Shilling's free fall worry experts.

Professor Ibrahim Lipumba.

Local economic experts have alerted the government over the falling value of the national currency and called on the Central Bank to intervene to save the Shilling.

 

The Shilling traded at Sh l, 950 to the US Dollar at various bureaux de change in the city, an on the spot survey by the The Guardian this week has revealed.

 

They said the Bank of Tanzania (BoT) should take stabilisation measures, otherwise the trend will worsen; noting that the main source of foreign currency is donor funds and exportation of national products. 

 

Dr Prosper Ngowi, Mzumbe University, Dr Haji Semboja, Professor Ibrahim Lipumba-Economist and Economic and Social Research Foundation (ESRF) Researcher Apolonius Mbilinyi spoke with the The Guardian in separate interviews. 

 

Election fever, withholding of funds by donors and imbalance between demand and supply of dollars were the main factors contributing to the fall of national currency.

 

Dr Ngowi said: “During election most people hold their money - to change it to forex and transfer it abroad. They bring it back after election, but we also import much and export very little...this also increases high demand of dollars.”

 

He said Tanzania was a net importer, buying a lot compared to selling abroad which is responsible for low supply and high demand of foreign currency 

 

Dr Semboja predicted a further fall of the Shilling if no measures are taken because the source of foreign  currency is unstable.

 

Dr Seemboja said most local traders have habit of transferring their money because they believe in a developing country 'anything can happen during election,'  this also causes of the problem. “They collect money and transfer it abroad.”

 

The source of foreign currency is export of traditional exports like cashew nuts, cotton and coffee but their price has remained low for all the years, he added.

 

The non-traditional exports include gold,flowers and industrial products: “But even if we may have much gold, we are unlikely to benefit because investors are foreigners who invested abroad the money they earn locally.” 

 

Also, Tanzania imports many industrial goods but export very little: this situation makes the national currency continue losing the value.

Dr Semboja underscored the contribution of donor funds, saying that its absence means little foreign currency in the country, and the Central Bank in turn adjusts the the value of national currency. 

 

Professor Ibrahim Lipumba said there are problems of transferring foreign currency illegally, which also increases the demand for the dollar.

 

Prof Lipumba who is also Chairman of Civil United Front (CUF) said increased government borrowing in the domestic market contributed to drop the of the Shilling.

 

Commenting on donors holding funds, the professor said: “Because donor funds decreased,some were stopped, this makes high demand of dollars while there is low supply.”

 

Reguarding 'election fever' traders were afraid of political instability, and so they prefer to save their money away.

 

Mbilinyi said the Central Bank has failed to stabilise the national currency, which is why the Shilling is continuing to decline.

 

The Cenral Bak should control 'dollarization system' in the country because the dollar payments in hotel and other places increase its demand.

 

Mbilinyi advised the BoT take all dollars' and put them in the market, saying that without such an intervention the Shilling will continue to decline.

 

According to the BoT, the exchange rate of the Tanzanian Shilling against the US Dollar has recorded a mixed trend since 2005 but on average it has been gradually depreciating at a rate of 3.9 per cent annually from December 2004 to January 2015.

 

BoT Director of Economy and Research Policy Dr Joseph Massawe said in 2005, the  the Shilling's exchange rate was one US Dollar  to Tanzania Shilling 1,169, and by December 2014 the rate had changed to Sh1,716. 

 

This means the Shilling has depreciated by 31.9 per cent against the US Dollar for the period of 10 years, says the official of the BoT.

He said the trend translates to an average rate of depreciation of 4.2 per year since 2006.

 

Before 2007, BoT relied more on government securities to manage liquidity, but it changed  strategy to government securities and foreign exchange,leading to supply of the US Dollar in the market.  This subsequently lead to the appreciation of the Shilling.

 

The Shilling's depreciation that began in the second half of 2014 has been caused by the strengthening of the US Dollar because of the good performance of the US economy.

 

 Massawe  said  the exchange rate in Tanzania is freely determined by the market forces a policy adopted as part of economic reforms in early 1990s with a view to preventing the value of the Shilling from being misaligned with the real economic conditions.

 

 He noted before the adoption of this policy the Shilling's  exchange rate was administrated by government, a practice that led to severe shortage of foreign exchange in the 1980s.

 

Reached for comments over the matter, economists say there are many reasons for the Shilling's decline in the past ten past years. They said one of the main reasons for the decline is an unfavorable balance of trade. 

 

Beginning with the Arusha Declaration on Socialism and Self-Reliance in 1967, Tanzania has been importing goods valued more than the value of exports down the years.

 

 “”Generally, the depreciation implies that the country is importing a lot more than it is exporting,” said Adam Mwakangale, a city based economist. 

 

“This is dangerous for the economy, as some of our trading partners may in the foreseeable future refuse to accept the Shilling if its fluctuation trend continues.”

 

Another economist, Rebecca Thomas who works with Akiba Commercial Bank noted: “What is happening in Tanzania today is that businessmen import almost everything for which they pay in US Dollars.

 

Inevitably, this translates into a high demand for foreign currency at the local markets, an aspect that leads to inflation.

 

A quick survey of the famous Kariakoo shopping area in Dar es Salaam showed that imported goods, ranging from sweets, toys, clothes, plastic bags and shoes to electronic goods, foodstuffs and construction materials dominated the domestic market at the expense of locally manufactured ones.

MARI trains experts, farmers in drive to commercialise cassava production

Dr Joseph Ndunguru

Kilimo Kwanza and Big Results Now (BRN) stand a chance to win the hearts of many farmers in the Lake Zone and donors following the new and comprehensive strategies by Mikocheni Agriculture Research Institute (MARI) aimed at improving agriculture.

 

MARI is one of the leading Agriculture Research Institutes under the Ministry of Agriculture, Food Security and Cooperatives and is led by the country's presidential science laureate Dr Joseph Ndunguru.

 

The plans and strategies aim at stamping out cassava diseases in the Lake Zone, improving productivity to ensure food security through the support of clean seed systems for farmers and building capacity.

 

The plans and strategies were outlined by the MARI Officer in Charge, Dr Joseph Ndunguru at the weekend in Rorya and Butima during the launch of cassava clean plantlets to farmers.

 

Dr Ndunguru said that through regional management project of cassava virus diseases funded by Bill and Melinda Gates and DFID, MARI has managed to train a total of 500 farmers and other 300 experts on sustainable production of the new clean cassava plantlets which are free of diseases.

 

Dr Ndunguru said that MARI has also established eight demo farms in Rorya, Butiama and Mbinga. The farms have the capacity to produce more than 80,000 clean plantlets for each season which would be distributed to hundreds of farmers.

