinian Question, the positions of countries like Egypt, Syria, Algeria, and those of other Arab countries continued to be taken for granted by the rest of the Group’s membership; while in the African Group, the so-called super powers of the African continent, Nigeria and South Africa, continued to call the shots on almost all the issues that were being discussed in the Group; be it with regard to the reform of the Security Council and the proposals for its enlargement; or the issue of who should represent Africa as permanent members in it.

39. What is at stake is the nature and direction of these Groups – indeed their ‘soul’. In fact, the G-77, NAM and African Group are the kind of groups that are supposed to represent all the countries and peoples from the South based on the basic principles that inspired their very creation. Its members expect them to act as agents of progress and change and to be equipped to play an effective and leading role in improving the economic and social well being of its inhabitants. Certainly, the peoples of the South do not wish to see these Groups becoming instruments of convenience in the hands of a few influential countries at a time when there is a need for a global system to deal with a growing number of complex international challenges involving development, peace and security.

40. Consequently, if the countries from the South are to reap the benefits of multilateral system, they must insist on playing a much stronger part than at present in the decision-making processes of these Groups. In other words, what are, therefore, Tanzania’s own positions with regard to various issues in the Groups’ deliberations? It should be noted that in order for any country to be seen to participate actively and effectively in any deliberations, it must have a solid position of its own. Unfortunately, at present, this guiding principle is hardly used in search of Tanzania’s diplomatic leadership at the global level. As a result, the author was made to understand that, in trying to fill in the vacuum, some of Tanzania’s positions with regard to certain issues emanated, not from the capital, but rather from the individual staff members themselves.

41. For example, during the deliberations of the Secretary-General’s Proposed Programme Bugdet for the biennium 2001-2002, the post of the Chief of Kiswahili Service at the United Nations Radio was, for unexplained reasons, discontinued. It should be noted that although Kiswahili was not one of the six official languages of the United Nations, but its use and influence was gaining prominence throughout the continent and the world at large. Consequently, as the undisputed custodian of its Lingua Franca, Tanzania’s delegation in the G-77 and in the African Group made a very strong and passionate appeal to re-instate the post. As a result of the delegation’s intervention, both Groups recognized the wisdom and the merit of the argument and agreed to transform the initial position of Tanzania on the matter into the Groups’ position. In the course of the informal consultations that followed, the General Assembly in its resolution on the budget approved the re-instatement of the post; and since then a Tanzanian has been hired to head the Kiswahili section at the United Nations Radio .

42. Furthermore, the African Union’s decision in 2004 to make Kiswahili one of its official languages was a historic milestone and a giant step in the efforts to promote Kiswahili language and to be accepted as an important means of communication in the international arena. Importantly, Alpha Konare’s pronouncements in Nairobi last December in which he suggested to make Kiswahili the language of Africa by 2015 should, not only be applauded, but should also be fully implemented. As a matter of fact, Tanzania should continue to be at the forefront in the efforts to ensure the implementation of the AU decision of 2004 at the global level. It will not, therefore, be a bad idea if one of Tanzania’s future positions on the agenda of the United Nations were to include the promotion of Kiswahili as the seventh official language of the United Nations.

43. Another example regarding the deployment of some individual efforts could be traced back during the deliberations on the Secretary-General’s Proposed Programme Budget for the biennium 2003-2004. In the course of the discussions, the Tanzania delegation felt that there was an urgent need for the creation of the post of international professional staff at the United Nations Information Centre (UNIC) in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. It should be noted that despite the fact that the Tanzania Government was providing a rent-free premise to accommodate the Office, the Department of Public Information (DPI) at the UNHQ was in no mood to upgrade the Office since it was contented by the meager services provided by a national officer. More importantly, it was also obvious that significant resources were allocated to those UNIC Offices that were located in the developed countries as opposed to those that were located in the developing countries. Both the G-77 and the African Group concurred with the Tanzania’s position over the issue. In the ensuing discussion on the matter, the General Assembly in its budget resolution approved the creation of the post; and since then an international staff has been hired to head the UNIC Office in Tanzania .

44. In the author’s humble opinion, there is no doubt that the above two examples could be conveniently construed as best practices worth emulating if Tanzania wants to maintain a solid pro-active stance during the deliberations of issues that are of strategic interest and importance to Tanzania with its traditional strategic partners – the G-77, NAM and the African Group. In other words, Tanzania must always be well prepared in order to come up with its own solid positions based on a few carefully selected items on the agenda of the United Nations General Assembly for earnest negotiations with its traditional strategic partners before reaching any consensus positions. (Recommendation 6)

IV. ELECTIONS AND CANDIDATURES

45. Tanzania’s representation and participation in the work of various organs of the United Nations and its subsidiary bodies has been excellent. Like all members of the United Nations, Tanzania is also a permanent member of the General Assembly. Over the years, Tanzania has fielded candidatures and individual candidates for election to various main committees of the General Assembly, the Security Council and the ECOSOC and their respective subsidiary committees and expert bodies. In other words, since its membership to the United Nations, Tanzania continued to be represented in the General Assembly without any interruption. As indicated in the earlier chapter, Tanzania has been elected twice as member of the Security Council. It has been an active member of the ECOSOC after having been elected three times in that body; first in 1966-1969 for a three-year term of office, second in 1978-1980 and finally in 1994-1996 period. In all these elections, Tanzania was elected by acclamation.

A. Membership to the subsidiary bodies

46. More importantly, Tanzania has continued to serve in a number of subsidiary and expert bodies of the General Assembly, the ECOSOC and the Security Council. Since the inception of the ad hoc committee on the Indian Ocean in 1972, an intergovernmental body of the General Assembly, Tanzania has been an active member of that body. It served in the UN Committee on Information; Commission for Social Development; Member of the Human Rights Commission; It served on the Commission on Population and Development; Member of the Commission on Sustainable Development; Member of the Commission on the Status of Women; Member of the Commission on Human Settlements; Member of the Committee for Programme and Coordination.

47. Tanzania also served in the Executive/Governing Boards of UNICEF and UNDP; ILO, FAO, WHO, UNESCO, WFP, ITU, WIPO, UPU, WMO, IEAE, UNIDO, UN-HABITAT. Tanzania has been an active Member of UNEP Governing Council; Member of UNCTAD; Member of the Programme Coordination Board (PCB), the governing body of UNAIDS; Active member of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). In other words, Tanzania has been a member to a multitude of subsidiary and expert bodies of the General Assembly, ECOSOC and the Security Council as shown in Table 1 below. In the author’s humble opinion, membership to multitude of bodies hampers Tanzania’s effective participation within the United Nations system. It should, therefore, be preferable if Tanzania were to join as member to a few but carefully selected bodies based purely on the strategic interests of Tanzania, the sub-region, Africa and the world in general. (Recommendation 7)

Table 1. Membership to Various Bodies as at 2006

Tanzania’s Membership to various bodies of the UN system
Bodies Previous Membership Current Membership
ECOSOC 1966-1969 78-80 94-96
SC 1975-1976 2005-2006
ACABQ 1973-2003
JIU 1968-1982 2003-2007
ILC 1997-2001 2001-2005
ICTR 1998-2003 2003-2007
ITLS 1996-2004 2005-2013
CPC 1972-1977 80-82 01-03
CHS 1978-1986 88-95 01-04
CSW 1989-1992 2001-2004
CSD 1994-1996
CPD 1993-1996
CHR 1961-1976 1983-1985
CSOCD 1967-1968 2001-2004
COI 2000-2004
UNICEF 1994-1997
UNDP 1998-2000
UNEP 1973-1975 77-79 82-84
UNHCR
UNAIDS/PCB 2001-2005
CEDAW 2001-2004

B. Election for Membership to Various Expert Bodies

48. With regard to election for membership to various expert bodies within the United Nations, Tanzania has continued to field individual candidates who meet the necessary qualifications. A number of Tanzanians have been elected and re-elected for membership to various expert bodies such as the Joint Inspection Unit (JIU), Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ), International Law Commission (ILC), International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) and International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLS). Some of these Tanzanians are still continuing to serve their mandates with good distinction in their respective bodies; others have retired after the expiry of their respective mandates, while others have lost their re-election bids. For instance those who lost their re-election bids included Judge Joseph Warioba (ITLS), Conrad Mselle (ACABQ) and Muhammad Yussuf (JIU). In any case, Tanzania should continue to support the election of individual candidates for memberships to various bodies of the United Nations because their professionalism, expertise and effective representation have continued to contribute immensely in terms of enhancing the country’s image, integrity and its reputation worldwide as well as maximizing its influence in terms of the decision-making process within the United Nations system.

C. Lessons learned

49. However, winners or losers, there are some important lessons to be learned from Tanzania’s participation in the elections. First of all, there is the need to examine the merit behind the whole concept of the Group’s endorsement for particular candidate(s) in any given election. It should be noted that most of the elective vacancies in the United Nations are supposed to be filled in with due regard to the principle of equitable geographical distribution and reasonable rotation . Regional groups have, therefore, a key role to play in the election process; and their endorsement for a particular candidate(s) to fill a vacancy or vacancies has been extremely crucial. Failure to do that had the adverse effects of giving other regional groups the power to determine the choice of candidate(s) to be elected. In the author’s point of view, this is unacceptable.

50. Importantly, over several years, the African Group has had the tendency of capitalizing on this arrangement by endorsing an equal number of candidate(s) for an equal number of vacancies or seats available with great success and to the envy of representatives from the other regional groups. Unfortunately, because of the African Group’s consistent failure to reach an agreement on the endorsement of candidate(s) for the election to fill a particular vacancy or vacancies in the United Nations, now it is the other regional groups that are benefiting fully and with great success of the maximum use of such a strategic arrangement. From the author’s perspective, the reason that might be attributable to the failure of the African Group to reach an agreement for the endorsement of candidate(s) is, perhaps, due to Ambassador Conrad Mselle’s overstay as member and chairman of the ACABQ. It should be recalled that Mselle was the longest serving member of the ACABQ in the history of the United Nations. Since his initial election in 1973, he has been re-elected ten times as member and eight times as chairman of the Advisory Committee.

51. As a result, Mselle, and more specifically, Tanzania, had forgotten that election for membership to the ACABQ was conducted on the basis of equitable geographical distribution and reasonable rotation. Consequently, Member States such as Zambia and Botswana that belonged to the East and Southern African sub-region (which Mselle represented) and which had very pro-active delegates in the Fifth Committee, were increasingly unhappy with Mselle’s patronizing attitude of seeking re-election after re-election. They both, at different times, fielded candidates to challenge Mselle’s candidature for re-election. So, his infamous defeat in yet another re-election bid in 2003 was to be expected.

52. As a matter of fact, Mselle was not the only incumbent member of an important committee of the General Assembly to be challenged. Last November, Mohsen bel Hadj Amor, the charismatic and flamboyant chairman of the International Civil Service Commission (ICSC), who was seeking re-election for the fifth time as a member of the commission after 16 years in office, lost his re-election bid to a candidate from Sierra Leone. In other words, the majority of Member States in the Fifth Committee were tired of re-electing the same person over and over again as if he was indispensable and that there was no competent person to replace him. In order to avoid this kind of behaviour to replicate again in the future, some sub-regional groups have reached an understanding between its Members allowing for a given Member State to field a candidate/candidature representing their sub-regional groups to run for a limited two consecutive terms of office so that prospective candidate from another Member State could run unopposed to replace the one who had completed his/her mandate; and hence paying due regard to the principle of equitable geographical distribution and reasonable rotation.

53. For instance, it is a well-established practice currently being applied in the Central African sub-region to allow a Member State to field a candidate for the election for membership to a UN subsidiary and/or expert body provided that the candidate does not run for more than two consecutive terms of office. Since 2003, this practice is also being applied in the East and Southern African sub-region. Therefore, the author strongly recommends that Tanzania should not only be mindful of this practice, but should also undertake the necessary measures to ensure that Tanzanian candidates/candidatures for election for membership to subsidiary and/or expert bodies of the United Nations are allowed to run for only two consecutive terms of office. (Recommendation 8)

54. In order to allow the government to make an informed decision, Table 2 below provides information on all the UN expert bodies concerned with the duration of their terms of office and the proposed length of stay for each elected official.

Table 2. Term of office of expert bodies and proposed
Length of stay for each elected member

Expert bodies Term of office Proposed length of stay
ACABQ 3 years 3 terms of office
ICSC 4 years 2 terms of office
JIU 5 years 2 terms of office (statute)
ICTR 5 years 2 terms of office
ITLS 9 years 1 term of office
ILC 5 years 2 terms of office
IC 3 years 3 terms of office
UN/AT 4 years 2 terms of office
UNJSPF 3 years 3 terms of office
ICJ 9 years 1 term of office
CEDAW 4 years 2 terms of office

D. Reasons behind Tanzania’s loss in the re-election to the JIU

55. While ambassador Mselle’s defeat in his re-election bid to the ACABQ in 2003 was to be expected, Tanzania’s loss in the re-election for membership to the Joint Inspection Unit last November was not. Tanzania’s candidate Mr. Muhammad Yussuf lost squarely but unfairly. Squarely because of the failure of Tanzania’s strategic partners to show up in the General Assembly Hall in the afternoon in order to cast their votes. For instance, delegations from Lesotho, South Africa, Zimbabwe, DRC, (from the SADC region), were not present. Also, delegations from some Central and Western African States, and Caribbean and Pacific States were also absent.

