'The Economist' Takes Gloves off on Kikwete...

KipimaPembe · May 8, 2009

Kikojozi said:
Mkuu,

Kuna vitu viwili nataka tutafakari:

1. Kama hawa minorities wanaweza ku-overcome hizi changamoto zilizopo nchini kwetu, hata sisi weusi tunaweza. Admittedly, sio weusi wote hawajafanikiwa kibiashara. Pia sio minorities wote ni wahalifu.

2. Tuwe watengenezaji wa vitu (makers of things). Hatuwezi kutegemea tu primary products za kilimo, utalii na madini. We need to add value to our resources, export finished goods and earn foreign exchange. Tanzania tunatengeneza kitu gani ambacho wakenya, wamarekani, waingereza, wajapani, wachina watataka kununua kutoka kwetu kwa wingi?

1. Na admitedly vile vile sio minorities wote wamefanikiwa vile vile.

2. Kuhusu kutotegemea primary product na kuwa watengenezaji wa vitu (makers of things). Kinachozungumziwa wa hapa na subject matter ya hii article ni how do you achieve the status of maker of things. Inabidi vile vidogo ulivyonavyo kwanza uviendeshe efficiently ili vingine vifuate. Tunashindwa kuendesha bandari efficiently si kwa sababu we are not makers of things. Bandari ni product tena product kubwa. Tunashindwa kuendesha reli iliyopo. Reli ni product tena product kubwa.

3. Tunazungumzia innefficiency katika mfumo wa utawala unaofanya kusukuma hivi vitu iwe impossible. Sasa unazungumzia manufacturing wakati hakuna umeme. Na Tanzania usitarajie umeme ikiwa TANESCO haiendeshwi efficiently. Hakuna muwekezaji kutoka nje atakayekuja kufanya kazi inayofanywa na TANESCO. Lazima tuwe very dilligent katika kuendesha mashirika kama hili.

4. Maendeleo hayaji kama mvua kwamba mtaanza siku moja muanze kufanya industrial revolution. Labda historia tukisoma yaliyoandikwa tunaamini kuwa yalifanyika overnight. Ilikuwa ni process. Na process inaanzia na vitu vidogo vidogo.

5. Large enterprise, zilianza kama biashara au mashamba madogo madogo. Efficiency katika production ndio inafanya biashara ndogo ziwe competitive na kukua kufikia kuwa biashara kubwa. Inaelekea wengi sasa mnaamini katika injection ya large capital na overnight ku-overturn economy, hiyo haitatokea.

Sasa ninachosema ni nini?

Serikali ni instrument. Ni vehicle ya watu. Serikali inachukua kodi kwa watu. Inao wajibu wa kujenga mfumo utakaofanya uzalishaji katika nchi uwe rahisi na bidhaa za nchi ziwe competitive.

Serikali yetu badala ya kuwa vehicle ya development inakuwa vihicle ya kuwafanya watu wawe maskini. Inneficiency ndani ya serikali maana yake ni kuwa biashara ndogo haziwezi kukua kwani zinabeba mzigo mzito (Kodi ya kijiji, kodi ya wilaya, kodi ya serikali kuu). Ukitaka kuformalize biashara yako inabidi upitie ofisi tano tofauti zenye maofisa ambao umuhimu wao unatiliwa shaka. Ukitaka kusafirisha mzigo kutoka sehemu moja kwenda nyingine unakuntana na vikwazo kibao (vizuizi barabarani, barabara mbovu, n.k.).

Mapato yanayotokana na kodi badala ya kurudishwa kwenye Elimu, Afya na miundo mbinu yanaongeza ugumu wa maisha kwa walipa kodi kwani yanatumiwa kununua vitu vya starehe kwa warasimu walio ndani ya mfumo wa utawala.

Innefficiency ya serikali ni balaa kwa wafanyabiashara wadogo na ni liability kubwa. Hii liability bila kutoka, hizo tunazoita industrialization inakuwa ndoto.

The economist wanazungumzia jinsi serikali ilivyozama na kutopea kutika uzembe, ufisadi, n.k. Watu wanasema hizi ni siasa. Sawa lakini hizi ndizo zinazoendesha nchi.

Hasara wanayopata entrepreneurs wadogo kutokana na kugharimia serikali kubwa, dhaifu na isiyo na ufanisi ni kubwa. Hii hasara inawafanya wenye biashara ndogo washindwe kuendeleea.

Wanaozungumzia kilimo hamjaenda huko mkafungua mashamba hata madogo muone jinsi kilimo kisivyolipa. Kulima kungekuwa na faida wakulima wasingekimbilia mijini. Ambao hamjakaa vijijini mnadhani watu wanakimbilia mijini kwa sababu hawataki kulima. What a shame?

Si mbali. Nenda hapo mkoa wa pwani tu anzisha mradi mdogo wa kilimo uone. Hautarudi, mizigo ni mingi na inasababishwa na serikali isiyo na ufanisi. Lazima hii serikali irekebishwe ili iwe pro-development kwa watu wake.

Steve Dii · May 8, 2009

Ukweliii said:
Wana JF, naomba msaada nini def. ya "middle class" kama ilivyotumiwa hapa kwenye hii makala ya Economist "
...countrys tiny middle class fears being swamped in a common market by better-qualified Kenyans and Ugandans..."

na waTZ kitakwimu wanagawanywa vipi kwenye hizo classes?

... Maswali yako yanaweza kujibika kwa upana zaidi kwa kusoma thread ifuatayo: https://www.jamiiforums.com/jukwaa-la-siasa/27545-class-struggle-tanzania.html

Masanja · May 8, 2009

jmushi1 said:
Asante Dillunga kwa maelezo ambayo ni ukweli mtupu.
Bishanga nashukuru pia kwa maelezo positive....Ila hizi siasa ni mambo ya mijini na ndio maana politics za JK kushinda zitaendelea tuu.

Nimeamua nigusie posting zote mbili yani hii hapo juu pamoja na ya Bishanga...Ni postings mbili zenye jumbe ambazo zinaufanya mjadala huu kuwa wa maana sana kwa Watanzania especially hao wenye kutuongoza na wenye nafasi za kuchangia kwenye jamii kwa vitendo.

Dillunga uliyosema ni kweli lakini umezungumzia wananchi wenye kufanya kazi maofisini,na ni wazi umezungumzia tatizo hilo kama ni utamaduni wa mtanzania,na hivyo basi mtanzania kama mtanzania bila ya kujali kama ni wa ofisini huko mijini ama wakulima huko vijijini,wote tayari wako kundi moja.

Kwa upande mwingine Bishanga ametolea mifano mizuri sana tu based on points zilizoko kwenye makala hii....Kwamba tunaweza tukawekeza kwenye kilimo cha irrigation,na akatolea mfano wa bonde la mto Rufiji,tulishasema sana na wengi waliotutangulia walishasema sana,bila Kilimo hatwendi mahali.

Kilimo pekee ndio kinachoweza kumwondoa hata asiye na elimu kutoka kwenye umasikini na baada ya hapo akaweza kusomesha watoto na hence maendeleo
Maendeleo na elimu vinategemeana lakini utajiri unaweza kuleta vyote kama ukitumiwa vizuri.