 

Furthermore, the project is expected to establish other demo-sites in this rain season in the Lake Zone and Bagamoyo so that many farmers whose food and economy have been paralysed by the cassava diseases can benefit from them.

 

Dr Ndunguru said that the project has also produced and distributed several maps to all the district councils in the zone which show the level and magnitude of the diseases and the virus distribution. 

 

“We want to ensure you that these new clean plantlets are free of cassava diseases such as cassava mosaic disease (CMD) and cassava brown streak (CBSD),” he said.

 

He said that the institute through the project will continue to bring together farmers from different districts where the demo sites are taking place to share knowledge and experience on how best they can manage to fight the diseases.

 

For his part, the training and outreach Assistant Coordinator, Dr Fred Tairo asked farmers to cooperate saying it is only through commitment, determination and hard work that the objectives of the project will bring desired fruits.

 

“We expect you to help us in training other farmers. We want all farmers to benefit from this project so, I urge you to work hard,” he said.

For his part the National Coordinator for Open Forum on Agricultural Biotechnology (OFAB) which is under the commissioner for Science and Technology (Costech), Philbert Nyinondi, urged the respective district authorities to make sure that they continue to train more farmers so that they can be change agents in their respective villages.

 

Costech is one of the partners in this project. We have worked with MARI and farmers in different aspects to make sure that the farmers improve cassava productivity and increase food security through supporting clean seed systems.

 

Earlier during the launch, Butiama District Commissioner Angeline Mabula and Rorya District Administrative Secretary Murumbe Daudi welcomed the interventions by MARI saying all farmers should benefit from the new programmes.

 

In recent years, the diseases, Cassava Mosaic Disease (CMD) and Cassava Brown Streak Disease (CBSD) have become a serious constraint to sustainable production of cassava in the Lake zone.

 

During the last decade for example, these plant pathogens have increased in number, distribution and importance and in some villages, they have forced farmers to abandon their fields.

 

The launch exercise brought together the farmers from Butiama, Rorya, Mbinga districts and attended by the district leaders and the media.

Kikwete, Jinping set to talk about TAZARA revamp

Chinese President Xi Jinping

President Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete and and the Chinese President Xi Jinping will meet to discuss the main challenges facing Tanzania-Zambia Railway Authority (Tazara) and how the Uhuru railway can be improved.

 

This was said by Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation Bernard Membe during the  Chinese New Year celebrations dubbed “Focus on Africa, Chinese New Year in Tanzania” that were held at Mnazi Mmoja Grounds in Dar es Salaam.

 

The decision to revamp the rail was made last year between the Tanzanian President and his Chinese counterpart during the former’s visit to China at the official invitation of the latter.

 

The main focus on their discussion during the visit was just to improve the railway infrastructure in the African continent and Tanzania in particular.

 

“China has decided to support us in the this long time project because they are our best friends and the diplomatic relations between China and Tanzania for the past half century have been going on smoothly,” Membe said.

“As Tanzania we express thanks to China for showing interest to support us in this project. The railway offers a great support to the economic development of Tanzania and Zambia. Besides, it has played a key role in the anti-imperialism and anti-colonial struggles in the Sub-Saharan African countries. More it has built the effective friendship between China and Tanzania and China and Africa,” he said.

 

Elaborating on sport, he said, “China is our best friend because through Chinese TV one can watch various sports and films and this promotes the good relationships that we have.”

 

He also expressed thanks to the Chinese government for supporting Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea in the fight against the Ebola virus.

According to him, China was the first country to respond to the WHO appeals to provide Ebola relief to the tune of worth 30 million yuan and sending medical teams to the three most seriously affected countries.

 

For his part, the Chinese Ambassador to Tanzania Lu Youqing added that development between Tanzania and China need cooperation among the two countries.

 

He said China–Tanzania co-operation could be found or build in every sector in Tanzania and that such cooperation can leads to huge achievement to the East African nation and even other African countries.

 

“The visit by President Kikwete to China and President Xi Jinping to Tanzania has brought our bilateral relations to higher level,” he said.

The Tazara links the Tanzanian port of Dar es salaam with the town of Kapiri Mposhi in Zambia’s Central Province in a more than 1800km stretch.

Bloomberg picks Tanzania beneficiary in USD125m ptoject to cut back road carnage

Traffic jam in Dar es Salaam, the country's commercial capital. Tanzania, four other countries and ten cities have been selected to receive technical support to the tune of USD125m.

Tanzania, four other countries and ten cities have been selected to receive technical support to the tune of USD125m to review and strengthen road safety legislation under Bloomberg Philanthropies commitment for the coming five years.

 

With a new commitment of USD125m, the programme will work at both the national level to strengthen road safety legislation and the city level to implement proven road safety interventions, a report made available to The Guardian has said.

 

It did not mention the specific transport and travel areas or urban areas that are going to benefit from the initiative.

 

Besides Tanzania, other countries which will benefit from the reduction of fatalities and injuries from road traffic crashes are China, India, Philippines and Thailand, while the cities pecked are Accra (Ghana) Addis Ababa (Ethiopia),  Bandung (Indonesia), Bangkok (Thailand), Bogota ( Colombia), Fortaleza (Brazil), Ho Chi Minh (Vietnam),  Mumbai (India), Sao Paulo (Brazil) and Shanghai (China).

 

“We can prevent millions of road traffic fatalities and injuries through stronger laws, more effective enforcement and better infrastructure. The 10 cities selected to participate in our next five-year road safety programme have demonstrated a commitment to this work, and we are excited to support them,” said Michael R. Bloomberg, founder of Bloomberg Philanthropies and three-term mayor of New York City. 

 

“Road traffic deaths will become increasingly common in the years ahead, unless we take decisive action now to prevent them,” he said.

 

The proposals that cities submitted detailed how they plan to address road safety by applying solutions to a number of challenges including improving pedestrian and cyclist safety, increasing awareness through graphic media campaigns and increasing police enforcement to combat drinking and driving and speeding as well as encouraging the use of motorcycle helmets, seat-belts and child restraints. 

 

Infrastructure solutions such as widened sidewalks and improved pedestrian crossings are also included in the cities’ proposals, the reports said.

 

With assistance from the world’s leading experts in road safety, winning cities will establish an elite network of visionary municipal leaders who commit to implementing bold, new efforts to save lives and protect their citizens from road traffic injuries, it said.

 

“The investments in road safety by Bloomberg Philanthropies since 2010 have driven momentum for the UN’s Decade of Action on Road Safety, energised the NGO community worldwide and led to significant legislative advances in many countries,” said Saul Billingsley, Director General of the FIA Foundation and Co-Chair of the Road Safety Fund. 

 

“Bloomberg Philanthropies has shown great vision and leadership in supporting global road traffic injury prevention, and we hope other public health philanthropies will heed and follow their example,” he said.