56. Even more astonishing, was the absence of the representative of the AU Observer mission and his/her failure to distribute copies of the AU decision on candidatures to the UN Secretariat in due time – a shortcoming which made it look as if Tanzania’s candidate was not endorsed by the African Union. Indeed, it was logically and morally natural for the AU Observer delegate to show up in the General Assembly Hall in order to give moral support to Africa’s endorsed candidate. For whatever reasons, it is regrettable that he/she was absent on the election day. More importantly, because of Chad’s delegate’s late arrival, he was unable to hear the pronouncement on the rules and procedures for the casting of votes from the Assembly President. As a result, he cast his vote by inscribing the name of the individual candidate instead of the name of the country concerned. His, was, therefore, the only invalid vote.

E. Delaying Tactics

57. But, on the other hand, the election was lost unfairly because of the delaying tactics imposed by the Assembly President despite the United States informal suggestions calling for both elections for membership to the ILC and the JIU to be conducted simultaneously that morning in order to save time. The General Assembly President, an Arab from Bahrain, rejected the United States suggestion due, in part, to her presumed solidarity with the fellow Arab Member State from Egypt. Instead, she adjourned the meeting at 11.00 am for one hour after the delegates had cast their ballots for the 44 candidates vying for 36 vacant seats in the ILC membership in order to allow time for the counting of the votes. When the delegates returned to the Assembly Hall at 12.00 am, they were inexplicably made to wait for another hour until 1.00 pm when the results of the ILC election were announced; after which time, it was obvious that the election for membership to the JIU had to be postponed until 3.00 o’clock in the afternoon. In other words, it took two good hours to count 190 ballots papers!

58. It should be noted that there were a total number of 190 delegations present in the morning. On the contrary, only 165 delegations showed up in the afternoon. In other words, 25 delegations, most of them were an important part and parcel of Tanzania’s constituency, did not participate in the afternoon session. As a matter of fact, if both elections had been simultaneously conducted in the morning when the turn out was normally very high, Tanzania’s candidate could have won the re-election by a good margin; and hence the reason for Tanzania’s unexpected defeat.

F. Uncalled for Remark

59. As if that was not enough, the President of the General Assembly made an un-called for remark aimed at influencing the outcome of the election in favour of the Egyptian candidate. She passionately talked about the current composition of the Joint Inspection Unit by illustrating the fact that the sub-Saharan Africa was represented by Tanzania and Senegal. Accordingly, she urged delegates not to vote for Senegal, which was not on the ballot in the first place. By implication, she was asking delegates to vote for Egypt, the only non sub-Saharan African Member State on the ballot not represented in the current composition of the Unit. As a result of this remark, almost all the votes from the Arab Member States – if not all of them – went to Egypt. In other words, the Arab States rallied support behind Egypt in order to get a fellow Arab elected to represent Africa in the JIU membership!

G. Bad Precedent

60. In any case, Tanzania’s defeat had created a very bad precedent for the future elections to the JIU. It should be noted that, in the past elections, all incumbent Inspectors representing Africa in the Unit were re-elected without any opposition. This was a result of some tacit understanding within the African Group which provided that incumbent Inspectors be re-elected without challenge for the purpose of maintaining the integrity of the Unit and the reputation of its Inspectors. In the course of the author’s consultations, it was observed that a serious flow regarding the recent outcome of the JIU election had less to do with failure to rally support behind an endorsed African candidate than the lack of an endorsed African candidate. When there is one vacancy for an African candidate and the AU ventures to endorse two or more candidates for the vacancy, the message to African delegates and to the rest of the world is vividly confusing.

61. Consequently, by electing to endorse a multitude of candidates for unequal number of vacancies , the Executive Council of the African Union has, indeed, contributed, to a certain degree, to this unconventional behavior. If anything, Tanzania’s bitter defeat has opened up a Pandora’s box for other Member States to exercise their democratic right to challenge any incumbent Inspector in the future elections. In other words, there will be no respect for incumbency and Tanzania should be mindful of this new development. In retrospect, for the purpose of addressing this problem, Tanzania should try to use its considerable diplomatic influence in order to bring sanity and sense of responsibility within the African Group so that Africa can continue, as has been the case in the past, to speak with one voice when it comes to the selection of candidate(s) for endorsement.

H. Double Standard

62. Another important lesson that may be drawn from the outcome of the JIU election is the fact that the Candidature Committee of the African Group in New York has failed to examine the merits of each candidate and to uphold the concept of incumbency as has traditionally been applied over the years and make some concrete recommendations to the African Group in terms of determining which of the three candidates on the ballot deserved the Group’s endorsement. According to the Chairman of the Candidature Committee, ambassador Atoki Ileka of the DRC, the reason behind this inaction was attributed to the notion that JIU being an expert body and the fact that its Inspectors were elected to serve in their personal capacity, it was, therefore, inappropriate to endorse a particular candidate over the others.

63. But, what was surprising was the fact that it was this very Committee that had quickly recommended to the African Group the endorsement of two candidates from Nigeria and Botswana out of three (one from Benin) for the election to fill two vacant seats in the membership of the ACABQ. Like the JIU, ACABQ is also an expert body of the General Assembly and its members were elected to serve in their personal capacity. Indeed, for any observer, this was nothing more than a blatant case of double standard at its best!

64. In any case, given the lessons that had been drawn; i.e. the delaying tactics imposed by the Assembly president, the uncalled for remark, and more importantly, the failure of Tanzania’s SADC and African strategic partners to rally support behind an endorsed candidate, Tanzania has no where to go except to review its relationship with the African delegations in New York for the purpose of ensuring successful outcome in any future elections. Perhaps, it is not a bad idea if Tanzania would examine the merit and benefit of forging closer relationships with the 53 Commonwealth Group of Member States at the United Nations in New York including the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of Member States. (Recommendation 9)

V. TANZANIA’S REPRESENTATION IN VARIOUS UNITED NATIONS SYSTEM ORGANIZATIONS

65. Because of its membership to various United Nations system organizations, Tanzania has been relatively well represented in the activities of those organizations through recruitment and placement and/or election. For example, apart from the fact that a good number of Tanzanians have been recruited at UNHQ and its Offices away from the Headquarters, peacekeeping missions and the International Criminal Tribunals, some few Tanzanians have also been recruited in Funds and Programmes organizations, such as the UNDP, UNICEF, WFP, UNFPA, UNEP, UNCTAD, UNODC, UN-HABITAT and UNHCR; specialized agencies, such as the WHO, FAO, UNESCO, ILO, ICAO, UNIDO, WIPO, WMO, ITU, UPU, and IMO and of course, the IAEA.

66. While the Tanzania-based resident representations of the United Nations system organizations have managed to recruit a good number of Tanzanians, mostly as General Service Staff (GS), there are relatively few professional and senior staff (PS) at management level that have been recruited at the Headquarters of such organizations. For instance, at present, UNHQ and UN-HABITAT are the only UN system organizations that have recruited Tanzanians at the DSG and USG levels respectively; whereas organizations such the UNHQ, UNHCR, UNDP, WHO, UNESCO and UNCTAD have Tanzanians among their staff recruited at the D-1 and/or D-2 levels. Despite such a lower representation, Tanzania is still considered to be one of the many Member States that have exhausted their quotas, or over-represented, in the recruitment of staff at the UNHQ including its Offices away from the Headquarters .

Table 3. Current composition of Tanzanians recruited in various bodies of the United Nations system as at 2005.

ORGANIZATIONS GS/FS/LL/GTA P/FS D1/D2/L ASG/USG/DSG CONSULTANTS SUB-TOTAL
UNHQ 8 9 3 1 21
UNDP 4 4
UNICEF
UNFPA
UNHCR 1 7 1 9
ITU
WHO 2 2
WMO
ILO
UPU 1 1 2
IAEA
UNESCO 1 1
ICAO
FAO
WFP
UNCTAD 1 1 2
IFAD
ICTR 339 26 1 366
UNODC

UNIDO
WTO
WIPO 1 1 2
UNEP 4 4
UN-HABITAT 1 3 1 5
UNOG
UNOV
UNON 2 1 3
UNCC 1 1
UNMIL 3 4 7
UNECA 3 3
MUNOC 6 2 8
UNAMSIL 3 1 4
UNMEE 2 2
UNMIK 4 4
UNOIC 3 3
UNSMH 4 4
UNMIS 1 2 3
OSRSG (WS) 2 2
GRAND TOTAL 473

67. Table 3 above gives an overview on the number of Tanzanians recruited in various UN system organizations at present . Indeed, due to retirement, the number of Tanzanians working in various organizations of the UN system has gone down drastically in the past few years. For instance, the normal retirement age at the United Nations is 60 or 62 years for staff whose term of service commenced or recommenced on or after 1 January 1990. Accordingly, between 2004 and 2005 three Tanzanians at the P-5 level reached the mandatory age of separation at the IMO, UNCTAD, and at the IAEA respectively. One Tanzanian at UNHQ is expected to retire at the end of 2007. Indeed, a good number of Tanzanians at the GS level across the UN system have already retired during the last few years and more are expected to do so within the next couple of years. In other words, if some concrete and deliberate measures are not taken to ensure the recruitment of more Tanzanians within the United Nations system organizations, Tanzania’s representation will be extremely affected and its influence drastically eroded.

68. More importantly, table 3 also illustrates the fact that ICTR is the only UN entity that has managed to recruit the highest number of Tanzanians within its ranks. There are a total of 366 Tanzanians working for the ICTR in Arusha, Kigali and at The Hague in the Netherlands. The reason behind the high number of Tanzanian recruits emanates from the fact that the ICTR is headquartered in Tanzania; and in accordance with the UN agreements with the host countries, the recruitment of non-professional staff requires that such staff be recruited locally from the host country. However, the author wishes to draw the attention of the Government that the mandate of the ICTR is expected to end at the end of 2008; which also means that all recruited staff (including Tanzanians) would have their contracts terminated since the ICTR would be in the process of liquidation. It is, therefore, incumbent upon the Tanzanian authorities to examine other possibilities in terms of convincing the international community to continue to make the maximum use of the facilities provided by the AICC with the view to saving the existing jobs.

A. Tanzania’s policy of recruitment to the United Nations system

69. For a number of years, Tanzania has continued to espouse its long-standing policy aimed at the recruitment of Tanzanians at the UN system organizations. But, unfortunately, no concrete action has been taken to ensure the systematic implementation of that policy. In other words, it was more of a rhetorical nature rather than an action-oriented effort. Some officials in the Tanzanian civil service attributed this inaction to the lack of a clear-cut policy direction and a strategy for its implementation. Some simply attributed it to some kind of deliberate sabotage on the part of some senior officials in the government ministries and departments who, for reasons of jealousy and ill heartedness, did not simply want to see Tanzanians getting recruited in the United Nations system organizations. As a matter of fact, those few Tanzanians who managed to land jobs in various organizations of the UN system through their own individual efforts were unfairly branded as unpatriotic.

70. Fortunately, in the recent past, and especially since the advent to power of President Kikwete last year, Tanzania is now very likely poised to physically implement its cherished policy in order to ensure that more Tanzanians are being recruited in the organizations of the UN system all over the world. But, unfortunately, the strategy to effectively implement that policy is lacking. Consequently, from the author’s perspective, the best way to ensure the systematic implementation of this policy would be, among other things, through the possible creation, as soon as possible, of a recruitment Unit/section within the Ministry’s Division of Administration and Personnel (DAP) and the establishment of a data base of Tanzanians who are in possession of the necessary qualifications and experience for recruitment and placement purposes in the UN system organizations. (Recommendation 10)

71. While individual Tanzanians can apply directly for vacancies via Internet through the United Nations Galaxy system, however, in order to give credence to the Government’s policy of getting more Tanzanians recruited in the United Nations system, there’s a strong need to devise a strategy and a mechanism for its implementation. Therefore, as part of the envisaged strategy, the Unit’s main task would include the systematic monitoring of all the vacancy announcements throughout the UN system organizations for the purpose of identifying potential candidates suitable for such posts from its pool of qualified candidates across the Tanzanian civil service with the objective of encouraging interested Tanzanians to apply for such posts. Some deliberate efforts should be made to include, in the data base, retired former prime ministers, ministers, judges, ambassadors, senior government officials, and members of academia whose long accumulated experience and qualifications in their respective areas of discipline would be a key requirement and instrumental in their possible recruitment and placement through elections to memberships of various bodies of the UN system organizations.

72. It should be noted that there is no age limitation when it comes to elective positions within the UN system organizations. As a matter of fact, most of the executive heads including members of various subsidiary and experts bodies within the UN system organizations are over the age of 60 years. It is also true that most of them are retired/former prime ministers, ministers, ambassadors, judges, senior government officials, professors etc. This explains the reason why so many Member States have continued to field, as candidates for membership to various elective positions within the United Nations system organizations, their retired officials with the proviso that their qualifications and experiences were commensurate with the requirements and exigencies of the positions to be filled. Sustained efforts are, therefore, needed to rekindle a sense of patriotism in the Tanzanian civil service and to restore confidence among its retired officials in order to allow them to play an important role in global affairs.

B. Presidential Good Offices

73. In accordance with the Charter of the United Nations and constitutions or statutes of various organizations of the United Nations system, the executive heads of these organizations are empowered to appoint heads of departments in their respective agencies taking due consideration to the principle of equitable geographical distribution and reasonable rotation. In exercising his prerogative, the Secretary-General of the United Nations appoints the Under-Secretaries General (USG) and Assistant-Secretaries General (ASG) to head various departments at the UNHQ and at its Offices away from the Headquarters including peacekeeping missions.