Angalia ukweli mtupu kuhusu sisi kuwa na "Tiny middle class" kwenye East African population...Huku tukiwa na tatizo kama hilo bado tunatembeza bakuli,halafu kwasababu ya ukweli kwamba tuna viongozi ambao wanatoa maamuzi kwa niaba yetu wananchi,huwa ninashangazwa pale tunapotumia dhana ile ile ya kuwalaumu wananchi kwa kujifananisha na viongozi kwamba hatuna cha kufanya simply kwasababu wote sisi mpaka Kikwete ni wavivu,na umetoa mifano ya maofisini ya wananchi sambamba na Kikwete ambaye kiukweli naye hakai ofisini...Yani ukweli mtupu,ila nini cha kufanya?

Tuatauzungumzia vipi uchumi wa Tanzania bila kuhusisha kilimo? Kama mawazo yetu yamebakia kwenye kazi za maofisini na uongozi na siasa,vitu ambavyo hata hivyo hupatikana kimatabaka,je siyo sababu kubwa kuwa Taifa limekwama? Hakuna nidhamu ya kazi kwasababu hata taratibu za uajiri ni za kujuana nk.

Nchi nyingi sana ziliwapatia wananchi wao maendeleo na elimu kwa kuzitumia rasilimali zake,kwa mfano hapa USA ni miji mingi sana ilijengwa mara baada ya ugunduzi wa either madini ya shaba,gold,mafuta na hata makaa ya mawe,chumvi nk,wananchi ambao hata hawakusoma walipata maendeleo na kuwasomesha wanao na kutengeneza jamii ya na kuboresha miundo yao ya kijamii,nimetembelea miji ambayo ilijengwa na kilimo na bado Kilimo ndio kinaiendesha,pia miji ambayo rasilimali walizonazo zimeijenga na baada ya hapo kujijengea misingi ambayo ndiyo baadaye unaona kuna wasomi na wafanyabiashara wakubwa wanaoibuka na kuuendeleza utajiri ule ama kuinvest smartly...Mambo hayaanzii juu,huanzia chini,huu ni ukweli usioipingika.

Na hivyo basi kama alivyosema Bishanga na pia kama walivyosema watanzania wengine,we can kama tukibadilisha mentality yetu....Alipotupitisha mwalimu ni tofauti na walikopita wananchi wa mataifa yetu ya jirani,lakini mimi naamini kama tungepata viongozi wa maana,basi tungekuwa matawi ya juu,hatuwezi kabisa kuwa na utajiri wote tulio nao halafu bado turidhike na kiongozi mwenye kusafiri kila kukicha kuomba eti kwasababu watanzania ni wavivu wanakunywa supu tu,huo ni utamaduni wa watanzani walio wengi wenye kukaa mijini ambako hawakuzoe kuwa na kazi na hata kazi zenyewe pia hazitolewi kimaadili ya kazi nk. Na hao ni asilimia ndogo sana ya watanzani na ndio hao tunaoendelea kuwachambua kuanzia kwenye the ecomomist hadi hapa JF

Mkuu Dillunga sijui umetokea maeneno gani,lakini nakuhakikishia hao watanzania unaowaona huko maofisini wanakokunywa supu ya utumbo,maandazi na chai,huko vijijini kwenye asilimia kubwa ya watanzania si hivyo dugu yangu....Kama kweli kilimo kikipewa kipaumbele basi ungekuja na stori ya jinsi mkulima huyu ama yule alivyofanya bidii na kupata mazo bora nk.
Product karibia zote zinazotumika kwa wingi zimetokea mashambani,hata hapa USA, na miji mingi tu,hao wanaowaita blue color workers,hawajasoma,ila wako well trained kwenye shughuli flani flani za maendeleo ya kiuchumi...Something minor as packaging kinatukwamisha watanzania. Unakuta tuna uwezo wa ku export product flani lets say food product,packaging tu ambayo hata mtoto aliyemaliza lasaba anaweza kuwa trained na kurun machine,lakini hakuna mipango wala taratibu za kuelekea huko,badala yake eti tuendelee kuomba hadi hapo tutakapotengemaa,sasa sijui kutengemaa kwa namna gani maana si wanasema hata misaada mingine hatutumii? Sasa kama ni hivyo si ina maana mafisadi wanatufundisha kuitumia? Watanzania wenye kuombewa misaada ni wachache na ndio wanaopiga kura na kunywa chai na maandazi,lakini si wa vijijini....Politics hovyo sanaa!

Kuna watu wanashika jembe na wana uchungu vibaya mnoo! Hawana nafasi kwenye siasa zetu maana maisha yao hayaandikwi wala hayagusiwi kwenye mijadala ya macritic kama sisi.

Cha msingi ni sisi kuanza kufikiria kama watanzania wenye kuelewa tulikotoka na kujuwa kuwa hatuwezi kuendelea kama tutataka kujipatia maendeleo kwa kujaribu kujenga middle class bila ya kuzingatia kuwa majority ya watanzania wako rural areas...Na huku siasa zikiwa mijini huko kwenye supu na nyama choma na bia tukisubiri next campaign.

Mkuu kwa kumalizia,ni kweli uliyoyasema hapo juu lakini hukuwataja wakulima na watu wa vijijini ambapo kama kweli tunataka tujishindanishe na majirani zetu,basi ni lazima wawe included kwenye jedwali.

Bishanga pia nashukuru kwa maneno mazuri yenye kutia moyo ambayo yanaweka mtizamo mwingine chanya wakati mjadala huu ukiendelea.
Tumekikimbia kilimo kila mtu ni mjini na siasa,kweli hapo tulitegemea nini?

Mkuu ni siku nyingi sijasoma makala yako iliyotulia kama hii! Sasa tujiulize baada ya hii analysis tuanzie wapi. Tujadili.

In all, big up and thanks for this splendid analysis!

Masanja,

Nyani Ngabu · May 8, 2009

Mzee Mwanakijiji said:
Ni kama toto kubwa ambalo halitaki kuachia nyonyo!

Hmmmmm.....inategemea unazungumzia nyonyo gani....mimi niko kama toto kubwa nikiwa na Cuppy

Zakumi · May 8, 2009

Masanja said:
Mkuu ni siku nyingi sijasoma makala yako iliyotulia kama hii! Sasa tujiulize baada ya hii analysis tuanzie wapi. Tujadili.

In all, big up and thanks for this splendid analysis!

Masanja,

Hilo swali la kuanzia wapi ni sawa na panya kuulizana ni nani amvike paka kengere.

KipimaPembe · May 8, 2009

Maendeleo huletwa na profits. Accumulation ya profit na re-investiment ya profits ndiyo inayofanya biashara ndogo zikue na kuwa biashara kubwa. Wakulima wa kahawa wanaouza kahawa ghafi, wakipata faida over ten years in a row, ni wazi wataanza kuprocess kahawa yao wenyewe na kuuza final product.

Lakini mfumo wa nchi unawafanya hawa wakulima wadogo wapate mzigo mkubwa kutokana na serikali iliyopo. Kodi kubwa, makato ya kujenga shule, makato ya kujenga zahanati, makato ya kujenga ........ Na hayo makato nusu yake tuu ndo inaenda huko ilikokusudiwa. Nyingine inamezwa na mfumo wa utawala uliopo. Umelipa kodi, hela ya kodi kwa nini isijenge shule? Kwa nini isijenge zahanati? Kwa nini isijenge kituo cha polisi? Inneficiency.