More than 1.2 million people die and 20-50 million people are severely injured from road traffic crashes around the world every year. 

 

Since Bloomberg Philanthropies began working on road safety in 2007, nearly 2 billion people have been covered by strengthened road safety laws, 65 million people have been exposed to hard-hitting media campaigns promoting road safety, close to 30,000 professionals have been trained on road safety tactics and local governments have committed USD225m towards infrastructure improvements that will make roads safer.

 

In 2010, Bloomberg Philanthropies committed USD125m to 10 countries that represented half of road traffic-related deaths globally (Brazil, Cambodia, China, Egypt, India, Kenya, Mexico, Russia, Turkey and Vietnam). 

 

Brazil, Kenya, China, Mexico, Russia, Turkey, Cambodia and Vietnam have all passed life-saving road safety legislation, including stricter penalties for drinking and driving and applied speed reduction laws.

 

Bloomberg Philanthropies’ Road Safety partners providing support to winning cities and countries include: EMBARQ which is a part of the World Resources Institute and is based in Washington, DC. They work on sustainable urban transport, urban design, pedestrianisation, mass transit, and sustainability planning.

How to lodge protests at BoT complaints desk

The Bank of Tanzania headquarters in Dar es Salaam

The Bank of Tanzania has insisted that bank customers have to exhaust their respective banks’ internal complaints resolution mechanism before lodging their complaints at BoT’s consumers’ complaints resolution desk it has established.

 

This requirement, according to the central bank, is a prerequisite for the desk to operate smoothly, including reducing the time frame of dealing with a particular complaint lodged by a customer.

 

Mustafa Ismail, BoT’s Associate Director for the department of Litigation and Investigation, has been prompted to issue clarification to the public in the wake of the decision by the central bank to establish the complaints’ desk.

 

According to the associate director, exhausting banks’ internal complaints resolution mechanism is important simply because each banking institution has put in place a complaint resolution mechanism capable of efficiently and promptly resolving customers’ complaints.

 

“Your banking institution will keep you updated throughout the process. It will resolve your complaint within 21 days from the date of lodging your complaint,” Ismail said in brief handout availed to press on Thursday evening this week. 

 

He added: “In exceptional circumstances, if your banking institution is unable to resolve your complaint within 21 days, it will immediately inform you of its inability and reasons for such inability and what measures are being taken to resolve the complaint urgently and in any case not more than 14 days thereafter”.

 

According to the complaint lodging procedures laid down by BoT, when the customer of a particular bank is dissatisfied with the decision of his/her banking institution or he/she has not received a response from his/her banking institution within 21 days from the date they lodged their complaints, they may within 14 days lodge their complaints with the BoT desk.

 

However, in exceptional circumstances and upon showing good cause, the desk may extend the duration for lodging a complaint but such extension shall not exceed an additional 14 days. 

 

Associate director Ismail insisted that for the complaint to qualify for BoT’s desk registration it must be lodged before expiry of two years after the cause of action arose. 

 

Information you must include in the complaint  are: the name and address of the complainant, the name and address of the banking institution against which the complaint is made, details of the complaint, including what  exactly  the bank did that it shouldn’t have done or what it didn’t do that it should have done.

 

The complainant must also explain what he/she has lost in terms of personal injustice, financial loss, hardship or inconvenience, what would they like  the desk  to do to put things right and details of what they  have done so far to try to resolve the complaint. Documentary evidence, if any is also necessary, he said.

 

Customers’ complaints can be lodged at BoT desk in anyway, including by submitting it by hand to the Office of the Secretary to the Bank,  posting to the office of the Secretary to the Bank through  P.O.Box 2939, Dar es salaam, mailing them to: complaints-desk@bot.go.tz, through facsimile: +255 22 2234067 and by calling on +255 22 2233265/ +255 22 2233246.

 

On complaints resolution process, the associate director said, there are various stages to go through which include receipt of complaint, acknowledgement of receipt, assessment of complaint, resolving complaints and awarding remedies.

 

Receipt of Complaints

According to Ismail, upon receipt of complaint, it is assessed to determine whether it falls within the remit of the Desk as prescribed by the BOT Guidelines for Banking Consumers Complaints, 2015.

 

If the complaint is deemed ineligible, the complainant would be notified immediately. If it falls within the desk’s remit, it would continue to the next stage of the process.

 

Acknowledgement of receipt 

Ismail says within four working days the complainant would be notified of receipt of his/her complaint by the Desk.

 

Assessment of the complaint

Upon receipt of the complaint and after establishing that it is eligible, the Desk notifies the complainant’s bank banking institution of the pending complaint and requires it to submit its response to the desk within ten working days.

 

Where the banking institution fails to respond, the desk may send a reminder of five working days. Where, after the reminder, it fails to respond the Desk may conduct its own investigation and determine the matter without the banking institution’s representation.

 

Resolving complaints

The Desk delivers its decision on the matter within 90 days from the date of lodging the complaints with the Desk. In resolving the complaint, the Desk is guided by provisions of applicable law, case law, underlying agreement, industry practices and the TBA Code of Banking Practice, 2014.

 

The Desk is not bound by the legal principles of handling complaints such as rules of evidence but adheres to the general principles of natural justice.

 

Remedies awarded

Ismal says the function performed by the Desk is different from that performed by courts. The Desk is enjoined not to have regard to technicality and legal form but resolve complaints using criteria that would not usually be used by courts; for instance whether an explanation for the conduct was not given when it should have been given. 

 

A banking institution may be required to issue an apology, change its practices, effect payment or compensation as the case may be.

 

When aggrieved by Desk decision

Director Ismail says either party may request the Desk to reconsider any of its decision.

However, each party also has the right to seek redress before a competent court when it is not satisfied with the decision given by the Desk.

 

The desk is described as a cost effective and efficient mechanism to resolve complaints between respective banking institutions and their customers. 

 

According to the director, the Desk, which is fully funded by the Bank, is intended to resolve complaints (small claims) whose monetary value in respect of both the claim amount and remedy awarded does not exceed Sh 15million. 

 

According to Ismail, the objectives of establishing the desk include resolving banking consumer complaints amicably, resolving complaints in an informal, objective, expeditious and cost effective manner, promoting public confidence and integrity of the banking industry in the country and ensuring consistency in resolving consumer complaints.

 

Ineligible Complaints 

The BoT has also made it clear about the illegible complaints, saying the desk would not consider a complaint which has been the subject of legal proceedings before a Court or Tribunal, a complaint whose complainant has not suffered any financial loss, material inconvenience or distress and a complaint which would be more suitably dealt with by a Court or under other dispute resolution arrangement.