74. While the new Secretary-General has already appointed Dr. Asha-Rose Migiro to the post of Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations, and thus increasing the number of high-ranking Tanzanian officials at the United Nations to two after the re-appointment last year of Dr. Anna Tibaijuka to head UN-Habitat and UNON, the Secretary-General will, in the future, continue to fill vacant positions within the United Nations at the USG and ASG levels. The President of Tanzania, as most Heads of States and/or Governments of other countries often do, can, therefore, play an important role in terms of persuading the Secretary-General to appoint Tanzanians for positions within the United Nations, be it at the UNHQ or at one of its Offices away from the headquarters, including peacekeeping missions, that are of vital strategic interest to the country in particular or the sub-region in general. In other words, the author wishes to underscore the fact that since it is quite normal for governments of Member States to press the Secretary-General to appoint their nationals to high positions in the United Nations, it is, therefore, in Tanzania’s best interest to continue to make the maximum use of this practice in the future.

75. For instance, the recent appointment by the Secretary-General of Sir John Holmes, former British ambassador to France and a close friend and holiday companion of Tony Blair to head the United Nations Office of Coordinator for Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) was made possible only because of the British Prime Minister’s intervention to the Secretary-General. The same could be said with regard to the appointment of ambassador Vijay Nambiar who, until his recent appointment as Ban Ki Moon’s chief of staff, was Kofi Annan’s advisor and former national security advisor to Indian Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh.

76. On the other hand, it is the normal practice that heads of departments in almost all the specialized agencies of the UN system, such as UNESCO, WIPO, WHO, ILO, etc, are also appointed by their respective executive heads on the basis of equitable geographical distribution and reasonable rotation. There are normally five deputies, each representing a region in the leadership of these agencies who are directly appointed by the respective executive heads. Again, the President of Tanzania’s role in appointing deputies who would represent the African region is, indeed, very crucial. All that he is required to do is to use his influence and good offices by requesting the executive heads concerned to consider the merit of appointing a Tanzanian to one of the five positions at that level. Although he was not recruited through the use of Presidential influence or good offices, however, before he retired last year, Ambassador Khamis Suedi was one of the five Assistant Director-Generals (ADGs) at WIPO representing the African region.

C. Recruitment of Junior Professional Officers (JPOs)

77. More importantly, for a number of years now, the recruitment of junior professional officers (JPOs), also known as associate experts, and the acceptance of interns within the United Nations system organizations has helped, to a large degree, young professionals from mostly developed countries as well as from some developing countries to learn and appreciate the good work of the United Nations in the efforts to make the world a better place. Most organizations of the UN system have considered them to be a valuable resource injecting vitality and fresh ideas into the system. Their accumulated experience after a two to three-year attachment with the UN system organizations have allowed them to acquire a certain degree of comparative advantage over the other prospective candidates. Equipped with such experience, a modest number of JPOs have been able to find permanent jobs in various organizations of the UN system.

78. Unfortunately, for a poor developing country like Tanzania that does not have adequate financial resources at its disposal, contributing to the recruitment of young Tanzanian professionals within the UN system organizations is more of a dream than a reality. However, over several years, some donor countries have been making substantial voluntary contributions in terms of the recruitment of gratis personnel such as the JPOs and associate experts. For instance, the governments of France, the Netherlands, Germany and Japan, apart from financing the recruitment of their own nationals, they have been singled out as an exemplary source of voluntary contributions in terms of the recruitment of such professionals from the developing countries as well. Consequently, Tanzania may wish to make the maximum use of this gesture of tremendous goodwill on the part of these donor countries by placing a special request to their respective governments in the context of the annual bilateral consultations. (Recommendation 11).

VI. THE ROLE OF TANZANIA MISSIONS TO THE UNITED NATIONS

79. Tanzania missions to the United Nations in New York and Geneva have continued to play an important role in terms of ensuring the effective implementation of Tanzania’s policy towards the multilateral institutions. They have continued to play a pivotal role in terms of policy formulation at the Headquarters as well as giving a well-needed advice on the best course of action pertaining to numerous issues on the agenda of the United Nations. In other words, Tanzania missions to the United Nations have continued to be the reliable mouths, ears and eyes of the Government in terms of strengthening and enhancing effective coordination between the Headquarters and the UN system organizations.

A. Tanzania Mission to the United Nations in New York

80. Since its establishment after Tanganyika’s independence in 1961, Tanzania Mission to the United Nations in New York has been one of the few most effective African Missions in New York. This is mainly due to the exceptional role played by its former permanent representatives in articulating Tanzania’s policies on various issues affecting the world during their times. As a matter of fact, it was a well-established fact that when Tanzania spoke, everybody listened.

81. On the other hand, the role that the current Permanent Representative had continued to play in the Security Council during Tanzania’s membership from 2005 through 2006 in dealing with such issues as; the situation in the Great Lake region, Darfur, Somalia, the threat of nuclear proliferation in North Korea and Iran, etc is, indeed, impeccable. Tanzania is now being listened to once again after a short spell of absolute inaction and irrelevance that characterized Tanzania’s dismal performance between mid-1980s and early 1990s. In other words, it is much safer to assume that the factors that contributed to Tanzania’s successes and achievements during the early 1960s through the mid-1980s were mainly attributed to the exceptional quality of leadership so vividly demonstrated by the two former permanent representatives of that time. The same could be said with regard to the exceptional role being played by the current permanent representative.

B. Factors that contributed to the Mission’s robust performance

82. But there are other factors that contributed immensely to the Mission’s robust performance, successes and achievements of the past and the present at the United Nations in New York. The most important factor of them all could be conveniently associated with the period when Tanzania had been elected to the membership of the Security Council, and of the Group of 77. As a matter of fact, it was during such times when Tanzanian competent authorities at the Headquarters had elected to provide the necessary human and financial resources as some kind of reinforcement in support of Tanzania Mission in New York. For instance, during the 1975-1976 period when Tanzania was elected to the Security Council for the first time, the Ministry had not only dispatched a group of very talented diplomats from the Headquarters to support the Mission’s efforts, but the then President Nyerere had appointed ambassador Paul Rupia as a deputy permanent representative to spearhead the intensification of that effort and to lend a helping hand to the already overwhelmed head of Mission.

83. More importantly, when Tanzania had assumed the chairmanship of the Group of 77 in 1997, the Ministry, with the financial assistance from the UNDP, decided to dispatch another group of talented officials from the Headquarters to give a helping hand to the chairman of the Group, ambassador Daudi Mwakawago, and to the New York-based staff in terms of effective coordination of the deliberations and activities that were being undertaken in the various main committees of the General Assembly. As a matter of fact, this group of dedicated officials from the capital along with the New York-based staff of that time, made a formidable team that prompted most officials at the Headquarters to depict it as one of the finest and most accomplished dream teams ever put together. And yet again, when Tanzania had assumed the membership role of the Security Council for the second time in 2005-2006 period, the Ministry demonstrated its “generosity” once again by sending another group of talented officials from various ministries and departments including the appointment of ambassador Tuvako Manongi as the deputy permanent representative for the purpose of giving a helping hand to the permanent representative and to the Mission in general. Indeed, that was the magic formula behind the Mission’s remarkable performance at the United Nations.

84. But, conventional wisdom, among other things, provides that while the exceptional quality of leadership is a good recipe for increased efficiency and an added value to the institution, the lack of institutional framework, on the other hand, is a catalyst for inefficiency and increased lack of effectiveness. Indeed, while the Government should be proud of the successes and achievements of the 1960s through 1980s and the rebound of the mid-1990s as initially characterized by Tanzania’s chairmanship of the Group of 77 in 1997 and later by its membership to the Security Council as so ably coordinated by the current leadership at the Tanzania Mission in New York, there is, indeed, the need for more systematic and concerted efforts in order to make all the progress made and gains so far achieved much more sustainable for increased efficiency.

85. In other words, it will be absolutely wrong to treat the Tanzania Mission in New York like a hungry and thirsty person to be fed only when the need arises. Robust performance entails the hiring of robust staff that would be expected to undertake their responsibilities with zeal, unflinching commitment and increasing confidence. On the contrary, sending officials to New York for a limited period of one year (as in the case of G-77) and or two years (for the purpose of Security Council) is not a good recipe for instilling confidence in the minds of the staff. As a matter of fact, in today’s world afflicted with the HIV/AIDS pandemic and other STDs, the last thing that any responsible person would want to see happening is the prospect of being separated with his/her spouse and family for one or two years without a good reason.

86. At the same time, to expect a family person to pack up his/her bags, and withdrawing his/her children from school in order to prepare himself/herself for departure back to the capital after only one or two years in New York with all the inconveniences associated with such a move is not a good recipe either for instilling motivation and incentive to the hard working staff. In fact, short contracts are normally perceived by most staff as something more of an inconvenience and disincentive to their well being than anything else. What is actually required here is the Government’s steadfast commitment to create the necessary conditions that would give good incentives and motivation to the staff while serving in New York.

87. Consequently, the Mission’s hunger and thirst for adequate human and financial resources should be seen as a necessary instrument for effective management that should be provided on a continuous basis if the Mission is expected to undertake its responsibilities seriously. More importantly, as a nerve center for multilateral diplomacy, New York is where the action is; and, therefore, like all the other Missions accredited to the United Nations in New York, Tanzania Mission will also need an adequate, reliable, efficient and robust staff to enable it to undertake its responsibilities effectively and efficiently, and be prepared to face or deal with any global challenge or crisis of regional or sub-regional magnitude at any point in time.

88. Indeed, the fact that Tanzania’s membership to the Security Council has expired does not necessarily mean that the issues before the Council are no longer relevant or have been exhausted and that, accordingly, the Mission has also outlived its usefulness. On the contrary, there is the urgent need to shifting the mindset at the Headquarters by doing away with this unrealistic and distorted perception. As a matter of fact, since the events of 11 September 2001, the world has become increasingly no longer a safe place. The situations in Darfur, Somalia, the Great Lakes, the threat of nuclear proliferation in North Korea and Iran, the war in Iraq, etc., continue to exacerbate the preoccupation of the International Community. Indeed, these and other less important issues will continue to figure prominently on the agenda of the Security Council. Whether inside or outside the Council membership, Tanzania will still be under moral and legal obligation to play an increasingly pivotal role in the decision-making process within the echelons of the multilateral system.

C. Shift of emphasis

89. More importantly, with the assumption to power of Ban Ki-moon as the new Secretary-General of the United Nations in January 2007, the emphasis of the United Nations agenda will most likely shift to the most highly dangerous situations in North Korea and Iran – situations whose consequences and ramifications may have adverse effects on the maintenance of international peace and security; and to the more complex issue of management and reform of the United Nations which include, among other things, governance and oversight and for which Kofi Annan, for obvious reasons, failed to get the General Assembly to reach a decisive conclusion before his departure. It should be noted here that the issue of reform is not only limited to the UNHQ and its Offices away from the Headquarters; rather, it is a system-wide issue since all the executive heads of Funds and Programmes organizations such as the UNDP, UNFPA, UNICEF, WFP, UNHCR, UNEP, UN-HABITAT etc., are appointed directly by the Secretary-General. It is worth noting also that all these organizations are subjected to the same financial regulations and rules governing the United Nations. There is no doubt, therefore, that any decision on the question of reform will have a huge impact on the administration and management of all these organizations. Tanzania’s emphasis, therefore, will have to shift as well so as to go hand in hand with the imperatives of the new realities.

90. It is, therefore, for these reasons that the author strongly recommends the maintenance of the post of the Deputy Permanent Representative at the Tanzania Mission in New York . While he/she would be required to continue to follow very closely the issues before the Security Council agenda, his/her main focus should be on reform and management issues – the decisions of which would also have an important bearing on the future role of the General Assembly as an inter-governmental watchdog of the whole with legislative authority to oversee the Secretariat in the implementation of all the mandated programmes and activities of the United Nations worldwide.

91. It is also important to take cognizant of the fact that out of 192 Member States maintaining permanent missions in New York, 126 of them have deputy permanent representatives in their ranks; 57 of them including Tanzania’s immediate neighbors and East African partners, Kenya and Uganda, have the rank of an ambassador. Other African missions that have their deputy permanent representatives with the ambassadorial rank include, Algeria, Comoros, Cameroon, Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Ghana, Morocco, Libya, Sudan, Nigeria and Sierra Leona. Those that have deputy permanent representatives without ambassadorial rank include, Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Liberia, Mauritius, Botswana, Namibia, Somalia, South Africa and Zambia . In other words, maintaining a deputy permanent representative with an ambassadorial rank should not, in any way, be construed as an unwarranted phenomenon unique only to Tanzania. Rather, it should be seen as a necessary tool and useful ingredient for effective participation and increased efficiency.