Haya mapesa ya EPA usidhani ni kitu tu cha hivi hivi. Kuna watu wanazilipia hizo hela kwa damu zao. Na hao ni wakulima maskini wa kahawa, pamba, korosho, karafuu, n.k.

Matokeo yake? Kila mwaka hawa wakulima wanapata hasara. Accumulation ya hasara inasababisha washindwe kuendelea na kilimo na hivyo umaskini kuzidi. Wengi wanayakimbia mashamba na kuja kubangaiza mijini. Hatujiulizi kwa nini?

Wanayakimbia mashamba kwa sababu wanapata hasara. Wakitaka kununua mbolea na dawa za kuua magugu wanalipia bei mbaya sana. Wanalipia udhaifu uliopo katika mfumo wa uagizaji wa madawa hayo (licensing, etc). Wanalipia udhaifu mkubwa uliopo bandarini. Wanalipia gharama kubwa kwa sababu ya ubovu wa mfumo wa usafirishaji. Kufika kwa mkulima bei imeshakuwa kubwa mno. Mkulima hawezi kuafford.

So we shouldn't wonder kwa nini watu hawatoki. Na tusidhani uzembe unaoendelea serikalini has nothing to do with this. Tukifikiria hivyo tunajidanganya.

Ukweliii · May 8, 2009

Asante sana kwa kunisaidia kupata ufafanuzi, lakini hiyo thread inajadili "historia, itikadi, phalsafa" . na pia mimi nataka mchanganuo wa TZ ya leo

Asante

Karandinga · May 8, 2009

Rev. Kishoka said:
DEAR MZEE MATONYA WA UKWERENI....

Damn, Damn, Damn! Florida Evans would have cursed!

Damn, Damn, Damn, Mchungaji Kishoka is cursing!

Walahi huu Umatonya umetukaa fiti kama vile kushoneshewa suti kwa fundi pale Gerezani. Yaani bado tunalilia misaada na tunadai eti tunataka kujitegemea?

Nitataja kwa kifupi kwa nini Tanzania inashindwa kujitegemea na inategemea misaada na hivyo kauli za Viongozi siku zote ni kuomba omba na kung'ang'ania kuwa misaada ni muhimu na si kuimarisha uzalishaji wa mali na matumizi mazuri ya rasilimali zetu ndani ya nchi.

1. Serikali yetu ni kubwa mno, na haina ufanisi wala uwiano chanya kati ya ukubwa wake na matunda ya kazi zake.
2. Serikali, inapenda kutumia pesa kupita uwezo wake. Hakuna utamaduni wa kupunguza au kubana matumizi.
3. Serikali na Taifa zina mfumo mbovu wa fedha ambao unatoa mianya ya matumizi mabaya ya fedha, kukosekana kwa nyaraka, stakabadhi na mtiririko sahihi wa kihasibu na mahesabu katika matumizi ya fedha.
4. Viongozi wa Tanzania ni wavunjaji wa kanuni za sheria na mahesabu kwa kutumia nguvu za madaraka yao. Waziri au mtendaji, hutoa amri ya matumizi au kutumia fedha bila kuwa na fungu katika bajeti au kupangiwa, hivyo kujichotea kutoka fungu lolote kukidhi kauli na mahitaji ya mkubwa na si kuendana na bajeti.
5. Ulimbukeni wa ukarimu wa kijima, unatupunguzia mapato kwa kisingizio cha vivutio vya uwekezaji. Misamaha ya kodi na ushuru ni mikubwa sana na haiendani hata kidogo na ama kinachovunwa na mwekezaji au uwezo wa mwekezaji.
6. Udhaifu wa mipango na mikataba, ni moja ya mambo ambayo yanasababisha Taifa kupoteza mapato na kuishia kutumia fedha nyingi na kuombaomba badala ya kuwa makini na kujiongezea mapato na kuhakiki mipango kwa kutoa kipaumbele kwa mipango na matumizi ya lazima na yenye manufaa.
7. Hujuma. Iwe ni ufisadi, uvivu, uzembe, wizi au kukosekana kwa mwamko, Watanzania tunajihujumu wenyewe na hata kama leo tutadai Rostam, Somaiya, Manji, Mengi na Patel ni mafisadi, bado sisi wenyewe kama wananchi tunachangia kwa sehemu kubwa sana kuimarika kwa ufisadi.

Ukisoma habari hii hapa chini, inabidi ujiulize, je ni lini tutaamka na kubadilisha mwenendo wetu?

Rais Kikwete katembelea dunia na nchi tajiri wahisani kwa asilimia 40 ya muda wake aliokuwa madarakani, je tumefanikiwa kiasi gani kujiimarisha kiuchumi kwa kutumia nyenzo zetu wenyewe?

Je Tanzania tuko umbali gani kabla ya tumaini ka kujitegemea kuonekana hata kupata imani kutopka kwa wawekezaji na wafadhili kuwa tumeanza kwenda kwenye njia nyoofu?

Hii kauli aliyoisema Mzee Matonya wa Ukwere kuwa tunajitahidi tujitegemee, na tunafurahia misaada ni kauli iliyonidhoofisha na kuniambia kuwa ni wazi Serikali ya Tanzania, CCM au Watanzania bado hatujaamka na kuanza kuitutumua kwa vitendo na si maneno kuwa tunataka kkujenga Taifa linalojitegemea.

Hiki kipande kinatoka gazeti la Economist.

Tanzania waits for a leap forward | Waiting for that great leap forward | The Economist

The Emperor has no clothes!!!

Steve Dii · May 8, 2009

Kipimapembe said:
Maendeleo huletwa na profits. Accumulation ya profit na re-investiment ya profits ndiyo inayofanya biashara ndogo zikue na kuwa biashara kubwa. Wakulima wa kahawa wanaouza kahawa ghafi, wakipata faida over ten years in a row, ni wazi wataanza kuprocess kahawa yao wenyewe na kuuza final product.

Lakini mfumo wa nchi unawafanya hawa wakulima wadogo wapate mzigo mkubwa kutokana na serikali iliyopo. Kodi kubwa, makato ya kujenga shule, makato ya kujenga zahanati, makato ya kujenga ........ Na hayo makato nusu yake tuu ndo inaenda huko ilikokusudiwa. Nyingine inamezwa na mfumo wa utawala uliopo. Umelipa kodi, hela ya kodi kwa nini isijenge shule? Kwa nini isijenge zahanati? Kwa nini isijenge kituo cha polisi? Inneficiency.

Haya mapesa ya EPA usidhani ni kitu tu cha hivi hivi. Kuna watu wanazilipia hizo hela kwa damu zao. Na hao ni wakulima maskini wa kahawa, pamba, korosho, karafuu, n.k.

Matokeo yake? Kila mwaka hawa wakulima wanapata hasara. Accumulation ya hasara inasababisha washindwe kuendelea na kilimo na hivyo umaskini kuzidi. Wengi wanayakimbia mashamba na kuja kubangaiza mijini. Hatujiulizi kwa nini?