 

Also the complaint would be deemed illegible if its resolution would prejudice the rights of other parties who have not consented to the resolution by the desk, if a complaint is vexatious or frivolous or not in good faith, if  the complaint  was not first reported to the banking institution concerned, if a complaint  is lodged more than 14 days after a banking institution has delivered its decision or failed to resolve the complaint or if a complaint is beyond the pecuniary jurisdiction of the desk.

 

Eligible Complaints

According to the BoT, eligible complaints must be against a banking institution which is either a member of the Tanzania Bankers Association or regulated by the Bank and it must have been lodged within 14 days after a banking institution has delivered its decision or has failed to respond.

 

Also a complaint would be considered eligible if it is in respect of an incident which occurred less than two) years ago.

According to BoT, resolution of banking consumers’ complaints is free of charge as the Desk does not charge any fee whatsoever and the languages are English and Kiswahili

Scrap metal trade endangers Arusha as vandalism takes on historic monuments.

Authorities in northern Tanzania have started working on measures towards preserving the country's iconic historic features and tourist destinations which are being targeted by vandals and thieves, an official said on Saturday.

 

Reports have it that thieves are looking to illegally remove bronze, copper or other metals to sell on for scrap.

 

Arusha Declaration Monument, one of the iconic features of the northern Tanzania's tourist hub of Arusha, is now under threat from vandalism.

 

This is raising fears on the security of other tourist attractions in the country's tourist hub, after a plaque made of copper displayed below the monument with inscriptions of its significance to the history of the town and country has been plucked off by unknown people.

 

Arusha City Mayor Gaudence Lyimo said on Saturday that his office has started working on a programme to ensure all the monuments are protected for the current and future generations.

 

He attributed the situation to the failure by the Arusha City Council authority to recruit staff responsible for caring historical sites.

"So, we are going to recruit people who will be responsible for taking care of the facility," he said.

 

The monument was unveiled in 1977 to commemorate 10 years of Arusha Declaration, the Tanzania's most prominent political statement of African socialism and self-reliance.

 

The northern zone manager of the Tanzania Tourist Board (TTB), Willy Lyimo expressed worries on the theft and little care taken, saying this could impact on the number of visitors seeking information on important sites in the safari city.

 

"The visitors will not get important information on the monument," he said, noting that the statute used to attract significant number of visitors, including tourists.

 

"This is a place where Arusha Declaration was born. Yet it is under threat of being further vandalised," he said, adding that the changing management of the site between different government ministries and departments may have complicated matters.

 

One of the items plucked off the towering monument in the heart of the town is a plaque made of copper which was displayed below the monument amid claims of little care of the facility.

 

Lyimo said TTB has struggled to seek information contained in the plague carted away from the Antiquities Department of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism but without any success.

 

He says the tourism promotion body was keen to restore the damaged part of the monument by having another plaque with vital information on Arusha Declaration but with little support from other stakeholders.

 

Arusha regional police chief Liberatus Sabas pledged to work on the threat by tracking down the culprits.

 

Arusha Declaration Monument is one of the iconic historical features of Arusha, the others being the Clock Tower and the Natural History Museum. Both of them attract thousands of visitors every year.

 

The Clock Tower is said to be midway between Cairo and Cape Town while the Natural History Museum has thousands of collections of hominid remains picked from Olduvai Gorge and other areas in northern Tanzania.

Mzumbe don explains how government can work without relying on foreign donors

Mzumbe University senior economist, Dr Prosper Ngowi

Mzumbe University senior economist Dr Prosper Ngowi has said that the government is capable of raising funds for national budget without depending on foreign support.

 

Through its public institutions, the government can produce the 1.5trn/- it gets in foreign budget support as the organisations generate 17trn/- annually.

 Dr Ngowi made the remarks in an exclusive interview with The Guardian yesterday.

 

He said: “The potential is there. Currently there is under collection of revenues from various sources including tax and none-tax revenues. If proper efforts are put in place and proper strategies are employed, the possibility of raising the sum and thereby kissing donor-funding goodbye is there. Along with raising the revenue, the expenditure side of the equation should be tightened.” 

 

 He insisted that in order to quit relying on external aid, a number of things must be done so as to have realistic budget. These include increasing revenue collection efforts, reducing unnecessary and counterproductive tax exemptions, addressing tax avoidance and tax evasion properly without forgetting very high discipline in the expenditure of collected revenues.

 

“It is over 50 years since the “Baby Tanganyika became independent. Not that it is still donor dependent in parts of its budget, the Baby has not grown and graduated from the 'aid class'. However, efforts and good steps have been taken towards budget independence,” he said. 

 

He noted: “Unfortunately, we are yet to be where we want to be. If we become brave as a nation and say no to aid, it can be a good incentive/opportunity to be self-independent.” 

 

Dr Ngowi also said that tax havens and tax illicit are the most dangerous, costing Tanzania huge loses. 

 

“Tax havens are jurisdiction where some illicit (but also licit) capital flows to. These tend to be secrecy jurisdictions abroad including Europe, America, Asia and even Africa. Yes Tanzania as is the case for other countries loses revenues that end up in these secrecy jurisdictions,” he said. 

 

 He explained that it is challenging to get these funds back home but it is possible, citing Nigeria which got back some of the 'Abacha billions' after a number of decades of struggle. 

 

On the impacts of tax havens to the economy of the nation, the Don said: “Impacts of tax havens/illicit capital flight are negative, many and far-reaching. The extent and nature of the impacts depend on the nature of funds in the tax havens. These are likely to be monies obtained from corruption, tax avoidance, human trafficking or drugs trade and the like”. 

 

 “All these robe a country of the badly needed funds back home for various uses - if tax avoidance/evasion/ means denying the country funds that could be used to provide various public goods and service such as education, health, water, infrastructure, security etc,” he said.  

 

 Speaking on the big gap between haves and have nots, he said the gap has widened due to a number of reasons including marginalisation of the poor by the system.

 

 “If it happens because the poor are not making use of available opportunities, then they are the ones to blame. The impacts of increasing inequality are negative, many and far-reaching. Inequality can breed crime, violence and many similar vices,” he said. 

 

 He concluded that statistically, the cost of living as measured by inflation has indeed gone down on paper in recent years. “We had double digit inflation a couple of years ago. We now have 'comfortable' single digit inflation at a bit over 4 percent. Yet these figures are not felt in real life. High prices have many causes including monetary and structural causes. These need to be addressed properly.”

 

However, Deputy Finance Minister Mwigulu Nchemba was quoted recently as saying that Tanzania is now on a journey of self dependency when it comes to the national budget.

 

 “There are many ways of getting funds to meet the budget,” noted the Deputy Finance Minister and according to him, the nation also has many public institutions with sufficient money to beef up the budget.