92. More importantly, as Tanzania’s role in peacekeeping missions is increasingly gaining ground as reflected by the Government’s recent decision to send peacekeeping troops to Lebanon, the post of military attaché will also have to be maintained in order to allow its occupant to continue to advise and assist the Mission on all questions relating to the military requirements for maintaining peace and security, the employment and command of forces placed at the Security Council disposal, the regulations of armaments, and possible disarmament. Indeed, given the numerous tasks the head of Mission would normally have to endure, an advisor to the permanent representative will also be needed. He/she will act as a think tank and a speechwriter for the permanent representative on a regular basis (Recommendation 12)

D. Tanzania Mission to the United Nations in Geneva

93. Like the Tanzania Mission to the United Nations in New York that has been blessed with the exceptional quality of good leadership and dedicated staff, the same could be said with regard to the Tanzania Mission in Geneva. Since its establishment in 1978, the Mission had been honored with the privilege of being led by extremely knowledgeable permanent representatives who have had enormous experience in the field of government and leadership. Renown ambassadors like the late Amir Jamal, the late Wilbert Chagula and Ali Mchumo have contributed immensely in articulating Tanzania’s positions with regard to those and many other bread and butter issues which, until recently, continued to figure prominently on the agenda of the United Nations; be it in the context of negotiations in the ECOSOC chambers, or in the-then GATT and its successor WTO multilateral trade negotiations.

94. Recently, the role played by former permanent representative ambassador Charles Mutalemwa and the one being played by his successor, the current permanent representative ambassador Marten Lumbanga have raised Tanzania’s performance to a new level despite enormous new challenges affecting the corporate world in the North and the developing world in the South – both yearning and competing for increased share and participation in reaping the benefits of globalization. Admittedly, the stakes are very high; and the task and duties to be performed are also enormous and increasingly numerous.

95. It should be noted that Geneva is the capital city where a total of eleven (12) organizations of the UN system are located. These organizations include UNOG, WHO, ILO, UNCTAD, UNCHR, OHCHR, WIPO, WMO, ITU, UNAIDS, ITC and UPU. However, these do not include other organizations based in Geneva that the Permanent Mission has to work with, such as WTO, ICRC, IOM, Global Fund (GF), ACP, and World Economic Forum (WEF); saying nothing of Nairobi-based UNEP that has numerous meetings taking place in Geneva each year. As a matter of fact, more than 8,000 meetings take place in Geneva each year. Importantly, the Tanzania Mission in Geneva is also accredited to UN Offices in Vienna, where it has to represent Tanzania in a number of meetings convened by the IAEA, UNIDO, UNODC and CTBTO, as well as to the Amsterdam-based Common Fund for Commodities (CFC). Consequently, the Tanzania Mission in Geneva will need adequate human and financial resources to be able to cover adequately the activities of these organizations and advise the Government on the best possible course of action. At present, this is not the case. As of 1 January 2007, there are only 5 officers including the permanent representative himself who are expected to undertake this enormous task. The rest three are supporting staff providing administrative and financial services for the Mission.

96. On the other hand, the enormity of the task to be performed at the Tanzania Mission in Geneva could be seen from the perspective of the actual mandates and activities of all the UN system organizations located in Geneva; and for which, as a full-fledged member to these organizations, Tanzania continues to exhibit huge interests in terms of not only the implementation of their respective mandated programmes and activities, but also in terms of the benefits that could be accrued and generated therein. First and foremost, there is the question of the open-ended multilateral trade negotiations that, for obvious reasons, continue to occupy the good portion of the Mission’s time and resources. Indeed, as most of these negotiations are taking place outside Geneva, i.e. Seattle, Cancun, Singapore, Doha, Hong Kong, etc, it has been a well-established practice for the permanent representative to join the Tanzania delegation from the capital in order to participate in those talks wherever they are held. As a result, the Mission often finds itself, in some cases for weeks, without its Head of Mission to represent the country in other important activities undertaken by the other organizations of the UN system.

97. As a matter of fact, the author had witnessed a situation whereby the former President Mkapa was not only met at the airport by the ambassador, but also he attended the inauguration of his chairmanship of the South Center – a very important event indeed for Tanzania – without the presence of the Permanent Representative who was, understandably, away on a mission. The absence of the Head of Mission was, of course, duly filled in by the arrival in Geneva of the Deputy Foreign Minister, Ambassador Seif Ali Iddi. But how many times would the Ministry be prepared to send someone from the capital to attend to such important events? The appointment of the Deputy Permanent Representative will, therefore, among other things, alleviate this problem in terms of the necessary covering and following up of the visits to Geneva of the Chairman of the South Center when the Permanent Representative is away on missions. More importantly, with the added responsibilities of leading the negotiations in some of the UN Bodies, the Deputy Permanent Representative will contribute immensely in terms of relieving the Head of Mission of the numerous tasks and responsibilities that occupy his daily programme of work.

98. The author wishes to emphasize here that the South Center that has its Secretariat based in Geneva, is a very important institution for Tanzania and the developing countries in general. Following years of informal consultations, the South Commission (as it was known then) was formally established in 1987 for the purpose of critically examining the problems of the South in terms of lessons to be learned and experience to be gained from the developing countries in a comprehensive manner and come up with the appropriate development strategies which could be drawn from them taking into consideration the manner in which South-South co-operation can widen development options for all countries. Mwalimu Nyerere was the Commission’s first chairman who served from 1987 until 1990 when the Commission released its first report entitled: “The Challenge to the South”. The South Center, therefore, was created in 1991 as a result of the implementation of one of the recommendations contained in the said report. It is, therefore, a great honor and privilege for the country to have, yet again, one of its former heads of state elected as its chairman.

99. Secondly, there is the question of management and reform that, as earlier indicated, is a system-wide phenomenon. For instance, all the specialized agencies of the UN system, including, WHO, ILO, WIPO, ITU, UPU, WMO etc., are in the process of implementing their own doses of reforms on the administration and management of their organizations. Organizations such as the UNHCR, UNCTAD, and OHCHR are also implementing some sort of reforms within their midst. These reforms include, among other things, inter-governmental processes, Agenda on priority setting, the budgetary process, human resources management policies, procurement, governance and oversight. They also include the review of the impact of voluntary contributions on programme delivery; support costs recovery policies, the recruitment of gratis personnel, JPOs and associate experts.

100. There is, therefore, an urgent need for the Mission to be extremely conversant with the issues involved, well equipped and prepared to dealing effectively and efficiently with all the issues regarding reform in all the organizations of the UN system in Geneva. As earlier indicated, any decisions on whatever kind of reforms to be implemented will have an important bearing and huge impact on the implementation of all the mandated programmes and activities of these organizations. Tanzania, therefore, cannot stand idle by without undertaking an active and effective participation in the decision-making process of these organizations.

101. It is, therefore, for these reasons that the author strongly recommends that a post of Deputy Permanent Representative (with the rank of an ambassador) be created at the Tanzania Mission in Geneva in order to assist the Permanent Representative in undertaking such enormous responsibilities not only for leading the Mission in the absence of the head of Mission, but also for the purpose of advising the Permanent Representative in particular, and the Government in general, on the reform process within the organizations of the UN system in Geneva. The Deputy Permanent Representative who, if appointed, should not only be next in command after the Permanent Representative, but should also be mandated with the responsibility of acting as a Special Representative of former President Mkapa in his capacity as Chairman of the South Commission. More importantly, two additional professional posts (one at the senior level and the other at the junior level) should be approved for the Mission in Geneva in order to enable the Mission to undertake effectively the enormous tasks and responsibilities at hand . (Recommendation 13)

E. Proposed Tanzania Mission to the United Nations in Vienna

F. The Threat of Nuclear Weapons

102. The threat posed by nuclear weapons has shifted dramatically in the aftermath of the Cold War. The longstanding prospect of Armageddon has all but disappeared, while the chance of local nuclear conflict among the emerging nuclear weapon powers has grown tremendously. Indeed, the primary threat is no longer from conflict in Central Europe but from conflict in Asia – the Middle East, the Persian Gulf, the Korean Peninsula, and the South Asian subcontinent. The danger is especially acute in South Asia, which, in strategic terms, embraces the subcontinent and parts of China, Central Asia, and the Middle East .

103. In response to the deep fears and expectations resulting from the discovery of nuclear energy, the IAEA was created in 1957 with the main task, as stipulated in its Statute, of ensuring nuclear verification and security, safety and technology transfer. As a watchdog for peaceful uses of nuclear technology, the IAEA helped to put into force the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons Treaty (NPT) whose objectives are to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and weapons technology, to foster the peaceful uses of nuclear energy, and to further the goal of achieving general and complete disarmament. The Treaty establishes a safeguards system under the responsibility of the IAEA, which also plays a central role under the Treaty in areas of technology transfer for peaceful purposes.

104. Based in Vienna, the IAEA, as of October 2006, has 143 Member States including Tanzania that joined the IAEA in 1976 after having ratified its Statute. Importantly, Tanzania was elected by the IAEA General Conference to the 35-member Board of Governors and served as its member from 1978 through 1980. The Board meets at IAEA Headquarters in Vienna five times per year – in March and June, twice in September (before and after the General Conference), and in December; while the General Conference, which is composed of all IAEA Member States, meets annually in September to consider and approve the Agency’s programme and budget and to decide on other matters brought before it by the Board of Governors, the Director General, or Member States .

105. There is no doubt, therefore, that the IAEA is a very important body whose decisions are very crucial to the maintenance of international peace and security in the wake of unprecedented nuclear proliferation race that is now going on as reflected by the situations in Iran and North Korea; saying nothing of India, Pakistan and Israel that have already joined the exclusive club of declared nuclear weapon States i.e. USA, Russia, UK, France and China. It is, therefore, against this background that the author believes that Tanzania must play an increasingly pro-active role in terms of not only contributing to the ongoing debate on the prevention of nuclear threat, but also in terms of the overall decision-making process. In other words, Tanzania cannot, and should not afford to stand idle by watching others make important decisions on the matter and being contented with a reduced role of being no more than a mere spectator.

106. For instance, although the recent Security Council decision to impose economic sanctions against Iran was arrived at unanimously, however, there is every reason to suspect that Tanzania went along with such a decision simply for the purpose of appeasing the major powers in the Council which, for obvious reasons, could not stomach the possibility of Iran becoming another nuclear weapon State. In fact, while other States are required, under the terms of the NPT, to forswear the nuclear weapons option and to conclude comprehensive safeguards agreements with the IAEA on their nuclear materials, the five permanent members of the Security Council, India, Pakistan and Israel have been essentially “permitted” to do just the opposite.

107. Consequently, while it is true that the recent Security Council decision to impose economic sanctions against Iran was based, among other things, on Teheran’s lack of political good will to cooperate fully with the IAEA in terms of providing the Agency with the necessary verifiable information on its nuclear programme, however, the author strongly believes that a comprehensive and spirited debate within the IAEA members on this issue will need to be further undertaken in the future so that, instead of depending on the IAEA Director-General’s submission to the Security Council, Tanzania could, instead, be able to make an invaluable contribution to the debate before arriving at the so-called consensus decision. In other words, Iran’s inalienable right to pursue its nuclear technology programme for peaceful uses should be recognized by all Member States without any discrimination. Tanzania’s physical presence in Vienna will, therefore, be of great significance to the country and will add value to the work already done by the IAEA in terms of preventing proliferation of nuclear weapons and promoting peaceful uses of nuclear technology for the benefit of mankind.

G. Drug Control and Crime Prevention

108. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) is a global leader in the fight against illicit drugs and international crime. Established in 1997, UNODC has its Headquarters in Vienna. UNODC is mandated to assist Member States in their struggle against illicit drugs, crime and terrorism. In the Millennium Declaration, Member States are resolved to intensify efforts to fight transnational crime in all its dimensions, to redouble the efforts to implement the commitment to counter the world drug problem and to take concerted action against international terrorism.

109. The three pillars of the UNODC work programme consist of research and analytical work to increase knowledge and understanding of drugs and crime issues and expand the evidence-base for policy and operational decisions; normative work to assist States in the ratification and implementation of the international treaties, the development of domestic legislation on drugs, crime and terrorism, and the provision of secretariat and substantive services to the treaty-based and governing bodies; and field-based technical cooperation projects to enhance the capacity of Member States to counteract illicit drugs, crime and terrorism .

110. More importantly, globalization has created an environment where illicit drugs, crime and terrorism can flow easily across borders. The welfare gains to be had from open trade and flow of public goods are, however, offset by the globalization of threats to human security. The conflict situation in the Great Lakes region contributes to increasing drug trafficking and related crime, as well as to the growing drug abuse among the displaced and the armed forces. During the mid-1990s, Tanzania along with Kenya and Ethiopia reported increases in the abuse of heroin and opiates. During the biennium 2002-2003, UNODC has been implementing East Africa Programme on a budget of $2,058,000 with the objective of strengthening the involvement of non-governmental organizations and civil society in the prevention of drug abuse and HIV/AIDS and to improve drug abuse monitoring and control capacities in East Africa.

111. Tanzania’s own fight against the use of illicit drugs, crime and terrorism can benefit a great deal from the work that continued to be undertaken by the UNODC through education about the dangers of drug abuse and to strengthen international action against drug production, trafficking and drug-related crime through alternative development projects, illicit crop monitoring and anti-money laundering programmes. Tanzania can also benefit a lot by getting accurate statistics provided by UNODC through the Global Assessment Programme (GAP) and by the help UNODC provides in drafting legislation and training of judicial officials as part of its Legal Advisory Programme. In order to do just that some concerted efforts will have to be undertaken by the Government with the objective of increasing its participation and involvement in the work of the UNODC; as well as attending to various meetings and seminars organized by the UNODC. Since most of the meetings, seminars and related workshops are conducted at the UNODC Headquarters in Vienna, Tanzania’s physical presence in the capital will be of great significance if Tanzania wants to reap to the maximum the benefits of the work done by the UNODC.