Wanayakimbia mashamba kwa sababu wanapata hasara. Wakitaka kununua mbolea na dawa za kuua magugu wanalipia bei mbaya sana. Wanalipia udhaifu uliopo katika mfumo wa uagizaji wa madawa hayo (licensing, etc). Wanalipia udhaifu mkubwa uliopo bandarini. Wanalipia gharama kubwa kwa sababu ya ubovu wa mfumo wa usafirishaji. Kufika kwa mkulima bei imeshakuwa kubwa mno. Mkulima hawezi kuafford.

So we shouldn't wonder kwa nini watu hawatoki. Na tusidhani uzembe unaoendelea serikalini has nothing to do with this. Tukifikiria hivyo tunajidanganya.

... The Dreadful Poverty Lock-In!!

... Sadly, we know about it and can't escape! Ndivyo Tulivyo jigsaws in tightly!

Hondo · May 8, 2009

Point ambayo wengi wamesahau hapa ni MALENGO watanzania wengi hatuna malego mazuri ya maisha yetu ya baadaye .Hatujui jinsi ya kutimiza malengo yetu ,Hata viongozi wetu hawajui wanapo pewa dhamana ya inchi wafanye nini?.Wengi wanataka sifa na kueshimiwa kwa sababu yeye ni mtu fulani.Hata wasomi hawajui kwanini wanaenda shule na kwanini wanapelekwa shule wote wanaenda kwaajili ya mashindano au kwa ajili ya fashion kwambi mimi naitwa DR fulani kama fulani .Watanzania hawajui kwanini hamchague kikwete mwakani au kwanini amchague mbunge fulani ni kwa sababu yeye ni naye mchagua ni jirani yangu na kwa sababu ni rafiki wa mgangawangu ndio maana namchagua au kwa sababu anarangi nzuri siunaona yeye ndiye dr pia ana kitambi kubwa.
Kama watanzania wataacha desturi yao ya kuangalia material na kufanya uchunguzi wa kina kabla hajachagua mtu basi tutapata viongozi wazuri na wenye sifa ya kutuongoza .Lazima tuangalie BACKGROUND za wale wanaonata kutuongoza .tusiangalie vieti au Elimu tuu, hapana tuangalie kwamba huyu mtu anaweza kutufikisha anaweza kuleta tunacho itaji?je anasema anawezaje kuleta kwa kukopa au kuiba au kwa kuomba ?je amewahi kufanya nini hata kwa maisha yake?katika kazi yake.
Lazima watanzania tuache kufagiliana pasipo kuwa na uwezo eti kwa sababu ya offer za pombe na mandazi.Pia tuwe na uchungu wa maendeleo kila mtanzania na sio kwa TAIFA letu tu.tuanzie kwenye nyumba zetu tubuni jinsi ya kuongeza mapato kwenye familia zetu .Naamini tuna njia nyingi ijapo kuwa hatujishugulishi nazo.Tupunguze mda wa kukaa kwenye vikao zetu kwani mda mwingi tunapoteza kwenye vikao kama HARUSI,MAJUNGU,UMBEA,hii yote inatokea kwa sababu hatuna malengo na jinsi ya kuyakamilisha.Maisha ni wewe mwenyewe na wewe ndiye utakuwa picha kamili ya Taifa letu la tanzania .Lazima tuchukie hali hiyo ya uzembe na tegemezi ndipo tutaendelea.Pia lazima tukubali kua accountable pale hatuja fikisha malengo yanayotakiwa .Kwa mtaji huo tutakuwa mbali sana kimaendeleo kwani hata viongozi wazembe wataona haibu na kukimbia wenyewe.
Tunaona Rwanda wanaendelea ni kwa sababu RAISI wao anamalengo ya kuendelea na wameweka mikakati ya kuwafanya waendelee,Pia wanajua kwamba wafanye nini,Sasa tubadilike tusiendelee kulalamika kwa viongozi kwani tunapoteza mda mwingi kuwalalamikia viongozi wetu .Naomba sasa watanzania tuache kulialia kwani kama ni uchafu nikweli tumeshaubeba sasa tufanye mpango wa kuuacha ili tusonge mbele ,Lazima tufikirie jinsi ya kusafisha au kutafuta muelekeo unaofaa kwani hatuwezi kuendela kupotea .Kama gps au navigeta haifai basi tutumie mapkwest kutafuta muelekeo sasa tusilalamike tena kwani tutafute uvumbuzi ,Huo ndio mwito wangu kwani tumeshajua tuko wapi .Kama hatujajua basi tujulishane ili twende mbele.

Kwame Nkrumah · May 8, 2009

MchunguZI said:
I needed to know the origin of the article before, for assessing the authenticity and intended impact of the article. I dont want be trapped into political castigation instead of the really argument.

Mkuu, article imetoka katika jarida la The Economist [ Tanzania waits for a leap forward | Waiting for that great leap forward | The Economist ].
Ni moja ya suggested readings ambazo maafisa wa wizara ya mambo ya nje wa Marekani wanatakiwa kusoma, [ http://careers.state.gov/docs/3-0-0_FSO_readinglist.pdf ]. Kama utauliza kwa kuwa wao wanasoma gazeti hilo na sisi ndiyo tufuate yanayoandikwa ? Jibu ni ndiyo na hapana. Ndiyo kwa sababu kila mara Vasco da Gama yupo huko na bakuli lake kuomba,ni vizuri tukijua hawa jamaa wanafikiria nini kuhusu sisi. Kwa mfano imeandikwa humo kwamba hata pesa zenyewe za misaada tunashindwa kuzitumia, approx 3 trillion tsh. zipo hazijatumika, licha ya shida zote tulizonazo. Na hapana kwa sababu mapendekezo mengine kama kuungana na jirani zetu wakati hatujajiandaa si sawa.
Lengo ni kukutoa shaka whether this article or the magazine itself is genuine. Tukubali tu kukosolewa ili tuweze kwenda mbele.

Mlalahoi · May 8, 2009

Dilunga said:
Hiyo sababu ya saba, Watanzania, ndio kiini cha tatizo. Si CCM, si Kikwete, si serikali.

ECONOMIST wametutandika fimbo wote, kwamba Watanzania ni watu slow, tusio na mwendo wa kwenda mbele, hatuna "dynamism." Hatuna ujuzi, tumezidiwa na Wakenya na Waganda, tunawaogopa. Tuko slow wanasema mpaka tumeshindwa hata kutumia hela tulizoomba, $ 2.4bil. Ukweli si kejeli, ashakum si matusi.

Labda ilikuwa muhimu kwao kutambua kuwa haiwezekani watu zaidi ya milioni 40 kuwa viongozi,hence the need for a government.Failure ya government si lazima itafisiriwe kuwa failure ya wananchi.Tunapozungumiza serikali,kwa maana ya government tunamaanisha bunge,mahakama na executive ( ambayo kwa kiswahili ni serikali pia).Failure ya vyombo hivyo vinavyopaswa kuwatumikia wananchi (kwa vile haiwezekani kila Mtanzania kuwa ndani ya serikali) haiwezi kutafsiriwa directly kuwa ni failure ya kila Mtanzania,unless tunazungumzia makosa katika kuiweka madarakani serikali iliyopo sasa.

