DODOMA: MINISTER for Transport Innocent Bashungwa has directed the crucial boards supervising engineers and contractors to come up with a comprehensive draft of the local content plan, in efforts to ensure that tenders floated in the country are grabbed by a greater number of Tanzanians.
He gave the directives when launching the Contractors Registration Board (CRB) and Engineers Registration Board (ERB) at an event that was equally attended by representatives from top management of the two boards.
The minister also tasked the two boards to come up with the capacity building plan aiming at increasing skills to engineers so that they can deliver to expectations of the various projects that are currently being implemented in the country.
According to the minister, the two boards were duty bound to have a coherent plan that will see the country having the best professional engineers.
Mr Bashungwa noted that the current statistics indicated that obtaining opportunities for the implementation of construction works by local contractors were still low and unsatisfactory, despite the country having many projects that were ongoing. He said that the majority of the projects were being executed by foreign contractors.
“You need to prepare a strategic plan to help local contractors and that plan should have a comprehensive discussion and assessment that will help Tanzanians to grab the available opportunities,’’ he added.
Available statistics in the ministry, he said, indicate that registered contractors in the country were 14,800 out of which 14,300 (equivalent to 54 per cent) were local contractors, while 500 (46percent) were contractors from outside the country.
According to Mr Bashungwa, in the sharing of the national cake, foreign contractors were receiving a large share.
The minister further tasked the two boards to work together so that they can help the profession to contribute to the country’s development.
According to the Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Ambassador Aisha Amour, CRB was composed of not more than members who were appointed by the minister by considering the requirements of the legislation.
“The board members are drawn from the Ministry of Transport, Office of the Attorney General, Architects representative, Association of Consulting Engineers, Association of Citizen Contractors Tanzania and the Business Community,’’ she said.
Ambassador Amour said ERB was composed of eight members and one Chairperson.
