Parliament eyes Dira 2050 oversight committee

THE National Assembly is moving to establish a dedicated committee to oversee the implementation of the National Development Vision 2050 and help ensure the country achieves its long-term development goals.

Speaker of the National Assembly, Mr Mussa Azzan Zungu, said the proposed committee would enable Parliament to closely monitor the implementation of the Vision and national development plans and assess progress towards planned targets.

“The main objective of this committee is to work alongside the government to ensure that the National Development Vision 2050 achieves major success,” Mr Zungu said.

He said the proposal followed discussions by the Parliamentary Leadership Committee on the need for a specific mechanism to monitor and evaluate the implementation of national development plans at the national level.

Currently, parliamentary committees largely follow up development plans within their respective sectors, an arrangement Mr Zungu said leaves a gap in comprehensive nationallevel oversight. The proposed committee will address the gap by providing overall oversight of the implementation of Vision 2050 and national development plans without interfering with the recommittees.

The committee will be chaired by the Deputy Speaker and will comprise chairpersons of the National Assembly’s standing committees. Mr Zungu said its work would be guided by reports from the National Planning Commission on the implementation of national development plans.

He said the Parliamentary Rules Committee had approved amendments to the relevant rules to accommodate the establishment of the committee, with the proposed changes submitted to the Office of the Attorney General for publication in the Government Gazette.

The Speaker said achieving the objectives of Vision 2050 would depend heavily on Tanzania’s ability to attract and expand investment to meet the needs of its growing population.

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“We must have serious investment in Tanzania. This investment will help create jobs for young people and other Tanzanians in our country,” he said.

Mr Zungu said investment should not be associated only with large companies and major international projects, noting that small businesses also play an important role in creating employment and generating incomes. He cited boda boda and taxi businesses as examples, saying that providing a motorcycle or vehicle for another person to operate could create employment opportunities.

The Speaker also pointed to improvements in the port sector as an example of the economic benefits of investment and infrastructure development.

He said increased efficiency at the ports had strengthened confidence among international businesses, while the time ships spend at the port had been reduced from about 300 hours to around 20 hours. Mr Zungu stressed that the private sector would be critical in creating employment, noting that the government alone could not provide all the jobs required. “

Jobs will not all be created by the government. Jobs will be created largely by the private sector,” he said. He called for stronger cooperation between the government and private investors, saying private capital could complement public resources in financing major development projects.

However, Mr Zungu stressed that investors must operate within Tanzania’s laws and regulations and that national interests must remain protected.