Kikwete sio dawa, sio ugonjwa.

Aliahidi kuwa dawa,wapigakura wakamwamini na kumkabidhi urais 2005.Ni ugonjwa kwa vile hawezi kujiepusha na kushindwa kwa Tanzania kufika inapostahili kuwa.Kwani dawa ni nini?Si ni kitu chochote kinachoweza kutibu?Lakini dawa pia inaweza kuwa feki,and for that matter,nadhani JK ni dawa ila ni dawa feki.Au pengine ni dawa iliyoisha muda wa matumizi.

Miundombinu yetu ya reli na bandari imechoka mbaya, "rickety," wanasema. Reli, bandari, ndege, barabara, magari ya usafirishaji yalianza kuchoka toka enzi Nuhu anaibuka kutoka kwenye Gharika ya Kwanza ya Dunia.

Hivyo vyote havikuzaliwa namna hiyo,vimefikishwa katika hali hiyo na watu flani.JK alipokuwa anataka tumpe urais hakuwa blind,na aliona hiyo miundombinu "rickety",lakini bado aliwaaminisha Watanzania kuwa atarekebisha mambo.

Kikwete kakikuta hiki kifafa cha miundombinu, na hana dawa.

Unaposema alikikuta,it sound as if JK alikuwa mjamzito kisha akazaa mtoto mwenye kifafa na asijue kama amtelekeze au amvumilie.Huyu ni Mtanzania mwenzetu anayefahamu vema mazingira ya nchi yetu.Si kwamba aliamka akawa rais,NO.Alizunguka takriban kila kona ya TZ na kuona namna gani hali ilivyo.Alikuwa akifahamu fika jukumu zito lilo mbele yake.Kama alikuwa anajua hana dawa,je aliomba urais ili iweje?I hope sio kupata fursa ya kuingia kwenye kumbukumbu za maisha yake kuwa "you see,na mie nilishawahi kuwa rais"...au kuendeleza ligi dhidi ya Vasco Da Gama

Wananchi wa Tanzania, sio Kikwete, wote tumejaa uvivu, uchovu, ukilaza, uzembe wa mawazo na kazi. Jumatatu unaingia saa sita, jana ulilala msibani ukihani marehemu Mzee Dau, baba wa shangazi yake mke mdogo wa jirani yako. Jummanne inabidi uombe udhuru kumpeleka Pili hospitali. Jumatano unaenda kwenye mazishi, haupo kazini nusu siku. Alhamisi unaondoka mapema kuwahi lifti ya Mama Tarimo maana ukiikosa hii basi usafiri jioni udhia mtupu, isitoshe yabidi uwahi kwenye send off. Ijumaa unatakiwa harusini, ulitoa mchango. Wiki ijayo huna udhuru, utajitahidi kutulia kazini unasoma "Acha Umbea" na "Alasiri," ukichoka unachomoka kidogo kutafuta supu ya utumbo, ukirudi ni kusogoa na kunywa chai na maandazi. Nusu ya maisha yako ya kazi ni livu, na mshahara utapata wote. Sio wewe tu utapata mshahara mzima, na marehemu Mzee Dau nae atalipwa.

Hayo ni matusi ya nguoni kwa wazee wetu kule vijijini wanaoshinda juani kutwa nzima wakipinda mgongo kujipatia chakula,na ziada ya kupeleka vyama vya ushirika only for vyama hivyo kuwageuza wazee hao kuwa mtaji wao.I really hate (sorry I have to use this strong word) watu wanaopenda overgeneralization.Hivi Watanzania wangekuwa wavivu katika namna unayotaka kutuaminisha tungepata uhuru?Umeshawahi kuongea na wazee wetu kuhusu namna uhuru ulivyopiganiwa (forget about the sketches you read in history books).Uhuru ulivyotafutwa huko Maneromango,Kilwa Kipatimu,Mahenge,Ujiji,nk unaweza kuwa tofauti sana na hadithi unazosoma kwenye vitabu vya historia.Huko ndiko mapambano kati ya Mtanganyika namkoloni took place.

By the way,hata kama hiyo verdict yako kuhusu uzembe,etc ingekuwa sahihi,iweje tena useme JK sio miongoni mwa wenye tabia hiyo?Au Wakwere sio Watanzania?I hope you meant "Wananchi wa Tanzania,NA SIO JK PEKEE,tumejaa...."

Na mfano wako wa uvivu kwa vile mtu anaingia kazini saa tatu hauwatendei haki mamilioni ya Watanzania wanaopenda kuwa waajiriwa lakini wamekuwa jobless kutokana na SAPs na mipangilio ingine ya ajabuajabu.Nenda vijijini ukafanye huo utafiti wako kuthibitisha iwapo kuna wakulima wanaongia shambani saa sita.Na hiyo jumanne,mkulima hana wa kumwomba udhuru zaidi ya shamba na jembe lake.Ana anajua akifanya hivyo,hana pa kukimbilia.Ni jembe na shamba masaa 12 ya siku,wiki 52 za mwaka.Again mfano wako wa mazishi ya jumatano ni wa mfanyakazi as if Watanzani wote ni waajiriwa.

Kaka,sie tuliotoka familia za wakulima tunajua kuwa huendi shamba kwa lifti,unless kuwe na punda au something like that au ubahatike kupata lifti ya baiskeli.Na hizo send off unazozungumzia ni kwa watu wa mijini wanaojiweza.Hayo magazeti unayozungumzia ni kwa ajili ya wachache wenye kumudu "kupoteza fedha kwenye makaratasi" (utaulizwa kijijini,hivi hilo gazeti ukishasoma utashiba?hizo shs 400 za gazeti zinaweza kununua japo kipakti cha chumvi au fungu la bamia.)

Nusu ya maisha ya Mtanzania unayepaswa kumzungumzia sio kazi,bali ulalahoi huko mashambani.Hao wenye kazi ni asilimia ngapia ya Watanzania?

Sasa kama hapo tatizo ni Kikwete basi waandishi wa makala hiyo wametutusi wote maana wamesema Mrisho atachaguliwa tena, wameongea kwa ukomo wa uhakika, atachaguliwa tena, na itakuwa ni kwa kishindo cha mmomonyoko wa ardhi ya uchaguzi, landslide. Kwa nini, kwa sababu Chama cha Mapinduzi kimewachota watu akili, wanasema kimetukuka katika longolongo dufu, "ponderous propaganda."