Tanesco starts trials of new Luku system

The Tanzania Electrical Supply Company (Tanesco)

 The Tanzania Electrical Supply Company (Tanesco) has said customers will no longer encounter inconveniences of topping up their electricity to LUKU devices once the new computerised system becomes fully operational next year.

 

Tanesco Public Relations Manager, Adrian Severin told the Guardian on Thursday that the new computerised electronic LUKU system currently on experiment will take only three seconds for customers to top-up their electricity vouchers compared to the old system that took 30 minutes.

 

Severin said the new system has already demonstrated high efficiency and it will be fully installed by May next year.

 

He said agents need to ensure that their electronic gadgets are in line with the new technology in order to offer fast and conducive services to customers. 

 

“To resolve the current inconvenience challenges encountered by the old LUKU services, agent’s devices need to link with Tanesco systems properly by ensuring that there is network to both gadgets,” he said.

 

He added, “If one gadget experience network failure, it is unlikely for a customer to access the services and be able to top-up their LUKU vouchers”.

 

The survey done by this paper at Mbezi, Kimara and Mabibo vending stations discovered that agents devices were experiencing an off and on network problem that could last to more three hours.

 

Melckzedec Shayo, an agent at Kimara Mwisho admitted to the network failure saying however that it was not long lasting. “Customers are now used to the situation because the problem is not regular,” he said.

 

Hafiz Shomari an agent at Mabibo said the problem is sometimes caused by Max-Malipo system failure.

 

LUKU users have often raised complaints of poor services and system failures causing inconveniences to their homes.

EFD, tax annoy Songea traders.

Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA)

Songea residents have expressed concerns over increased tax to 100 per cent and the use of the  controversial Electronic Fiscal Device (EFD), saying the two are problems to people to access commodities.

 

The residents claim they suffer because when shops and markets are closed, they have nowhere to buy their needs.

 

“We don’t know where to get our requirements,” said Samwel Komba a resident of Mpitimi village who had went to Songea municipality to buy commodities.

 

Komba had left at 05:00 am to Songea only to find out that the shops were closed and asked a relative in Njombe to buy farm inputs and send them to him through vehicles.

 

The inputs were then sent to him by road between Mbeya/ Iringa and Songea.

 

Another resident, Happiness Kisite from Mkongotema village was surprised to see traders close their shops. Many customers come from villages.

 

“There are three of us coming from Mkongotema and we are astonished all the shops are closed,” she told this paper on Thursday.

 

Shaibu Ngonyani a resident of Mgazini called on the government to resolve the issue quickly.

 

Songea municipal council commercial officer Kelvin Charle said his office had no official reports on the said strike, though informally people told him traders would close their shops.

 

Chairman of Tanzania Business Community for Ruvuma Region Titus Mbilinyi said the government should listen to people's complaints regrading tax  and EFD, saying  they were a major hindrance to prosperity.

 

But Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) Manager for Ruvuma Region Rosalia Mwenda advised traders to open up their shops because the government was already working on their matter.

 

Recently, traders countrywide went on strike demanding the release of their leader Johnson Minja who was arrested by police for questioning on grounds of defending other traders.

CMSA eyes 100 pct growth in equity capital with Mwalimu bank IPO.

Mwalimu Building at Ilala Boma, in Dar es Salaam. The Capital Markets and Securities Authority has said participants in the equity capital markets are expected to increase by 100 percent, if all active members of the Tanzania Teachers Union (TTU) will buy shares from Mwalimu Commercial Bank. (File photo)

The Capital Markets and Securities Authority (CMSA) has said participants in the equity capital markets are expected to increase by 100 percent, if all active members of the Tanzania Teachers Union (TTU) will buy shares from Mwalimu Commercial Bank.

 

Currently, TTU has about 200,000 members with up to date contributions.

 

“This is going to be a significant transformation in the Tanzania capital markets landscape and will facilitate attainment of one of the goals of National Financial Inclusion Framework,” said the Chief Executive Officer of CMSA, Nasama Massinda.

 

She was speaking at the launch of the Initial Public Offer (IPO) of Mwalimu Bank (Information) which was held in Dar es Salaam yesterday.

 

The goal under the National Financial Inclusion Framework is to have 50 percent of the adult population participating in the formal financial sector by the end of year 2016. Therefore the selling of shares of Mwalimu Commercial bank in formation facilitates attainment of this national goal and facilitates the government objective of increasing the number of companies which raise funds through capital markets.

 

“This will in turn increase the number of participants in the formal economy in a transparent way and thus increase government revenue. This is due to the fact that the law and regulations in the capital markets require companies operating in these markets to be transparent and to adhere to principles of good corporate governance. This results in such companies operating more efficiently and since their financial statements are subjected to continuous disclosure requirements the government is expected to collect the correct amount of tax from such companies and therefore increase government revenue,” she explained.

 

She added: “As you are aware buying and selling of shares listed on the stock exchange which is the secondary market is done through brokers of the Dar es salaam Stock Exchange (DSE). In the primary market, when shares are sold for the first time by way of IPO, investors buy shares through brokers or different banks, depending on the agreement with the issuer of the shares.”

 

She also said the Capital Markets and Securities Act, 1994 requires promoters of a company with more than fifty members to prepare a prospectus to be approved by the CMSA. A prospectus is a document that provides important information to potential investors in terms of disclosure of material facts about the company, its management, business outlook and the principal risks involved in their business. The Management of Mwalimu Commercial Bank in formation and Consultants for Resource Evaluation Ltd (CORE), who are the Nominated Advisors licensed by the CMSA prepared the prospectus for selling 50,000,000 ordinary shares  at a price of 500/- each by way of IPO  and therefore 25 bn/- is expected to be raised from the public.

 

She further said that the prospectus of Mwalimu Commercial Bank in formation was reviewed and approved by the CMSA in line with the requirements of the Capital Markets and Securities Act, 1994. Potential investors are required to read the prospectus since it contains important Information for making   informed decision regarding shares of Mwalimu Commercial Bank in formation.

 

The Authority recognises that Brokers of the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange and banks that facilitate payment for the purchase of shares are located in town and major cities, while majority of Tanzanians live in different regions, districts and villages in the country.

 

 For quite some time, the Authority embarked on different initiatives including allowing brokers having agents in various regions in Tanzania with a view to facilite more Tanzanians to participate in the capital markets by buying shares. In an effort to overcome that challenge, the Authority through its Five Year Strategic Plan for 2013/2014- 2017/2018 planned for instituting a mechanism that will facilitate investors to participate in the capital markets by using electronic technology and by the end of 2014, the Authority implemented its plan by putting in place Capital Markets and Securities, Electronic Trading Guidelines, 2015. These guidelines have facilitated having an Electronic Trading System that facilitates purchase of shares using mobile phones.