H. Promotion of Industrial Development in Developing Countries

112. UNIDO was established as a United Nations programme in 1966 and became a full-fledged specialized agency of the United Nations in 1985. The organization’s primary objective is the promotion and acceleration of industrial development in developing countries and countries with economies in transition. UNIDO works largely in developing countries with governments, business associations and individual companies. Priority areas or “service modules” for projects are Industrial Governance and Statistics, Investment and Technology Promotion, Industrial Competitiveness and Trade, Private Sector Development, Agro-Industries, Sustainable Energy and Climate Change, Montreal Protocol, and Environmental Management. As of 22 November 2006, 172 states are members of UNIDO including Tanzania. UNIDO employs some 650 staff at the Headquarters in Vienna and Offices in 30 countries including Tanzania; and draws on the services of some 1,850 international and national experts annually who work in project assignments throughout the world. The total estimated volume of UNIDO’s operations for the biennium 2004-2005 is Euros 356 million. From early 1980s through 2006, UNIDO has implemented a total of 148 projects in Tanzania with a total expenditure of $ 24,959,698.00 .

I. Other Organizations of the UN system with Headquarters in Vienna

113. Apart from the IAEA, UNODC and UNIDO, Vienna is also the Headquarters of United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (OOSA); International Trade Law Division (ITLD); United Nations Commission for International Trade Law (UNCITRAL); United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI); International Money Laundering Information Network (IMOLIN); International Narcotics Control Board (INCB); the Comprehensive Test Ban Treat Organization (CTBTO); and of course the United Nations Office in Vienna (UNOV) which serves as the representative office of the Secretary-General of the United Nations in Vienna and performs representation and liaison functions with permanent missions, the host Government as well as Inter-governmental and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in Vienna.

114. More specifically, UNOV manages and implements the programme on the peaceful uses of outer space and provides common services, such as conference services, information services, security and safety services and general support services for the other organizations of the United Nations system located at Vienna International Center (VIC). UNOV’s Director-General, Mr. Antonio Maria Costa of Italy is also the Executive Director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). As a matter of fact, Vienna is the third largest United Nations Office away from the Headquarters after New York and Geneva. A total of 110 Member States of the United Nations have their permanent missions in Vienna; 16 of which are from Africa including Algeria, Angola, Burkina Faso, Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Liberia, Mali, Morocco, Namibia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Sudan, and Tunisia.

115. It is precisely for these reasons, that Tanzania’s presence in Vienna, which is long overdue, is required now more than at any time since Tanzania joined the membership of the United Nations in 1961. Indeed, Tanzania’s Mission in Vienna will enable the country not only to reap the political, economic, commercial and scientific benefits that could be accrued from it, but more importantly, because Tanzania cannot afford to continue to stand idle by watching other Member States taking a pro-active stance in the decision-making process on complex issues of strategic importance and interest to Tanzania, the sub-region and Africa as a whole; issues that include the threat of proliferation of nuclear weapons, drug control and crime prevention; saying nothing of terrorism and other threats which may have an important bearing and adverse effects on the maintenance of international peace and security.

116. In this context, the author strongly recommends the establishment of a Tanzania Mission in Vienna and the appointment of a Permanent Representative who will assume the overall responsibility of the Mission as its head; and a Deputy Permanent Representative who will assist the Head of Mission in the execution of all his tasks and duties in relation to the running of the Mission. Among other things, this will entail providing advice and assistance in relation to substantive matters, strategic planning, and the day-to-day management of the Mission’s task and responsibilities. The DPR’s specific responsibilities will include issues of reform and management within the United Nations especially with regard to all the Vienna-based organizations of the United Nations system. More importantly, the establishment of Tanzania Mission in Vienna will substantially relieve the Tanzania Mission in Geneva with the added burden of continuing to cover and follow-up on the work and activities of all the Vienna-based organizations of the United Nations system by means of meager human and financial resources at its disposal . (Recommendation 14)

J. Tanzania Diplomatic Missions Abroad

117. It is important to take cognizance of the fact that other organizations of the UN system are located in different capitals outside New York and Geneva. For instance, UNON, UNEP and UN-HABITAT are located in Nairobi; FAO, WFP and IFAD are located in Rome whereas UNESCO is located in Paris. Consequently, the role of Tanzanian diplomatic missions in those capitals is very important in terms of making a close follow-up on the activities of those organizations as well as identifying the political, social and economic benefits that Tanzania could derive from there.

K. Tanzania High Commission in Nairobi

118. The United Nations Office in Nairobi (UNON) was established in 1996 and is the global Headquarters of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the United Nations Programme for Human Settlements (UN-HABITAT). As an administrative hub, UNON’s primary responsibility has been to provide these two and other key agencies with vital administrative and technical support services; ensuring a smoother enabling environment for their programmes and projects; providing the most efficient use of their personnel and resources, and handling much of the time-consuming logistical details of their day-to-day activities. UNON has also been assisting staff in providing them with a host of life-enhancing services, from personal security to professional training, domestic relocations to contractual privileges, travel arrangements to family medical support.

119. UNON is headed by a Director-General with the rank of Under Secretary-General who is also the Executive Director of UN-HABITAT. In her capacity as Director-General, Anna Tibaijuka is the senior-most United Nations official in Nairobi. She reports directly to the United Nations Secretary-General on all political, procedural and security-related matters. As the Secretary-General’s official representative, the Director General serves as a direct link between the UN, the Kenya Government and the extensive diplomatic community in Nairobi, and as the host of wide variety of diplomatic gatherings and peace-building initiatives that take place in the capital.

120. As a matter of fact, after 40 years in Kenya, the United Nations is not only a fundamental nucleus for UN operations in the country, but a vital player in the regional economy, with a scope that extends far beyond its 75 regional and country offices. A study in 2000 estimated that the UN contributes over US$350 million annually to the Kenyan economy – making it the country’s single largest source of foreign exchange . This figure is continuing to grow, as the UN commits greater resources and personnel to emerging development arenas in Sudan, Somalia and the greater East African region. Indeed, the presence of a global UN headquarters has also contributed immeasurably to Kenya’s social development, not only in direct programme assistance, but also in local and subsidiary employment, procurement, transportation, and a multitude of benefits from its busy schedule of international conferences and events. The UN currently employs nearly 800 international staff and 2,000 national staff that are provided with competitive remuneration packages, with a large proportion of those salaries contributing to the local economy; as well as hundreds of NGOs and diplomatic missions that depend upon its presence, the UN provides over $20 million annually worth of business to the local food, pharmaceutical and transport industries, as well as major contracts to private consultancy and security services .

121. Consequently, being part of a larger East African economic block, it will be highly recommendable if the Tanzania High Commission in Nairobi could do whatever is necessary to see to it that the country in general, and more specifically Tanzanian companies, business people and ordinary citizens from Tanzania also benefit to the maximum from the multitude of business opportunities, employment, procurement, transportation etc., offered by the United Nations Office in Nairobi. (Recommendation 15) It should be further noted that in the context of its business dealings, UNOG, which is located in Geneva, has, over the years, continued to receive goods and services provided by numerous companies, business people and individuals outside Switzerland. Neighboring countries such as France, Italy and Germany have continued to benefit a great deal from the multitude of business opportunities offered by UNOG. The same thing is happening with regard to UNOV where Austria’s neighbors, such as Romania, Hungary, Czech Republic, Slovenia and Croatia have continued to take full advantage of the business opportunities offered by the United Nations Office in Vienna.

122. More importantly, as Tanzania’s permanent representation to UNEP and UN-HABITAT, the Tanzania High Commission to Kenya should also be expected to play an increasingly pro-active role in the monitoring of the implementation of the programme of work of these two organizations; taking into consideration the need to addressing the issues of water sanitation, water policy and strategy, environmental consequences of energy production and use, climate change and local air pollution, and the achievement of significant improvement in the lives of millions of slum dwellers around the world, including Tanzania, with the view to making concrete recommendations to the Government for the integration of the principles of sustainable development into the country policies and programmes.

L. Tanzania Embassy in Rome

123. As indicated earlier, Rome is the capital city where the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations system is located. Established in 1945, FAO is a specialized agency of the United Nations with a membership of 189 countries, including Tanzania plus the European Union, whose mandate is to raise levels of nutrition, improve agricultural productivity, better the lives of rural populations and contribute to the growth of the world economy. FAO’s budget for the biennium 2006-2007 is US$ 765.7 million and covers core technical work, cooperation and partnerships including the Technical Cooperation Programme, information and general policy, direction and administration.

124. On the other hand, WFP was established in 1963 as a three-year experimental programme. But, after an earthquake hit Iran in 1962, followed by a hurricane in Thailand in October of the same year and as a newly independent Algeria was resettling 5 million refugees, food was urgently needed and WFP supplied it. Since then, it has never stopped. As the food aid arm of the United Nations, WFP uses food to meet emergency needs; support economic and social development. It provides the logistics support necessary to get food aid to the right people at the right time and in the right place. It works to put hunger at the center of the international agenda, promoting policies, strategies and operations that directly benefit the poor and hungry.

125. Importantly, WFP helps victims of natural disasters, displaced people and the world’s hungry poor in underdeveloped nations with severe food shortages. It fights hunger through rescue efforts by standing on a permanent state of alert; rapid response team draws-up contingency plans designed to move food and humanitarian aid fast into disaster areas. It uses food aid as a means to get disaster-affected regions back on their feet and as a deterrent against long-term poverty. WFP kick-starts development by paying workers with rations to build vital infrastructure and offering children food aid as a reward for going to school .

126. On its part, IFAD is a specialized agency of the United Nations established as an international financial institution in 1977 as one of the major outcomes of the 1974 World Food Conference. The Conference was organized in response to the food crises of the early 1970s that primarily affected the Sahelian countries of Africa. Tanzania is a member of IFAD since 25 November 1977. IFAD’s primary aim is to finance agricultural development projects for food production in the developing countries. It is dedicated to eradicating rural poverty in developing countries; it focuses on country-specific solutions that involve increasing rural poor people’s access to financial services, markets, technology, land and other resources. IFAD’s activities are guided by the Strategic Framework for IFAD 200-2006: Enabling the Poor to Overcome Poverty, the objective of which are to strengthen the capacity of the rural poor and their organizations; improve equitable access to productive natural resources and technologies; and increase access by the rural poor people to financial services and markets. Since 1980s IFAD has been implementing a total of 12 projects (five of which are ongoing) in Tanzania worth US$ 488.9 million with a total loan amount of US$193.2 million directly benefiting 1,714,319 households .

127. In the light of the above, Tanzania embassy in Rome should undertake to make a close follow-up not only in terms of systematic implementation of the ongoing programmes of work of these three organizations of the United Nations system, but also in terms of identifying new areas of cooperation taking into consideration Tanzania’s strategic interests and development priorities. Indeed, it should be highly recommendable if, in the context of the deliberations on the proposed programme budgets of these organizations, Tanzania’s representatives to the Governing Councils and/or Boards of these organizations were to initiate discussions cum consultations with the relevant programme managers on new projects and programmes that could be incorporated in the work programmes of these organizations. In the author’s humble opinion, it is only through such interventions that Tanzania’s participation and representation in these organizations will be effective and add much value to the work of the organizations concerned.

M. Tanzania Embassy in Paris

128. Paris is the capital city where UNESCO is located. Founded on 16 November 1945, UNESCO, a specialized agency of the United Nations is working to help the 191 Member States to build their human and institutional capacities in diverse fields of education; and to promote international cooperation among its Member States and six Associate Members in the fields of education, science, culture and communication. Through its strategies and activities, UNESCO is actively pursuing the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) aimed at achieving universal primary education in all countries by 2015; eliminate gender disparity in primary and secondary education by 2005; and help countries to implement national strategies for sustainable development by 2015.

129. Cooperation between Tanzania and UNESCO essentially concerns the field of education. UNESCO helped Tanzania in capacity building in 21 regional establishments and at the Headquarters of the Open University of Tanzania. Regional directors and teachers received training on management of distance education and on using modern technology to improve efficiency and productivity. A UNESCO Chair in Distance Education was created in 1994 at the Open University of Tanzania. Indeed, Several Tanzanian cultural and natural sites are inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List that include the Zanzibar Stone Town and the natural sites of the famous Serengeti and Kilimanjaro National Parks . While Tanzania delegation to UNESCO should be commended for the tremendous efforts it has continued to deploy in terms of representing Tanzania’s interests especially with regard to the formulation of the Medium-Term Strategy for the period 2002-2007, concerted measures will still be needed in order to ensure the systematic implementation of UNESCO’s programme of work in the area of universal primary education and the elimination of gender disparity in primary and secondary education which, unfortunately, is yet to be fully realized.

130. More importantly, although UNESCO gets its financial resources to support the implementation of its core activities from the assessed contributions from Member States, however, the growth in voluntary contributions has continued to have a negative impact on programme delivery. In fact, the management of extra-budgetary resources requires substantial administrative support, incurring costs. As a result, it has been recognized that there has been some subsidization of these costs by regular/core resources. It has also been observed that support cost policies of most organizations of the UN system, including UNESCO’s, permit such subsidization, whether implicitly or explicitly. Notwithstanding these considerations, there is every reason to be concerned that such subsidization diverts resources from programmes, projects or activities mandated by the legislative organs to those with a narrower, bilateral focus.