Hapa sina la kuongeza.Nakuunga mkono asilimia 100.Kikwete sio tu sehemu ya tatizo bali pia ni tatizo.Kwa Watanzania,tatizo ni uoga (some claim usio na sababu za msingi) kuwa angalau they know something about CCM (mabaya ni mengi kuliko mazuri,but that's not a point I'm trying to make: put it this way:angalau hao CCM tunawajua...hawa CUF hata hawaeleweki maana mara leo Hamad Rashid ana-sound as if angependa Rostam asiitwe fisadi,kesho Lipumba anaropoka lile....mara Zitto tulomdhani shujaa wetu nae anataka tununue "cheni bandia tuliyoporwa na majambazi kisha wanatuletea tuninunue tena" (isomeke MITAMBO YA DOWANS)....and lots of uncertainties.Ni rahisi kulaumu lakini tukumbuke kuwa hapa hatuzungumzii kuchora katuni kwa penseli ambapo ukikosea unafuta.Kuongoza nchi sio suala la trial and error.It's sort of a catch-22 situation we are in:CCM has not only proved a failure but it' also a useless political party for the time being.Hatuwezi kupata mabadiliko chini ya utawala wa chama hiki kilichoishiwa na mbinu za uongozi.HOWEVER,what's the alternative?Tuna vyama vya upinzani lakini havijawa tested enough kuaminiwa kulipeleka taifa hili kule kunakostahili.Ok,let's assume kuwa ni bora hao "serengeti boys wa kisiasa" kuliko "taifa stars ya enzi za kichwa cha mwendawazimu".Lakini,what if we are wrong?What if,kwa kuwaweka hao "mbadala" tukaishia kungo'ana macho wenyewe kwa wenyewe?

Na wametuasa kusikiliza wenye nchi ndani ya chama kutaka kuwapeleka tena wananchi kwenye Ujamaa kwa kigezo cha mporomoko wa ubepari duniani. Wachambuzi wa The Econonimist wanasema genda ulole.[/

Kwa hili,binafsi namlaumu Nyerere.Why?Because when he realized that Ujamaa wouldnt work and had proved a failure,hakuwa na ujasiri wa kuwaomba radhi Watanzania.Anyway,kuomba radhi isn't a big deal,tungeweza kumsamehe kama angalau angetuchagualia mtu anayedhani angekuja na mawazo mapya yenye kuangaliwa what went wrong kwenye ujamaa na what needs to be done.He brought in MWINYI!Do I need to say more?

Pengine lawama pekee anayostahili Mwinyi ni kukubali kupokea nchi wakati hana ufumbuzi wa matatizo yaliyokuwa yanaikabili wakati huo.Same thing with fisadi Mkapa (angalau huyu alikuwa na mkakati wa kijitajirisha).Same thing with JK,ambaye nae pengine si wa kumlaumu sana kwa vile alishakuwa na mission yake ya kumpiku Vasco Da Gama sambamba na kuleta maisha bora kwa kila fisadi.

Bottom line is,tuwe makini katika kulaumu WATANZANIA,a group of peoples made of 40+ million of them,ambao takriban 3/4 yao wanaishi vijijini ambako hali ni tofauti sana na hiyo analysis ya urban Tanzania (which is basically Dar,a city attracting every 'specie' of human being,including hao wazembe,wavivu,wasengenyaji,nk......you could find such species in every metropolitan......lakini you could go further na kujiuliza:kwanini watu wanakimbia vijijini na kuja Dar (generic name for MIJINI)?

Semilong · May 8, 2009

Najua TZ kuna matatizo sibishi lakini hii article ina walakini
Najua hiyo article imetoka economist na nimeiona hata mimi online lakini huyo muandishi lazima atakuwa mkenya na the economist hawana correspondent dar
kuna mambo nimeyaona kama EAC community, Mchina kuja TZ na vitu vingi ambazo ni chuki za wakenya

Tanzania has often been given the benefit of the doubt simply for being the gentler twin of harsher Kenya, which has 40m.

kenya kenya....
[FONT=verdana,geneva,arial,sans serif][SIZE=-1]
[/SIZE][/FONT]

[FONT=verdana,geneva,arial,sans serif][SIZE=-1]Tanzania, many complain, is a slow or even terrible place to do businessand ungrateful for foreign aid or investment. [/SIZE][/FONT]

matusi ya wakenya
[FONT=verdana,geneva,arial,sans serif][SIZE=-1]
[/SIZE][/FONT]

[FONT=verdana,geneva,arial,sans serif][SIZE=-1]A recent Chinese state visit failed to bring much investment. The government in Beijing thinks Kenya, not Tanzania, is the gateway to the mineral wealth of Congo. Tanzanias two main railways are rickety. The port of Dar es Salaam failed to pinch business from Kenyas port, Mombasa, when Kenya was in turmoil a year ago. [/SIZE][/FONT]

yani haya ni mashambulizi ya wakenya kabisa

[FONT=verdana,geneva,arial,sans serif][SIZE=-1]Tanzania is not even spending all the aid it is given. Last year, $2.4 billion of pledged funds were not disbursed.[/SIZE][/FONT]

juzi kikwete anatembea na bakuli la kuomba hela leo wanasema TZ hawajatumia hata misaada yote waliyopewa, hawa wakenya tu

[FONT=verdana,geneva,arial,sans serif][SIZE=-1]Tanzania must also decide whether to integrate more closely into the East African Community (EAC), which includes neighbouring Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda. It has dragged its feet over opening its borders and moving towards a common currency, though it recently insisted that a common market would get going next year. It suspects Kenya of using the EAC as a way of grabbing arable Tanzanian land on the cheap. And the countrys tiny middle class fears being swamped in a common market by better-qualified Kenyans and Ugandans.[/SIZE][/FONT]

mashambulizi ya wakenya kwa ajili EAC

[FONT=verdana,geneva,arial,sans serif][SIZE=-1]Moreover, the world crisis may bolster old socialists in the CCM who want a return to ujamaa, a failed model of rural collectivisation propounded by Tanzanias founding president, Julius Nyerere. That would set it back even further.[/SIZE][/FONT]

haya ni matusi ambayo wakenya wamekuwa wa kimtukana nyerere mara kwa mara

kama kuna mtu yeyote ameshasoma matusi ya wa kenya kwa TZ ataona hayo ni yale yale matusi yamerudiwa tena

najua tuna matatizo mengi lakini someni hii article vizuri wa TZ wezangu mtajua tuu kuwa haya ni matusi ya wa Kenya

Steve Dii · May 8, 2009

semilong said:
Najua TZ kuna matatizo sibishi lakini hii article ina walakini
Najua hiyo article imetoka economist na nimeiona hata mimi online lakini huyo muandishi lazima atakuwa mkenya na the economist hawana correspondent dar
kuna mambo nimeyaona kama EAC community, Mchina kuja TZ na vitu vingi ambazo ni chuki za wakenya

kenya kenya....
[FONT=verdana,geneva,arial,sans serif][SIZE=-1]
[/SIZE][/FONT]matusi ya wakenya
[FONT=verdana,geneva,arial,sans serif][SIZE=-1]
[/SIZE][/FONT]yani haya ni mashambulizi ya wakenya kabisa

juzi kikwete anatembea na bakuli la kuomba hela leo wanasema TZ hawajatumia hata misaada yote waliyopewa, hawa wakenya tu

mashambulizi ya wakenya kwa ajili EAC
haya ni matusi ambayo wakenya wamekuwa wa kimtukana nyerere mara kwa mara

kama kuna mtu yeyote ameshasoma matusi ya wa kenya kwa TZ ataona hayo ni yale yale matusi yamerudiwa tena

....what do you do?!

....nasi tuchomeke mwandishi wetu kule ati!!