 

CMSA also recognises the role and importance of teachers in facilitating social and economic development in our country and by being mindful of the fact that that most of our teachers live in different regions, districts and villages in the country, the Authority considered it appropriate to start using the Electronic Trading System using mobile phones to buy shares in order to facilitate teachers and other investors countywide to participate in the IPO. In this regard, teachers can buy shares of Mwalimu Commercial Bank in formation while marking student’s exercise books at their work stations whether  in town or in a village by dialing *150*36# and then follow instructions .

 

“This is a significant transformation in the development of capital markets, since the Capital Markets and Securities Authority of Tanzania is making history because Tanzania becomes the first country in the East African Community (EAC) region to facilitate purchase of shares in an IPO using mobile phones,” Massinda said.

 

Successful completion of the IPO of Mwalimu Bank information is expected to increase the number of companies that have issued shares to the public to twenty three (23) and increase the number of participants in the equity capital markets in Tanzania to about 400,000. Having more companies that have issued shares through capital markets will provide more opportunities to investors to buy shares of different companies and thus diversify the risk of investment. In addition, having more companies and participants in the capital markets, facilitates increase in the level of savings, investment, employment, government revenue and this in turn increases the level of social and economic development in the country.

 

The CMSA is responsible for developing, regulating and supervising the capital markets in the country. Capital markets facilitate companies to obtain long term finance for development and enable public ownership in such companies thus channelling savings into the productive sector which is essential for economic development of our country.

DSE mulls internet trading debut on platform

DSE mulls to introduce mobile, internet trading on platform. In a move aimed at incorporating more people in capital market industry, the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange (DSE) is contemplating to introduce mobile and internet trading in its platform. (File photo)

In a move aimed at incorporating more people in capital market industry, the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange (DSE) is contemplating to introduce mobile and internet trading in its platform, ‘The Guardian’ has learnt.

 

According to Exchange’s Chief Executive Officer Moremi Marwa, the exchange has outlined priorities to be undertaken before the end of this year.

 

“Our top priority is to introduce mobile and internet trading in our platform, encourage more listings, public education and awareness creation, integrating and synchronizing our Central Securities Depository (CSD) to that of Bank of Bank of Tanzania for government bonds trading and demutualization of DSE”, he said .

 

He said in the CEO’s quarterly note that despite the positive performance in most measures which are investors’ returns, liquidity, increased efficiency and public/investors education; they understand that much is still demanded from them in 2015. 

 

“We thank all DSE stakeholders for accompanying us in our strategic journey of enhancing the quality of our products and services,” he said.

 

Explaining further, he said for the DSE, 1st Quarter (Q1) of 2015 was a very successful quarter. 

 

Once again for the seventh consecutive quarter, exchange was ranked as one of the Exchanges in Africa that delivers high returns to investors on its listed stocks. 

 

Wealth enhancement (as measured by increase in market investment value) and liquidity levels, as measured by market turnover, or volume of transactions, increased at relatively significant levels.

 

Domestic market capitalisation and indices (which covers the 14 local listed companies) increased by 3 percent compared to the loss of10 percent in the previous quarter (October-December 2014). 

 

Market capitalisation and indices (covering all 21 listed companies) also increased by 3 percent. Year-on-year (y-on-y) growth in domestic market capitalisation and indices was at 64 percent and 36 percent for the total market capitalization and indices.

 

The domestic market capitalisation increased from 9.9trn/- as of end of December to 10.2trn/- as of 31st March 2015. 

 

The total market capitalisation also increased from 22.3trn/- as end of December 2014 to 22.7trn/- as of end of March 2015. 

 

The relatively better performance of the total market indices and total market capitalisation, was a result of good fundamental performance of the underlying companies, relatively good dividend payments and positive sentiments and outlook by investors.

 

Liquidity (turnover) increased almost two-folds (i.e. 93 percent) – from 144bn/- in the previous quarter (Q4, 2014), to 278bn/- Q1, 2015. On the y-on-y basis, this quarter’s turnover was almost 7 times compared to Q1, 2014, where turnover was 42bn/-. 

 

Valuation levels have also increased in the quarter, from the trailing Market Price Earning Ratio (PER) of 16.50 times as of close of month end December 2014 to the trailing PER of 17.98 times as of end of March. The DSE’s market PER is on similar levels as others in the region. 

 

As for the bonds market segment – there was also a significant increase in the quarter: bonds trading turnover reached 167bn/- -- face value, (cost of 136bn/-), compared to just 30bn/- the previous quarter. 

 

Despite the positive performance in most measures: i.e. investors’ returns, liquidity, increased efficiency and public/investors education; we understand that much is still demanded from us in 2015. 

National Economic Empowerment Council gets first woman executive secretary

National Economic Empowerment Council (NEEC)

President Jakaya Kikwete has appointed Beng’i Issa the first new Executive Secretary of the National Economic Empowerment Council (NEEC), replacing Dr Anaclet Kashuliza who has completed her office tenure.

 

A statement issued by the council said previously, Issa worked with the Tanzania Commission for Aids (Tacaids) as director of finance, administration and resource mobilisation, a position that she held for 12 years.

 

While in charge of resource mobilisation at the commission, she was able to create Aids Trust Fund for Tanzania HIV and Aids national response. She also facilitated the initiation of a basket fund for HIV and Aids. 

 

Tacaids is the national apex body in charge of co-ordinating and leading HIV and Aids national response for Tanzania through resource mobilisation, strategy development, monitoring and evaluation and advocacy.

 

Before she joined the commission, Issa was the financial controller of CARE International in Tanzania for three years where she was in charge of financial affairs for the Country Office. 

 

Care International in Tanzania is an International Non-Governmental Organization responsible for multi-sectoral development programmes to improve access to quality education, fight against HIV and Aids, improve health care, preserve environment and address environmental problems such as soil erosion, deforestation and water pollution, improve nutrition and distribute food to vulnerable populations.

 

 It said Issa was also a lecturer in accounting and finance for about eight years at the Mzumbe University. 

 

She performed training in post graduate degrees and undergraduate courses on various subjects namely; financial management, management accounting, investment analysis and risk management, audit and financial accounting. She is also a professional trainer in financial management and rich experience in leadership and management including fiduciary management.

 

It further said the ED a is a member of Tanzania Association of accountants and National Board of accountants and Auditors, She is a chair of the Tanzania Entrepreneurship and Competitiveness Centre and a member of the steering committee which designs Tanzania National Health Financing Strategy. She is a part time lecturer at the Mzumbe University.

 

According to statement, she holds a Master’s Degree of Science in Financial Management from Glasgow Caledonian University (UK), Certified Public Accountancy (T) and Advanced Diploma in Certified Accountancy (IDM Mzumbe).