131. In response to this serious problem, a working group led by UNESCO was set up under the auspices of the United Nations Chief Executives Board for Coordination (CEB) Finance and Budget Network. It concluded that “cost recovery policies should encompass both programme support costs and direct costs” and that “both these costs should be fully recovered from extra budgetary projects” . It also reported that collaborative work was in progress to develop methodologies for building standard staff costs. The High Level Committee on Management (HLCM) of the CEB has endorsed the conclusions of the working group, and the United Nations Development Group (UNDG) has agreed to build on these findings in its own work on harmonization of support cost recovery policies. The author strongly believes that there is an urgent need to expedite the harmonization of support cost recovery policies among the United Nations system organizations, building on the findings of the working group of the CEB Finance and Budget Network. Tanzania embassy in Paris can play an increasingly pivotal role in support of UNESCO’s efforts in this important endeavor.

132. On the other hand, the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) which has its Headquarters in Paris is not a member of the United Nations family; but given its importance in the efforts to building strong economies in its member countries, the author elected to devote some few paragraphs on it with the objective of examining the benefit of its accumulated experience to the service of emerging market economies, especially in the developing countries like Tanzania. The forerunner of the OECD was the Organization for European Economic Cooperation (OEEC), which was formed to administer American and Canadian aid under the Marshall Plan for the reconstruction of Europe after World War II. Since then, OECD vocation has been to build strong economies in its 30 member market democracies, and to work together to address the economic, social and governance challenges of globalization as well as to exploit its opportunities.

133. More importantly, OECD provides a setting where governments can compare policy experiences, seek answers to common problems, identify good practices and coordinate domestic and international policies. It is a forum where peer pressure can act as a powerful incentive to improve policy and which produces internationally agreed instruments, decisions and recommendations in areas where multilateral agreement is necessary for individual countries to make progress in a globalised economy. Non-member states, such as Tanzania, are invited to subscribe to these agreements and treaties. Indeed, for more than 40 years, the OECD has been one of the world’s largest and most reliable sources of comparable statistical, economic and social data. OECD databases span areas as diverse as national accounts, economic indicators, trade, employment, migration, education, energy, health and the environment . It shares expertise and exchanges views on topics of mutual concern with more than 70 countries worldwide, from Brazil, China and Russia to least developed countries in Africa. Much of the research and analysis is published.

134. Tanzania embassy in Paris may, therefore, wish to acquaint and familiarize itself with the important work of this organization in terms of making the maximum use of OECD databases as well as the research and analysis on issues of vital importance to the economic development of Tanzania. Indeed, Tanzania can learn a lot more from the OECD’s accumulated experience on issues such as sustainable development, bringing together environmental, economic and social concerns across national frontiers for a better understanding of the problems and the best way to tackle them together; as well as trade and structural adjustment, online security, and the challenges related to reducing poverty in the developing world.

VII. THE WAY FORWAD

135. During his campaign trail, the then ruling party’s presidential candidate Jakaya Kikwete had made a promise by clearly illustrating the fact that, in order to consolidate the progress and achievements that have been made so far by the outgoing Government, the role of his fourth-phased Government would be to continue to implement similar policies; but with new resolve, new energy and new speed”. Having obtained a resounding landslide victory, the President has begun to implement his promises with the same new determination, new vigor and speed that characterized his promises to the electorate.

136. At the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, the President appointed the first female Minister to head the Ministry. To assist the Minister, the President appointed two new Deputy Ministers, and a new Permanent Secretary. At the diplomatic missions’ front, the President appointed new ambassadors to the United Kingdom, Oman, Zimbabwe, Saudi Arabia, Germany and Belgium. In other words, the President’s focus was, indeed, precipitated by the need and his overriding commitment to improve bilateral relations with those countries. Indeed, his appointment of the new Permanent Representative to the Tanzania Mission in Geneva to replace the previous one whom he appointed to become the new Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation is, in the author’s humble point of view, commendable. With the long accumulated wealth of experience in governmental affairs, Ambassador Matern Lumbanga will bring confidence, coherence and increased effectiveness in the decision-making process of the Mission.

137. However, in a prevailing atmosphere of multilateral diplomacy, and in taking into consideration the imperatives of the new political realities both at the domestic and global levels, the President’s focus must also be directed towards the need to review the efficiency of Tanzania’s representation and participation in the United Nations system. This review, therefore, is aimed at helping the President and, more specifically, the policy makers to come up with a clear-cut policy framework that would give direction to the Tanzania Diplomatic Missions abroad in terms of identifying the best possible courses of action in the efforts towards the achievement of Tanzania’s strategic interests and objectives at the global level in a much more coherent, effective and efficient manner.

138. To sum up, serious reflection has to be exercised when considering the recommendations put forward in this study in order to achieve the desired goals and objectives. With so much at stake, it is essential that the Government now act as the protagonist to change the direction and content of the debate at the United Nations, be it on the issue of reforms within the UN system, or on issues pertaining to the maintenance of international peace and security. In other words, in any international debate, Tanzania must have a solid position of its own. It must have the capacity to exercise intellectual leadership to provide new directions for the United Nations, both in terms of policies and institutions. It is only through this kind of approach that Tanzania’s participation and representation in the United Nations system will be rendered much more effective and efficient as well as adding much value to the work of the United Nations. As Mwalimu Nyerere once said: “It can be done, let us play our part”.

TANZANIA MISSION IN NEW YORK

TANZANIA MISSION IN GENEVA

PROPOSED TANZANIA MISSION IN VIENNA

Comments on Establishing ZIRPP

By Dr Harith Ghassany

1.0 Introduction

At the outset, it is necessary to try to avoid a kind of policy-evidence dualism in a proposal that looks at how a Zanzibari research-to-policy-making institute such as ZIRPP can use evidence to make policy and planning decisions in Zanzibar.

The empirical approach assumes that there is evidence which policy-makers can use to make policy decisions but does not ask if there are policies to guide policy-makers to demand research results.

A government policy statement to support research and its implementation in public policy-making is therefore an important cornerstone in establishing and sustaining the Institute in Zanzibari settings.

Secondly, given the fact that Zanzibari human resources are outside Zanzibar, it is therefore necessary that the constitution of the ZIRPP should be able to accommodate the establishment of an overseas branch or branches of the Institute.

The specific objectives of the ZIRPP may include:

• A description of the work and responsibilities of Zanzibari policy-makers, and understand the types of decisions s/he makes, and/or his/her role in the policy-making process.
• Establish the distinction between a public-policy maker and public-policy-pursuant. What is the criteria of considering someone a public-policy maker within Zanzibari settings?
• Sources of information the person uses to make decisions, examples of how information has been used, and description of the major constraints on using research evidence.
• Exposure to research, the value the policy-maker places on research, and suggestions for how to increase engagement of policy-makers in research.
• Understanding of the types of research evidence policy-makers find most useful in making decisions, and description of ways to increase their use of research findings.
• A specific area of investigation will be the perceived utility of research findings on costs of implementation of interventions and their cost-effectiveness, and findings on the degree to which people with different levels of wealth or economic status derive benefit from public-policy interventions or programs (equity).
• The most important principle that used was to identify decision-makers who were clearly acting at the national level, as the focus of the study is at the national (central/federal) level of decision-making.

1.1 Zanzibari Public-Policy Strategy

Is the Zanzibari public-policy-making strategy guided by the old managerial (process-based) or the strategic (results-based) approach? The results-based (outcomes) strategic approach aims at planning for the future and not just focus on current problems (processes).

A clear assessment is needed of the impact on research and public-policy planning from the managerial process of setting the public-policy agenda to the results-based strategic planning of the public institutions in Zanzibar.

What is fundamental is that Zanzibar is running a “free” of payment public-policy service to all her citizens. To what extent is the results-based strategic planning for free public services in Zanzibar is informed by evidence-based public policy-making? And what is the degree of citizen’s satisfaction with the free public services at their disposal? At the moment the two questions are not linked to provide evidence-based answers.

An important factor here is to consider whether a Zanzibari public policy-maker is first and foremost responding to an external or internal strategic outlook.

1.2 Policy-makers and Research in Zanzibari Settings

Has the Zanzibar Government invested in a highly illustrious group of public-policy professionals?

Who are they and are they in the right institutions at the right time?

1.3 Setting the Zanzibar public policy agenda

How is the national public- policy agenda of Zanzibar decided? What is the criteria for selecting the participants and who votes and who does not and at what levels of responsibility. Table 1 below
highlights the possible methods used in setting Zanzibar’s public-policy agenda.

Table 1: Methods Used in Setting the Zanzibari Public-Policy Agenda

1. Problems as they relate to availability of services.
2. Brainstorming.
3. Scoring method.
4. Ministries involved.
5. Social voting.
6. Incidence of public problems, there is no voting.
7. Program director.
8. Decisions made by ministers.
9. No one is neglected.
10. Program director.
11. Program managers.
12. That is actually not clear.
13. All involved.
14. By consensus. Scoring.

We need a needs-assessment survey and sample narratives on how some national public policy-makers perceive the process of setting the national public-policy agenda in Zanzibar:

1.4 Sources of information

Is there a Directorate-General of Planning, Information and Statistics Department which captures routine data from public institutions and is it on a daily, weekly, monthly, or annual basis? Is there a functioning Directorate of Research and Studies? Are there regional data collecting points and to what extent are they decentralized at the operational level? Are there statisticians in all public institutions and at different levels? The regions should ideally collect detailed statistics and information data from all the districts (wilayats) and feeds it to the central level.

Table 2: Sources of Information for Policy Makers in Zanzibar

1. Community-based studies and patients’ health service utilization data.
2. Statistical data.
3. Reports, WHO short-term consultants, our own surveys.
4. Peer-reviewed journals and own research.
5. Surveys, statistics.
6. Personal observations on what is going on in the community, newspapers, radio.
7. Hospital data and our own community surveys.
8. Ongoing surveillance national data which we generate, articles I regional and international journals, information and articles from WHO.
9. Ministry’s annual monitoring reports and international reports.
10. Statistics of hospital attendances.
11. Journal articles.
12. Outpatient service data.
13. Ministry’s statistics.
14. WHO/EMRO, UNESCO, FAO, meetings, internet and reading.
15. We do our own research

According to the interviewees the most effective channels for them to be exposed to current research are presentations at meetings, workshops, and articles. Is research evidence such as equity and costs available to Zanzibari policy-makers.

1.5 Costs and Equity

There is a marked ambivalence among policy-makers towards the importance of considering costs and equity in decision-making.

Lack of evidence-based studies has in some important cases led to inconclusive results and consequently to no or weak policies.

Equity and costs are key issues which are important not just to the public services providers but to the citizens who are using those services. Cost is about the wealth of the country and equity is about how that wealth is distributed amongst her people. Do Zanzibari policy-makers express the importance of having research results on costs and equity but at the moment these two specific items are not present in making their policy and planning decisions.

Generally, do Zanzibari public-policy makers sit with researchers in an official forum or committee for the purpose of enriching policies with research results?

1.6 Official contact between policy-makers and researchers

is there an official contact between policy-makers and researchers through an official forum as expressed in the following responses in table 3 below:

Table 3: Contact between Policy Makers & Researchers

1. There is no regular forum where researchers and policy-makers meet.
2. No, basically because we are a service provider and not a research organization.
3. Oh yes. We have a national committee here in the Ministry of…
4. No. They call us when there is something related to us.
5. No.
6. It is done but not in formal committees. There is no committee/forum to discuss such issues.
7. No.
8. There is nothing new in that. Have we evaluated our current research studies from a research point of view?
9. I don’t think we have that.
10. There is a forum but I am not personally involved…I keep motivating them and encouraging them to make more research in the health field.
11. No.
12. Definitely and it was of value to me.
13. Not really. We don’t have that at all. We do it ourselves. We have our body of researchers here.
14. There is no regular forum here where researchers and policy-makers meet.

Despite the fact that policy-makers and researchers do not sit together, is there a public policy-maker who does not consult research results in planning their decisions?

1.7 The Role of Research in Policy-Making: The Views of Policy-Makers

Policy-makers selectively and invariably use certain sources of information in their decision-making. Is the value of research recognized by the senior policy-maker. Without research a decision can be based on personal views or impressions which may not reflect realities on the ground.

What happens when there is strong awareness of the importance of research in policy-making when research itself is absent?

1.8 Increasing the Need to Promote Your Ideas

Some policy-makers do find it very difficult to sell their decision to those higher in authority. Justifications vary according to the policy-maker and the decision which has to be sold. To a particular policy-maker, what makes it difficult for him to sell his ideas is that senior policy-makers are not sure of the extent of the problem. The argument is that even if a middle management policy-maker provides them with data, the question to top management policy-makers is “is it a real problem or not? It is a problem of awareness and level of understanding and the interference of personal interests in the decision-making.

1.9 The Need for Public-Policy to be Better Informed by Evidence

Regardless of the many factors which may play a role in increasing the need of policy-makers to sell their ideas, the need for Zanzibari public policy-makers to be better informed by research evidence seems to represent a deeper need. This is an area of rich insights that clearly indicates how health policy-makers in Zanzibar view sound policy-making by deepening and expanding research evidence. The recommendations are a combination of a bottom-up approach, proper dissemination of research results to policy-makers, and changing the methods or style of doing research.

2.0 Aspects of Research That Interest Policy-Makers

Zanzibaari public policy-makers are interested in which aspects of research results? There are those who are interested in surveys; doing and reading research results; criticize the methodology; what people think and their attitudes; public statistics; the outcome of research; and the public aspect of research results.