Lusajo · May 8, 2009

I Hope Mr President is reading all this. Mnaosoma ambao mko karibu na Mhe. Kikwete naomba mmwambiea some hapa pleasee,

Dotori · May 8, 2009

Kwa mtazamo wangu tusiangalie sana makala hii imeandikwa na nani, la msingi hapa ni kama hoja hizi ni kweli au la. Tuzijadili hizo hoja.

Inkosikazi · May 8, 2009

Matusi ya Wakenya ndugu zangu ni ya kuanzia zama zile za Ujamaa. Lakini ukweli ni kwamba suala linalowakera zaidi Wakenya ni ardhi. Wanataka ardhi iingizwe katika moja ya mali za pamoja za Jumuiya ya afrika Mashariki. JK anasema hapana hilo haliwezekani kwa sababu moja tu ya msingi.... Kwamba Kenya mlalahoi hana ardhi pengine ni jambo ambalo si wengi miongoni mwa Watanzania wanaofahamu hilo. Kuiachia ardhi kuna maana kuibadilisha sheria ya ardhi na kuitumbukiza katika moja ya rasilimali ambazo zinaweza kumilikiwa na yeyote katika EAC. Sasa kuna tatizo kubwa la uhaba wa ardhi Kenya kutokana na kaulimbiu ya Mzee Kenyatta kwamba uhuru umepatikana kwa hiyo ardhi ni mali ya Wakenya lakini Wakenya wenyewe wakawa ni kikundi kidogo sana cha familia yake na kabila lake na baadhi ya wakubwa katika makabila makubwa kama vile familia ya Oginga Odinga huko Kisumu.

Pamoja na matatizo yetu lukuki ningependa kuungana na wale wote wanaosema kwamba sisi ni hovyo kiasi hicho na kamwe Wakenya hawataacha kututukana kutokana na kuwanyima ardhi.

Bluray · May 8, 2009

Muandishi wake Makamba kaiona, natumai atammung'unyia maana muungwana sina hakika hata kama ataelewa kilichoandikwa.

William J. Malecela · May 8, 2009

Duh! Hebu soma Economist miaka miwili iliyopita, nasikia kuzngu zungu na habari yao ya leo humu ndani, au?:-

View Full Version : TANZANIA - President Kikwete's hard road ahead
The Game Is Up
September 17th, 2007, 01:09 AM

http://www.economist.com/world/africa/displaystory.cfm?story_id=9725792

Tanzania
President Kikwete's hard road ahead

Aug 30th 2007 | SHINYANGA
From The Economist

Is Tanzania, once a symbol of heroic but failed socialist idealism, gradually heading towards prosperity under its peripatetic new leader?

http://www.economist.com/images/20070901/CMA901.gif

TWO years into his presidency, Jakaya Kikwete is being heralded as one of Africa's rising stars, while Tanzania, after decades of sluggish growth and near-bankruptcy, is at last being lauded as a modest success. Its economy is expected to grow by 7% this year and perhaps a bit more next year. Thanks to sounder management and Mr Kikwete's embrace of the free market, foreign donors and investors have started to put in more cash. The country is feeling perkier.

Since being elected with 80% of the vote, the new president has stayed popular, despite heading the creaking Chama cha Mapinduzi (the Party of Revolution). It has ruled the country under various guises since independence in 1962 and brought it to virtual bankruptcy under its ardently socialist founder, Julius Nyerere, who ran the show until 1985.

Despite its dismal economic record, Tanzania under the austere Mr Nyerere remained something of an emblem-especially for outsiders-of post-colonial idealism: rural Tanzanians were moved en masse into collective villages under a scheme known as ujamaa (familyhood), big farms and factories were nationalised, multinational companies were ritually denounced, foreign investment fled, and scant opposition to Mr Nyerere's authoritarian one-party rule was brooked. But Mr Nyerere, known as the mwalimu (teacher), long remained a darling of left-leaning Western donors, and a hero to many Africans, for his personal incorruptibility, for his stepping down voluntarily from power (though he stayed on as party chairman for another five years) and for the eloquence and passion with which he spoke for Africa on the world stage.

So it has taken time to unpick the mwalimu's legacy. Under Ali Hassan Mwinyi (1985-1995) and Benjamin Mkapa (1995-2005), the country edged away from socialism and its economy started to grow again. But mismanagement, red tape and corruption continued to hold it back. Now, at last, it seems to be moving faster ahead.

Mr Kikwete makes a point of spending half of every month out of Dar es Salaam, the biggest city, sometimes abroad, more often up-country; 45% of Tanzanians still live off the land. His recent visit to Shinyanga, a sun-scorched cotton and gold-mining region south of Lake Victoria, was his 11th safari since taking office. "It is vital for me to meet the people," he says.

His advisers say they sometimes find the crowds daunting. "I look at all the faces," says January Makamba, one of the president's young, American-educated aides, "and all I can see is the need to create jobs, jobs, jobs." The GDP per head of Tanzania's 39m people is going up briskly, but is still only $860 per person.

Most of Shinyanga's 3m people are subsistence farmers and pastoralists. But the region also boasts a famous diamond mine called Mwadui Williamson's, after a Canadian geologist who first owned it and then sold it to De Beers, the South African diamond giant. Mr Nyerere nationalised it and it ran down, but in 1994 De Beers bought most of it back. Now it is winding down again, after offering up gemstones worth $2 billion. Mr Kikwete is keen to keep it going. Plainly, he knows how to put investors at ease, and has a good rapport with Jonathan Oppenheimer, a De Beers director whose father, Nicholas, is the firm's overall boss.

But gold-mining is the new hope for the region, where Barrick, a huge Canadian firm, is opening several new mines. The president's aircraft, an ageing Fokker F-28, landed on an airstrip built by the company, which also provides the area with electricity and roads. Mr Kikwete was cool with the Barrick executives; he wants Tanzania to get a bigger cut of the earnings. But mining requires massive investment. Unlike Mr Nyerere, and despite the ruling party's lingering socialist rhetoric, Mr Kikwete knows he must reassure investors.

http://www.economist.com/images/20070901/CMA876.gif

In any event, most of his week was spent with ordinary Tanzanians, often far from a main road. Every day at dusk, he held a public meeting. Thousands turned up, some climbing trees for a better view. The mood was usually relaxed. Among other things, Mr Kikwete inveighs against the perils of unsafe sex. In the town of Bukombe, where 18% of the people are reckoned to have AIDS, he hectors the crowd: "Do you really want to go into your grave weighing two kilos?"

The 56-year-old Mr Kikwete, whose father was a district officer in the British colonial administration and his grandfather a chief, works 16 hours a day, six days a week. He rises at dawn, listens to the BBC World Service, then scans the Tanzanian press "to see where the wind is blowing". He takes two weeks holiday a year, always on safari in Tanzania. "My staff groan, but the animals take my mind off work."

Much of this visit was spent opening things: new roads, cattle stations, cotton gins, gold dealerships, co-operative banks, clinics and a Chinese-built project costing $85m that pumps water 170km (106 miles) from Lake Victoria. Mr Kikwete makes a point of sitting in the front seat on the bumpy drives between districts. In villages en route, his convoy is often blocked. Good-natured crowds throng round the president's no-frills black Toyota Land Cruiser, pleading for a road or electricity or even food; malnutrition is common. Mr Kikwete opens the sun-roof and springs up through it, like a jack-in-the-box, meeting the crowd with a sympathetic smile.