 

NEEC is a Government Agency established by an Act No. 16 of 2004 as a way forward to speed up the process of empowering the Tanzanians economically. 

The Council is charged with the responsibilities of facilitating designing, planning, supervising, monitoring and evaluation and coordinating all economic empowerment activities. 

 

It is also charged with mobilising resources and managing special funds for economic empowerment activities. Economic Empowerment is one of the vehicles to achieve the Mkukuta, the MDG and ultimately the Vision 2025.

Africa's biggest sisal producer takes cue from Katani Ltd to produce power

A worker in a sisal factory in Tanga Region. More sisal producing companies are venturing into power production. (File photo)

REA Trading Limited, the biggest investor in Africa’s largest sisal producer, is considering expanding into the energy industry, taking a cue similar to what a leading producer of the crop in Tanzania, Katani Limited, took about a decade ago.

 

The Kenyan company, which is buying out the rest of REA Vipingo Plantations Limited, plans to use waste from sisal to make methane that can generate electricity, Director Richard Robinow said in an interview recently in Nairobi, Kenya. It may then sell that power into the country’s national grid, he said.

 

“The problem we have today with the current business is its limit on its growth,” he said. “It’s a good business, but it can only grow to a certain level.”

 

In Tanzania, one of the biggest producer of the cash crop, Katani Limited of Tanga has already taken into various projects, beside power production which come from waste. It started with production of 500 MW.

 

The government of Kenya, with East Africa’s biggest economy, has a programme to add 5,000 megawatts to the country’s current capacity of 1,664 megawatts by 2017. REA Vipingo operates two sisal estates in Kenya that produce about 12,000 metric tons a year of the fiber, which is used to make rope and dartboards.

 

REA Trading, which owns 57 percent of REA Vipingo, was until March 26 in a dispute with Centum Investments Ltd., Kenya’s biggest publicly traded investment group, about taking over the producer.

 

The two settled their disagreement, with Centum withdrawing its offer to buy the sisal company and acquiring 9,646 acres (3,904 ha) of land in the coastal district of Vipingo as well as REA Vipingo’s subsidiary Vipingo Estates Ltd. for 2.1bn/- (US$23m).

 

The RVP Minority Shareholders Association, which has 5,863 members, is “disturbed by the preferential treatment of Centum Investments in the acquisition of RVP by REA Trading,” Moses Mandu, the general secretary of the body, said in an e-mailed response to questions March 30.

 

The association wants REA Trading to raise its offer price to 500/- a share from 85/- now, and will refuse to pass resolutions at the April 28 annual general meeting, he said.

 

The REA Trading deal is “fair,” Robinow said.

“It’s not in my view detrimental to minority shareholders,” he said. “We are selling land to Centum at what I believe is a very fair price and I own 57 percent of the company. I have the most to lose if I sell below the market price, and I have no intention of doing so.”

 

REA Vipingo shares have been suspended since Nov. 13, 2013, when REA Trading first offered to buy remaining investors’ holdings.

Link us with govt certification agencies, Mwanza SMEs appeal to Sido

Small Industries Development Organisation (SIDO)

Small scale entrepreneurs in Mwanza Region have appealed to the Small Industries Development Organisation (sido) to link them with government certification agencies that would enable their products secure local and foreign markets.

 

A statement issued by organisation said the entrepreneurs requested SIDO to continue providing them with loans and connect them to institutions like Tanzania Food and Drugs Authority (TFDA) and Tanzania Bureau of Standards (TBS) for products certification.

 

“This would enable us get loans and sell our products at any market, “they said after attended five days training on food processing in the region.

They insisted that the training was useful to participants as it would enable them to utilise available local resources and as a result reduce poverty, improve their living standards, create jobs and generate income for both household and government development.

 

The training programme took place in Mwanza and was attended by 18 participants from Kasulu (Kigoma Region), Kahama (Shinyanga Region), Nyamagana and Ilemela (Mwanza Region).

 

The training objective was to impart food processing technology to SMEs. Different food products were processed during the training include mango pickle, tomato sauce, tomato paste, nutritious flour, bread, cakes, wine, juice, dried vegetables and jam.

The government has been at the forefront in supporting entrepreneurs to meet their demands.

 

The Minister of State President’s Office Coordination and Relations, Dr. Mary Nagu was recently quoted by this paper as saying the government has been empowering entrepreneurs and small groups through its economic empowerment policy of 2004, and the Economic Empowerment Act No6 of 2004.

 

Dr Nagu said the citizenry’s economic empowerment policy of 2004 has clearly identified the aim of the government in putting up a conducive environment for accessing credit by improving sources of reserves and taking various measures to ensure banks lend available deposits accordingly on low interest rates.

 

She said following the establishment of the policy, various basket funds have been established to enable citizenry borrow easily.

 

These basket funds sponsor small and middle entrepreneurs under the supervision of the Bank of Tanzania (BoT), the minister noted.

 

The programme of empowering the citizenry by increasing employment has brought about citizenry economic empowerment funds like the Small Entrepreneurs Loan Facility (SELF), the Youth Development Fund and the Women Development Fund, among others.

Tanzania tea price seen falling on expectation of rains to boost the crop

Speculation that the approaching wet season will boost leave supplies after a spell of dry weather made Tanzania tea prices at the Kenyan tea auction in Mombasa to declined, according to the East African Tea Trade Association.

 

The average price of African tea fell 6 percent to $2.44 a kilogramme (2.2 pounds) on Tuesday to a five-week low at the Mombasa sale, which includes leaves from producers in Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda, Burundi and Democratic Republic of Congo. Prices peaked this year at $2.64 per kilogramme on March 10.

 

Tea buyers are delaying purchases “as they are anticipating an increase in supply at lower prices in the coming weeks,” East African Tea Trade Association Managing Director Edward Mudibo said in an e-mailed response to questions on Wednesday.

 

“The price decline could also be a price correction,” he said. “The preceding steep price hikes could have been faster than anticipated. The prices are therefore stabilising.”

 

East Africa’s long wet season, which usually runs March through May, is crucial for agricultural producers in a country that largely relies on rain-fed irrigation. Kenya is the world’s largest exporter of black tea, which is one of the country’s biggest sources of foreign exchange.

 

“The long rains are about to come, but what’s happening is a correction in the market because prices rose too sharply last month,” Peter Kimanga, director of Global Tea & Commodities, said by phone from the port city of Mombasa on Wednesday.

 

Even if the rains come as forecast, it may take six weeks to two months for tea volumes to catch up, said Tom Muchura, director of Mombasa-based Africa Tea Brokers Ltd., by phone.

 

Africa Tea Brokers said last month that poor weather including drought conditions and hot temperatures had affected tea-growing areas in and around Kenya’s Rift Valley.