Some policy-makers may be interested in applied/operational research which does not match the motivations of an academician, i.e. academic promotion, etc

2.1 Kinds of Research Policy-Makers Would Like to Commission

Within policy-makers’ circles is a there a conflict in the perception of the kinds of research that they would like to commission?

Table 4 below highlights examples of research demanded by public policy-makers in the area of health.

Table 4: Research Demanded by Policy-Makers

1. Patient safety and performance indicators of the health services.
2. Work stress, injury, and the change in morbidity in the industrial area, the policy of industrialization and its social and health impacts.
3. Economic costs of non-communicable diseases.
4. Community surveys on mental illnesses.
5. Assessment of statistics graduates and the use of computers in hospitals.
6. Lifestyle and the impact of the media and globalization on their behavior.
7. More research on adolescents, women and child abuse, and violence.
8. Health services user satisfaction.
9. Evaluate our services and how they will look like in the next 15 years.
10. How to solve the anemia problem in the country.
11. Equity-based health research.
12. Cost-effectiveness or burden of disease.
13. Human resources and training which will give us the right numbers which will produce better outcomes.
14. Cultural and behavioral aspects of Aids.
15. TB, HIV among certain communities.

As indicated above, the main areas of research needed as per the policy-makers’ responses can be categorized into six main areas which are not in any order of priority.

 Patient satisfaction and safety
 Cost-effectiveness or burden of disease
 Community surveys on mental illness
 Human resources development and management: assessment of statistics graduates and the use of computers in hospitals, right numbers and level of training to produce better results
 Lifestyle diseases: anemia, TB, HIV, Breculosis, women and child abuse and violence, impact of media and globalization on health
 Health impact of work, industrialization, tourism

2.2 The Research-to-Policy Gap

Lack of research capacity which creates a research community in Zanzibar in general remains to be the main deficit. A culture of critical inquiry – research – has to be “introduced into the teachers and students very early on in the educational system and at later stages. Zanzibar does not have that at the moment. You build the capacity while you grow. You don’t expect each and every student to be a researcher but to at least appreciate research. A major part of public policy is how aware the public is about evidence-based research.”

It is not helpful to look at the problem of lack of research capacity as simply a problem of researchers or of policy-makers. There is first the need to create genuine awareness among the few and most senior public policy-makers on the importance of evidence-based policy and convince them to promote an enlightened advocacy among the highest echelons in the country. More than one track approach education to promote research-to-health policy awareness will be needed and various models will have to be studied including the United Nations University Model (UNU) model.

A huge task which requires tremendous political will is to erect health research awareness or at least appreciation throughout the educational ladder. That would be the ultimate aim. Short of that and from a human resource development point of view will be to invest more in researchers at higher education levels. The transfer benefits will go beyond public-policy research if properly trained teachers who combine the best from the East and the West will train the next generation of Zanzibaris to think more critically, and disseminate research appreciation.

2.3 Dissemination of Research Results

A policy-maker complains that research is done and the reports are prepared but policy-makers are too busy to read reports and may be they do not read what is written between the lines. “They need someone to help them” or/and provide them with “better readable materials.” The research results are often written in English or in two or three briefings and not the Kiswahili newspapers. policies.

Policy-makers should not be given the bulk of the research results. They should be given what interests them which should be what they need, and not everything. There should be a strategic marketing plan to decide which research results “end up in seminars, flyers, group presentations, booklets, radio, TV, libraries, bookstores.”

Research must decide how policy-makers and the general population get their information. It is very crucial to establish the reading-per-capita for a country like Zanzibar. In some cases word of mouth may be the best strategy but even this assumption must be based on evidence and reputable media research consultants can provide some good insights to work with.

“Results are not disseminated in the proper way… We don’t read. We need more discussions, more town meetings and media campaign for the public to understand. When they publish results they just put them in the newspapers giving percentages. What sense can an ordinary person make of that?”

2.4 Conclusion

Zanzibar’s human resources and financial wealth is disproportionately with the Zanzibaris in the diaspora and therefore it is imperative that an organic link be established between internal and external branches of the Zanzibar Institute for Research and Public Policy.

Clearly, there is a need to address the current research-to-policy gap in Zanzibar. While the organizational make-up or location of such an entity needs to be thought out more carefully, its main remit would be to forge a close working relationship with the mass media to inform the public on research-to-policy findings and related current activities taking place in Zanzibar

A research-to-public policy-driven Institute working out of Zanzibar and overseas needs to invest primarily in the field by bringing together the brains and pockets of Zanzibaris to work together with the Zanzibari communities according to defensible evidence-based strategies and results.

World Economic and Social Survey 2009: Promoting Development, Saving the Planet

The World Economic and Social Survey will be available today on the DESA (United Nations Department for Economic and Social Affairs) website , along with a series of related Policy Briefs drawing from the report.

The separation of the climate change and development agendas has distorted the global debate on the two biggest policy challenges facing the international community. According to the *World Economic and Social Survey 2009*, an integrated approach based on the concept of sustainable development is urgently needed. The key to such an approach is a low-carbon, high-growth transformation of the global economy — a transformation that can keep temperature increases consistent with environmental stability, as identified by the scientific community, while at the same time fostering the strong growth and economic diversification in developing countries that would allow convergence of incomes worldwide. The greening of catch-up growth will have to be further tailored to meet the adaptation challenges facing vulnerable countries and communities whose economic security will be threatened even if climate change is kept within globally manageable limits.

– The Survey argues that mitigation and adaptation efforts can move forward effectively only if they are part of a consistent development strategy built around an investment-led push on to low-carbon, high-growth pathways.

– It warns that the adjustments this will involve must not push poorer countries and communities further down the development ladder, or leave them
saddled with unmanageable debts, but should instead strengthen their resilience to external shocks, both climatic and economic.

– While acknowledging that a variety of market and non-market institutional mechanisms will be needed if advances are to be made along those paths, the *Survey* contends that the public sector must assume a much more prominent role, and that stronger developmental States must take action to mobilize public finances and build appropriate technological capacities.

– To gain traction, this potentially win-win strategy requires the international community to step up to the plate with multilateral financing on a much larger scale than has been forthcoming to date, and with new approaches to transferring technology from rich to poor countries. The report offers various suggestions to ensure that the available financing matches the challenges at hand.* *

For further information, please contact Robert Vos (vos@un.org), Richard Kozul-Wright (kozul-wright@un.org ), Imran Ahmad (ahmad33@un.org) of the
United Nations Department for Economic and Social Affairs.

*Mr. Jomo Kwame Sundaram*

*Assistant Secretary General for Economic Development, *

*United Nations Department for Economic and Social Affairs*

*http://www.un.org/esa/policy/index.html *

Tanzania to provide an official resting place for deceased national leaders

By Mike Mande,
Monday, September 7 2009 at 00:00

Tanzania is to become the first East African country to provide an official resting place for deceased national leaders and other great Tanzanians who have shaped the nation’s history. Serving and retired presidents, vice presidents, prime ministers, chief justices and the speakers of the national assembly will be buried in the multi-faith national cemetery. Those designated as national leaders and eligible for the burial include the United Republic of Tanzania president, vice president and prime minister and the president and vice president of Zanzibar.

However, the Isles chief minister and deputy chief minister are not provided for. The EastAfrican has learnt that the government is looking for an international firm to provide a detailed design for the national leaders’ cemetery at Iyumbu village in the capital city of Dodoma, 500 kilometres from Dar es Salaam. The government has acquired 120 hectares of land for the purpose and President Jakaya Kikwete has already assented to the Act for the establishment of the national leaders’ burial site.

Fanuel Mbonde, Deputy Permanent Secretary in the Prime Minister’s Office, said that the government has already set aside funds for the national cemetery. Mr Mbonde said a 50-metre memorial monument will be constructed at the highest point of the site, with the Uhuru Torch at the top and a base that offers a 360-degree view of the site. “The graveyard will take into account the religious customs of Muslims, Christians and others,” he said, adding that the National Leaders’ Funeral Act, 2006, stipulates funeral rites of the national leader or specified leader that will be conducted according to the religion, custom and traditions of the deceased depending on the cause of death.

The Act also stipulates the days of mourning for presidents, vice presidents, prime ministers and specified leaders as well as two types of funeral ceremonies — state or government funerals — depending on the status of the deceased leaders. The issue of an official resting place for national leaders surfaced at the time of the death of the first president of Tanzania, Mwalimu Julius Kambarage Nyerere, in 1999 when the government, having no official site, buried him in his home village of Butiama in Musoma.
The first president of Zanzibar, Abeid Amani Karume, who was assassinated in 1972, was buried in Zanzibar as were former president Abdul Wakil Jumaa, who died in 2000, and former vice president Omari Ali Juma, who died in 2001. A former prime minister of Tanzania, Edward Moringe Sokoine, who died in 1984, was buried in Mondulu district in Arusha Region.

Wanaowania urais Zanzibar wapigana vikumbo Bara

Na Salma Said, Zanzibar na Patricia Kimeremeta

KAMPENI za kuwania urais wa Zanzibar mwaka 2010, zimeanza kupamba moto huku wagombea watatu wanaotajwa kugombea nafasi hiyo kuanza kupita katika mikoa kadhaa ya Tanzania Bara kuomba kuungwa mkono. Habari zilizopatikana zinaeleza kuwa wanasiasa hao ambao ni Waziri wa Nchi Ofisi ya Makamu wa Rais (Muungano), Mohammed Seif Khatib, Waziri Kiongozi wa Zanzibar, Shamsi Vuai Nahodha na Naibu Waziri wa Ushirikiano Afrika Mashariki, Mohammed Abood.

Kwa mujibu wa habari hizo, Khatib anapigiwa debe na baadhi ya viongozi wa Umoja wa Vijana wa CCM (UVCCM), huku Nahodha akiungwa mkono na Waziri wa Maliasili na Utalii, Shamsa Mwangunga. Wiki hii Waziri Abood amedaiwa kufanya kampeni katika mikoa ya Nyanda za Juu Kusini ambako alizungumza na wenyeviti wa CCM wa mikoa ya Iringa, Mbeya na Ruvuma.

Chanzo cha habari kimesema kuwa Mwangunga naye alikuwa kwenye ziara katika mikoa ya Ruvuma, Mbeya na Rukwa ambako pamoja na mambo mengine, alikuwa akizungumza na makada wa CCM na kuwaomba wamuunge mkono Nahodha mwakani.

Hata hivyo, wagombea wote wamekanusha taarifa hizo wakisema kuwa hazina ukweli. Khatib alisema hajui kampeni zozote zinazodaiwa kufanywa na UVCCM kumpigia debe na kwamba kuhusu yeye kuwania urais wa Zanzibar mwakani, hawezi kusema chochote sasa kwa sababu muda haujafika. Abood naye alisema: “Sina mawasiliano na wajumbe hao wa mikoa na kama mnataka watafuteni mpate taarifa zaidi, labda kuna watu wanataka kunichafua,”. Alisema hawezi kuzungumzia nia yake ya kuwania urais wa Zanzibar sasa kwa kuwa sera ya CCM imefunga milango ya kufanya hivyo kabla ya wakati. Mwangunga na Nahodha hawakupatikana jana kuzungumzia suala hilo baada ya simu zao za mkononi kutopatikana.

Lakini, habari kutoka ndani ya CCM zimeeleza kuwa kampeni hizo za kumrithi Rais Aman Abeid Karume, zimetawaliwa na ubaguzi uliojikita katika tofauti za maeneo wanakotoka wagombea. Ingawa wakati wa kuanza kujinadi haujafika, mikakati ya chini chini imekuwa ikifanyika na makada hao wa CCM huku wapambe wao wakitupiana vijembe.

Ubaguzi wa kijimbo katika siasa za Zanzibar ulichochewa na ripoti ya utafiti wa Kampuni ya Synovate iliyoonyesha kuwa aliyekuwa Waziri Kiongozi wa Zanzibar, Mohamed Gharib Bilal, ndiye anayemfuatia kwa karibu Maalim Seif Sharif Hamad wa CUF kumrithi Rais Karume atakayemaliza muda wake wa miaka 10 ya kuiongoza Zanzibar mwaka 2010. Watu kutoka Kusini na Kaskazini kisiwani Unguja ndani ya CCM wanaupinga utafiti huo kuwa si sahihi; huku kila mmoja akivutia upande wake kwamba mgombea wao ndiye anayefaa.

Hata hivyo, Bilal ambaye pia anatajwa kuwania nafasi hizo bado hajaanza kampeni za kuomba kura kwa makada wa CCM kwa upande wa Bara. Dk. Bilal, ambaye kabla ya kuwa Waziri Kiongozi katika miaka ya 1995 hadi 2000, alikuwa Mhadhiri wa Chuo Kikuu cha Dar es Salaam, ni majeruhi wa kisiasa baada ya kuachwa katika uteuzi wa CCM katika kinyang’anyiro cha Urais mwaka 2000 dhidi ya rais Karume. Wengine waliopambana na Karume wakati huo ni Abdisalam Issa Khatib na mwanamke pekee Amina Salum Ali.

Katika uchaguzi wa ndani wa CCM wa kumpata mgombea urais Zanzibar, Dk Bilal alipata kura 44, Khatib alipata kura 11, Karume alipata kura 9 na Amina Salum Ali alipata kura 4. Matokeo hayo yalipopelekwa Kamati Kuu ya Halmashauri Kuu ya CCM, jina lililorejeshwa lilikuwa la Amani Karume. Katika uchaguzi wa mgombea wa urais wa mwaka 2005, Dk Bilal alijitokeza kwa mara nyingine tena kujaza fomu ya kugombea urais Zanzibar, jambo ambalo liliwashangaza wengi kutokana na kuonekana kuwa amekiuka utaratibu unaotambulika ndani ya CCM wa kumwachia Rais aliyepo madarakani kumaliza kipindi chake cha pili cha miaka mitano.