The most striking development is in education. In the past year, the government boldly claims that no fewer than 187 secondary schools have been built in Shinyanga region alone. In the few that Mr Kikwete opens, he particularly encourages girls to stay on in education-to seek opportunities, not to make babies.

We trust you

Some of these new schools have been paid for by foreigners. But, as a mark of trust in the relative probity of Mr Kikwete's government, many of Tanzania's biggest donors, led by Britain, now give their money directly to support the budget. Even so, Mr Kikwete bemoans the scarcity of funds. "If people spent a day at my desk," he says, "they would understand that resources simply don't exist." Tanzania's budget is only half-covered by state revenues. Nearly half of Tanzanians are under 17. Unemployment is rife.

Another hopeful development is the faster flow of information, especially to Tanzania's poorest communities. Mr Kikwete's own mobile phone is a good example. Even in Bukombe, with its streets of dust and brothels lit with kerosene lamps, the presidential phone, set on silent, lights up like a firefly with text messages, several of which he reads out at random.

One is from a nurse in an isolated hospital on the shore of Lake Tanganyika, who complains about the poor quality of medical care-a message Mr Kikwete forwards straight to his health minister. Another is from a whistle-blower who accuses a Pakistani-owned textile business of illegally bringing in family members from Pakistan in place of local workers. Mr Kikwete forwards this to immigration officials. "Sometimes," he says, "I think I'm nothing more than a post officer."

Corruption is still a headache; some say that Mr Kikwete is too lenient towards crooked politicians and civil servants, though an anti-corruption bill was enacted in April and an investigation has been ordered into the murky accounts of the Bank of Tanzania. His other big headache is Zanzibar, where many people remain dissatisfied with the island's union with the old Tanganyika. Still, on the wider front, the engaging Mr Kikwete seems to be bouncing along.

MchunguZI · May 8, 2009

Wakati tunajadili hili la omba omba wetu, angalia habari ifuatayo ambayo pia inaliangaza bara letu.
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Would Stricter Conditionalities Help Reduce Poverty in Africa?
By John Mulaa, Ph.D.

Liberia has virtually ceded the sovereignty of its financial management to international donors. All checks cut by the countrys ministry of finance have to be countersigned by donors.

=================================================

Hate or love Paul Collier, the Oxford University gadfly with provocative ideas about development in the poorest countries of the world, but you can count on him to come up with astonishing analysis every time he gets to it. That is precisely what he has done in his latest book War, Guns and Votes: Democracy in Dangerous Places.

Collier is not a heterodox thinker of big ideas distilled from opaque philosophies. He bases his analysis squarely on the results of state-of-the-art quantitative analysis. The thrust of Colliers argument is that poor countries are hobbled by so many challenges, most of them self-inflicted, that it would be unrealistic to expect them to pull themselves up by their bootstraps, although an attempt to do so would help. Left to their own devices, these countries will continue to stew in their misery. This may be fine by the rest of the world; however, the conditions in these countries impose global public bad on the rest of the international community that cannot be ignore, thus the donor community must act in self-interest, if nothing else, to minimize the costs to themselves. Take the matter of nation building, for example.

According to Collier, few of the countries at the bottom of the world economy are nations; they may be states, and even so barely, but they are not nations in the modern sense of the term. Collier maintains that a nation must have some internal identity and cohesion. Most of these countries lack both. Why is that a problem? According to him, many of the countries are too big to be nations in the sense that they are an amalgam of various competing, often ethnic, identities; they are also too small to be states because their size does not allow much in the way of economies of scale in the provision of public goods. That is his punch line. Bad consequences proceed from this fact.

The politics in these places is ethno-centred because national cohesion is nonexistent. Bad governance further exacerbates the problem because its modus operandi is ethnic manipulation that sets the stage for perpetual ethnic rivalries over the control of public goods without consideration for the whole society. In these circumstances, observes Collier, increased democracy simply ups the scale of rivalry and that very often results in violence and the weakening of already weak societies. Does Collier therefore think that democracy is bad for fragile societies? In the short-term yes, but the alternative, dictatorship, is not a viable option because it merely suppresses pressures without attempting to address their root causes. The reason increased freedom becomes disruptive is because rulers and their supporting elites have not internalized democratic and accountability values. This leads to a fundamental contradiction between form and content.

Collier dwells to a great extent on Kenya as an exemplar of what could go wrong in democratizing poor countries. The book is dedicated to John Githongo, the whistleblower on grand corruption in Kenya and the subject of a recently published book on governance, Its Our Turn to Eat, by Michela Wrong. It did not surprise Collier in the least that the last election in Kenya, held in 2007, was followed by mayhem of frightening proportions. The tragedy, according to him, is that the lessons of that experience are not being learned and, therefore, episodes like those are likely to be repeated in Kenya as well as in other countries. As far as internal solutions go, Collier pins his hopes on enlightened and visionary leadership such as Julius Nyerere of Tanzania and South Africas Nelson Mandela. Colliers acknowledged friends, Ugandas Yoweri Museveni and Rwandas Paul Kagame, do not make the cut although Collier says the latter is the most effective state builder in Africa. Notice the use of the word "state" rather than "nation". Kagame is building an effective but largely authoritarian state that militates against nation building because of its ethno-based ideologies. Since the emergence of visionary leaders is chancy, Collier focuses on the international donor community as a potential source of correction. International aid is the lifeline of poor countries but, says Collier, aid has not been strategically and effectively deployed. This leads to disillusionment on both sides, particularly among the donors, who keep doling out money anyway for a variety of reasons, guilt among them.

This nonsense should stop, declares Collier, who would go a step further and advocate for even stricter conditions to ensure that aid reaches those for whom it is intended. Sovereignty should not be an issue, Collier claims boldly. Poor countries do not have much national sovereignty to begin with, since few of them are true nations. They might have state sovereignty but even that has been converted to presidential sovereignty. By framing the issue thusly, Collier carefully isolates what he sees as the main obstacle, leadership or lack of it, and then proceeds to propose remedies that target this major link in the chain. His conclusion: the international community should design carrots and sticks to influence leaders in poor countries to move towards better governance systems. The sticks including threats of military intervention in certain instances - should be credible. After all, observes Collier, the international community owes this to their fellow human beings who bear the brunt of suffering in poor countries. A return to colonialism or trusteeship of a sort?

Collier is unapologetic. If that is what it takes to heave the benighted places into the 21st century, so be it. Already, he says, it is underway in several places. Liberia has virtually ceded the sovereignty of its financial management to international donors. All checks cut by the countrys ministry of finance have to be countersigned by donors. Collier may have found unlikely allies in certain parts of Africa. During a recent demonstration to protest the suspicious killing of two activists, university students in Kenya carried placards calling for a return of foreign rule in Kenya. That was not much different from a comment by a bewildered character in Chinua Achebes book, The Anthills of the Savannah, who wondered perplexedly when independence would end. Is it possible that a Berlin Conference II may not be too far off?

Dr. John Mulaa is a policy analyst and development communication practitioner. Currently, he is a consultant at the World Bank and also a columnist for the Nairobi based regional newspaper, the East African Standard.
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