“There is a price adjustment because of the sharp rise in the last two months,” Muchura said, adding that “There had to be a drop.”

TICTS is set to invest over 30bn/- for facility expansion

Ticts chief executive officer, Paul Wallace

The Tanzania International Container Terminal Services Ltd (Ticts) plans to invest at least 30bn/- in 2015 for port facility expansion, including purchasing two new key cranes to match the increasing cargo at the Dar es Salaam port.

 

Ticts chief executive officer Paul Wallace (pictured) said on Wednesday that the buying of the two cranes and the general port infrastructure improvement were part of the firm’s long term investment plans in the country.

 

“The main challenge we see is the increasing number of containers (TEUs), and to cope with the changing business environment, we are working hard to continue investing in the infrastructure,” he said.

 

The facility currently handles around 500,000 TEUs per year, while the number has been growing at 10 per cent annually.

 

The company which is owned by Hutchison Port Holdings (HPH) by 55 per cent handles 75 per cent of Tanzania’s imports and exports.

 

Wallace, who has only six months in the country as the company’s CEO said the container handling firm would invest between $300m and $400m in the next five years to tap the potential to be brought about after the completion of the Central Corridor that also aims at expanding the central line to standard gauge.

 

“Tanzania should look at how to connect the landlocked countries with proper infrastructure system. That is very important because these countries bring in good revenue to the country,” he said.

 

Zambia and Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) are the leading landlocked countries in using the Dar es Salaam port but a large share of the cargo is transported through roads.

 

Last week, President Jakaya Kikwete led his Rwandan counterpart, Paul Kagame to visit the Ticts premises and they were happy that the facility is now a safe place for businesses.

 

Wallace said it was a good move for the heads of state to pay such a visit and express their confidence on the to continue with business.

Tanzania ports handled 14 million metric tonnes of cargo in 2014 and the target is to reach 18 million tonnes by the end of 2015.

 

The World Bank, Trade Mark East Africa and other partners pledged last year that they will give the port authority $565m for expansion projects.

The port authority plans to dredge berths 1 – 7.

Shareholders of DSE listed firms urged to pick new certificates

Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange (DSE)

Shareholders of various companies listed in the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange (DSE) have been alerted to pick new share certificates from the bourse as well as have their records put afresh instead of remaining with the old ones.

 

Speaking with CRDB shareholders in Njombe branch, seminar facilitator, Mgwagi Steven said shareholders of the bank ought to change the past issued certificates and have new ones issued by the Dar es Salaam bourse.

The seminar is held in preparation for the bank’s Annual General Meeting slated for later this year.

 

Steven said even customers who have lost their share certificates should make fresh arrangements with the bank so that they can have new identities certified by the DSE.

 

He said through the meeting, members will have a chance to discuss how to grow more capital and prepare for the bank AGM, scheduled for May 9, this year in Arusha.

 

Earlier, giving feedback to the seminar participants, one of the shareholders, Keneth Malekela, sensitized fellows to ensure that they turn up for the Annual General Meeting.

 

He said in the AGM, which brings together all bank shareholders from various parts of the country, they get a chance to discuss various issues pertaining to the development of the bank.

 

In the meeting, he said the shareholders get a chance to know what the bank is doing and advise it on the correct path to follow so as to sustain it.

For his part, Njombe CRDB Bank manager Alison Andrew said all the shareholders have the right to attend the AGM because they are owners of the bank.

LAPF to plough in 264bn/- in new ventures including Saccos lending

Local Authority Pension Fund (LAPF)

The Local Authority Pension Fund (LAPF) has spent over 429m/- out of 3bn/- in education loans from May last year to the end of February this year whereby over 500 students in high learning institutions recived sponsorships.

 

In this financial year, LAPF plans to invest over 264bn/- in various areas, including treasury bond, bank deposits, real estate purchases, equity market, corporate loans and Sacoss loans.

 

Speaking in an interview with ‘The Guardian’ yesterday in Dar es Salaam, LAPF Marketing and Communications Manager James Mlowe said education loans have been proceeding well as more students send in requests to zone offices allocated all over the country every day.

 

“This programme was officially launched in September last year with the aim of helping our members who want to further their education but were lacking sponsorship. We ask them to come and borrow loans from us since we have over 2bn/- still pending,” he said. 

 

According to LAPF, education loans are aimed at facilitating members so they can pay fees for higher education.  He said after the fund approves the requests the money is transferred directly to the university or college where they student is studying.

 

He said members who want education loan should send their applications through post offices, adding that if the applicant meets all the requirements they will have the loan issued in only18 days.

 

In another development, the number of fund members has increased from 127,500 in 2014 to 132,000 this year and that it hopes to get more members after the government has taken on board 35,000 new teachers.

 

He said every month the fund pays a total of 1.18bn/- to over 7500 pensioners, adding that in 2014; it managed to pay maternity benefit amounting to 950m/- to 1200 members.

 

According to Mlowe, apart from helping members to provide quality and better services the fund also has became a centre of innovation in the creation of new products that assist other funds to operate in the country by copying from it.

 

For his part, the manager for the Eastern Zone, Yesaya Mwakifulefule called upon municipal councils to speed up the sending of report for staff who are about to retire so that funds for their benefits and pensions can be prepared.

 

He said LAPF pays benefits for retirees immediately, claiming that delays are only caused by municipal councils. “Despite the many challenges facing the fund, it has been doing well and it can stay for 100 years without collapse,” he said.

Gemstone processing centre rebuilt in Arusha to add value to minerals

Students at the centre cut and embellish gemstones so as to add value to them. (Photo: Guardian Correspondent)

The successful completion of rehabilitation a major gemstone centre in Arusha is a great achievement for the Ministry of Energy and Minerals, as it facilitates the process of adding value to goods domestically.

 

This was stated by the director of Sustainable Management of Mineral Resources (SMMRP), Idrisa Yahya, at the end of the week during the handover of the centre which was renovated by Kiure Engineering Company. 

“The contractor has managed to work within the scheduled timeframe and has done the work as required,” he said.

 

He added that the project will continue to empower the centre to be able to fulfill its objectives as well as to ensure that it observes professionalism in terms of upgrading minerals thus enabling the mining sector to contribute more to the national economy.

 

He also said that SMMRP aims to enable the centre to provide better training in mineral value addition as it is crucial that the minerals are processed home unlike the current situation whereby the same are shipped overseas in raw form. 

 

“We aim to link this centre with others worldwide which provide such professional training so as to gain experience and exchange knowledge. We want this centre to function as intended and be independent. Therefore, there must be good strategies set put in place.  As for the ministry, it should allocate a budget for the centre to implement its objectives,” he insisted.