Kamati Kuu ya CCM Zanzibar ilimwomba Dk Bilal aliondoe jina lake ili kumpa heshima Rais aliyepo madarakani amalize ngwe yake; Dk Bilal alikataa na kusema uamuzi wa kuondosha jina lake ni vema ukafanywa na Halmashauri Kuu ya Taifa ya CCM na ndipo majina mawili, lake na la Rais Karume, yalipopelekwa Dodoma.

Kundi linalomuunga mkono Dk Bilal limebaki na msimamo wake kwamba wanaye mgombea wao; na chini kwa chini linaandaa mikakati ya kuhakikisha mgombea wao sasa anamrithi Rais Karume mwaka 2010. Inawezekana mvutano huu wa Rais Karume na Dk Bilal katika siasa ndio uliosababisha Karume katika kipindi chote cha uongozi wake kutomteua Dk. Bilal kushika nafasi yoyote serikalini.

Hata hivyo, wanaompinga Dk Bilal wanadai kuwa huyu akiwa kiongozi itakuwa kama sawa na kumrudisha madarakani rafiki yake Rais Mstaafu, Dk. Salmin Amour, ambaye aliwahi kutaka kipengele cha muda wa urais madarakani kibadilishwe kwa kuongezewa muda.

Wengine wanaotajwa kuwania nafasi hiyo ya urais Zanzibar ni Naibu Waziri Kiongozi Ali Juma Shamhuna, Makamu wa Rais wa Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania, Dk Ali Mohamed Shein, Waziri wa Elimu na Mafunzo ya Amali wa SMZ, Mheshimiwa Haroun Ali Suleiman, Waziri wa Ulinzi na Jeshi la Kujenga Taifa, Dk. Hussein Mwinyi na Balozi Ali Karume (kaka yake rais wa Zanzibar, Amani).

Chanzo: Mwananchi

US:This is our agenda in Zanzibar

By Beatus Kagashe

The United States Government yesterday said it has no “hidden agenda” on Zanzibar, other than to see an improvement in the political situation so that all Zanzibaris can feel represented in their government. Speaking exclusively to The Citizen, the spokesperson at the US Embassy in Dar es Salaam, Dr Ilya Levin, said the recent travel advisory issued over Pemba was only meant to alert their citizens about the problems they might encounter when visiting the island.

“Unrelated to the travel caution, the United States certainly does have an agenda in Zanzibar. We have publicly stated that agenda many times. We favour transparent, free and fair elections in 2010, held in a climate of civility and security. We feel strongly that governance in Zanzibar will improve once all Zanzibaris feel represented by their government and no Zanzibaris need fear political retribution,” said Dr Levin.

“As regards our travel caution, our only agenda is to apply American law. We are legally required to warn our citizens about potential dangers. Zanzibaris are well aware that the political season in Zanzibar has long been a time of violence… After the recent disturbances in Pemba, we had a responsibility to warn our citizens.”

Asked how the US arrived at the conclusion that Zanzibar, and Pemba, in particular, was not safe, he said they had held consultations with representatives of all the political parties, the Union Government and the Government of Zanzibar. “Our discussions with Zanzibari leaders in both the main political parties in the Isles, with local government administrators, and our own direct observations of violence, led us to conclude that we had a responsibility to warn our citizens. American citizens live and do business in Zanzibar,” he said.

As the biggest donor to Tanzania, and one of the key contributors to Zanzibar?s development, Dr Levin added, US officials regularly visit Unguja and Pemba islands of Zanzibar. “We are well aware of the unfortunate tendency towards violence in Zanzibar politics,” he said, adding:”We hope that responsible political leaders from both camps will work out solutions so that this election season will be free of violence.

If that happens, and we are certain that the agreement will hold. Then, we will be happy to so inform American travellers.” Dr Levin went on: “Recent events in Pemba, related to the registration of voters over the last month or so are well known. In fact, the situation reached a point where the Zanzibar Election Commission (ZEC) had to call a ‘time-out’ to cool things down. One only has to read the public statements made by the SMZ over that time to see that security in northern Pemba has been a public issue.” He said the bomb craters around the public highway bridge in Piki Township bore witness to those grave events.

But the Zanzibar Minister of State in the Chief Minister’s Office, Mr Hamza Hassan Juma, who reiterated that the entire territory was safe and that the incidents in Pemba “are just normal quarrels”, hastily denounced the US explanation. He added:”We always have problems whenever we approach elections in Zanzibar, but not to the magnitude that the United States is claiming. That’s why we think they have a hidden agenda.” Mr Juma spoke to The Citizen by telephone from Zanzibar.

The minister also wondered why the US has never issued such an alert against South Africa, “where about 10 to 20 people die every day in violent crimes, but they rush to blacklist Zanzibar, where no one has been killed so far”. He added:”The issue of elections in Zanzibar should not spoil our country’s image or destroy our good relations with our friends by unnecessarily creating fear among the people.”

Early this week, the US Department of State issued alerts to Americans to be careful when visiting Pemba, describing the area as not safe enough due to the chaos resulting from political conflicts. For the past two months, the situation has been tense as members of the main opposition party, Civic United Front (CUF) protested over the registration of new voters, claiming that most of their supporters had been denied identification cards and locked out of the vital exercise. As the complaints, protests and other ugly incidents mounted, the ZEC was forced to call off the registration indefinitely.

In his statement, Dr Levin said the winner-take-all political system in Zanzibar was the main problem, as it did not allow the losing side to have some say in government, and thus created continued tension and alienation of a significant part of the population. The US embassy spokesman said political tension only fuelled instability and violence in Zanzibar, impeding development. “This damages the international reputation of Tanzania as a whole,” he said.

On the travel alerts, he said, it was a legal US Government obligation to inform its citizens about situations of civil unrest, demonstrations or rallies where there is the potential for violence and possible threats to their personal security anywhere in the world.

The US, Dr Levin added, was for the establishment of a peaceful, fair and mutually respectful political culture in Zanzibar. This was part of the message of the recent joint statement by diplomatic missions major donors to Tanzania. “It is an open communication between the US Government and our own citizens, we do not need to seek anyone’s approval to protect our own citizens,”he said.

Source: The Citizen

Tukomeshe ubaguzi huu Zanzibar

Na Salim Said Salim

NINAKUMBUKA nilipokuja Zanzibar kwa likizo kutoka mkoani Tanga nilipokuwa ninafanya kazi kama mwandishi wa magazeti ya Tanganyika Standard (sasa Daily/Sunday News) nilipata ujumbe kutoka ofisini ulionitaka nihudhurie mkutano wa Wangazija ulioitishwa na Rais wa kwanza wa Zanzibar, hayati mzee Abeid Aman Karume.

Mzee Karume, aliwaambia Wangazija, wengi wakiwa wamezaliwa Zanzibar na hata kujukuu, lakini asili yao ikiwa ni visiwa vya Comoro. Wangazija walilalamika na kusema ule ulikuwa uonevu, ubaguzi na udhalilishaji na lengo lilikuwa ni kuwanyanyasa kwa vile walikataa kujiingiza katika vitendo vya kuua watu licha ya wazee wao wengi kuuawa katika mazingira yasiyoeleweka hadi leo.

Wapo waliokubali kutii amri ile kwa shingo upande na kuomba uraia, kama vile vyeti vyao vya kuzaliwa Zanzibar vilikuwa havina maana kama ilivyo leo wale wanaojiita Wazanzibari wanapovionyesha kutaka waandikishwe kuwa wapiga kura. Wengine, akiwamo swahiba wangu na mwandishi wa habari maarufu aliyesema kweli hadi siku za mwisho za maisha yake, marehemu Ali Nabwa, waliipuuza amri ile kwa vile waliiona ni ya kifashisti.

“ Kama ni kuomba uraia, basi iwe kwa wote…wenye asili ya Arabuni, India, China, Malawi, Msumbiji na kwingineko. Au watu wote waondoke Zanzibar na waletwe watu wawili, mwanamume aitwe Adam na mwanamke aitwe Hawa na waanze kupanda mbegu mpya ya Wazanzibari,” marehemu Nabwa alisema wazi, sitasahau na nitaendelea kumheshimu kwa kusema kweli ingawa hao wanaojiita wakubwa hawapendi kuambiwa kweli.

Baadhi ya wazee wa Kingazija ambao walikuwa mstari wa mbele kama viongozi wa Chama cha Afro Shirazi Party (ASP) walishangazwa na uamuzi wa kupokonywa uraia na walipoteza heshima waliyokuwa nayo mbele ya jamii. Baadhi ya jamaa zao waliwaambia walistahili yawakute kwa kusahau kuwa fadhila ya punda ni mateke.

Wazee hawa walihisi walisalitiwa na watu waliowaona wenzao wa karibu na kulalamika kuwa mchango wao katika ukombozi wa Zanzibar umesahauliwa.
Wangazija wengi walikwenda kuishi Comoro kama wakimbizi , lakini baadhi yao kutokana na Serikali ya Jamhuri ya Muungano kutofurahishwa na mwenendo ule waliweza kurudi Visiwani baada ya kifo cha mzee Karume mwaka 1972.

Sasa ni miaka 41 tangu Wangazija kuandamwa na kusakamwa na tunaona historia iliyoandikwa wakati wa utawala wa mzee Abeid Karume inajirudia wakati wa utawala mwanawe, Rais Amani.
Tunaambiwa ni sheria ndiyo inafanya kazi yake, lakini mtu wa kawaida hujiuliza sheria inayowabana Wangazija ilifanya kazi wakati wa utawala wa Mzee Karume na sasa wakati wa mwanawe Amani akiwa madarakani tu?
Ilikuwa wapi sheria hii wakati wa utawala wa Sheikh Ali Hassan Mwinyi, Sheikh Idris Abdulwakil na komandoo Salmin Amour? Taireni jamani, waacheni Wangazija wapumue.

Wanaofurahia hali hii wajue wanakaanga mbuyu na kuwaachia vibogoyo kutafuna. Watawaponza watu na kufikiriwa ubaya wakati hawana mkono wala kauli katika uovu huu wa kuwaandamama Wangazija.

Tunaambiwa kuwa uamuzi wakuwaandama Wangazija ni wa serikali, lakini kwa mwananchi wa kawaida unapozungumzia serikali basi moja kwa moja huenda kwa Rais aliyekuwa madarakani ambaye kwa ninavyomjua miongoni mwa maswahiba wake wakubwa ni watu wenye asili ya Comoro. Sijui yupo katika hali gani juu ya suala hili na anawatazama vipi Wangazija anapokutana nao.

Wapo wanaodai tatizo wanalokabili Wangazija lilitokana na baadhi ya wazee wao, mara baada ya Mapinduzi ya 1964, walikataa kutambulika kama Watanzania na kujidai utiifu wao ulikuwa kwa Comoro ambayo ilikuwa inatawaliwa na Mfaransa kwa hiyo wao ni raia wa Kifaransa. Hili sina hakika nalo, lakini hata ikiwa kweli kwa nini kauli za wazee wawili au watatu ziamue hatima ya mamia ya watu, wakiwamo ambao walikuwa hawajazaliwa?

Tukianza kuhukumu watu kwa yaliotendwa na wazee wetu, iwe wa kutuzaa, wa kifamilia au wa kupachikwa, tujue tunatafuta balaa.
Wazanzibari watashindwa kutazamana usoni wakiyachambua machafu yaliyotendeka Visiwani katika nusu karne iliyopita. Baadhi ya wazee wetu walifanya unyama ambao hata Manyara, Ngorongoro na Serengeti hauonekani, je, watoto wao wahukumiwe kwa waliyoyatenda wazee wao?

Kama ni suala wazazi kuwa na asili ya nje ya visiwa vya Unguja na Pemba kwa nini Wanamsumbiji waliokuja wakati wa kupigania ukombozi kutoka kwa Mreno nao wasitakiwe kuomba uraia? Wapo wengi na baadhi yao hupiga kura wakati wa uchaguzi.

Kwa vyovyote vile wanayotendewa Wangazija ambao wamekuwa wakisema hawathaminiwi Visiwani na ndiyo maana hakuna Mngazija mmoja aliyewahi kuchaguliwa kuwa waziri katika orodha ya zaidi ya mawaziri 250 walioitumikia SMZ tangu mwaka 1964.

Lakini wapo Wangazija waliowahi kuwa mawaziri katika Serikali ya Muungano na wengine kuwa mabalozi wetu nje ya nchi.

Idara ya Uhamiaji imesema hakuna mtu atayenyang’anywa hati ya usafiri wakati hilo limefanyika na wengi kusumbuliwa hadi sasa kwa suala la uraia. Kosa lao ni kwa babu zao kuzaliwa Comoro.

Ni vizuri Rais Amani Karume ahakikishe kabla ya kumaliza muda wake madarakani analimaliza suala hili moja kwa moja ili kumbukumbu zisimjumuishe kuwa miongoni mwa wale waliofumbia macho madhila waliofanyiwa Wangazija waliozaliwa Zanzibar, baadhi ya wakati wakifanyiwa vioja hivi na watu ambao wenyewe hawakuzaliwa Zanzibar.

Chanzo: Tanzania Daima