DODOMA: PRIME Minister Kassim Majaliwa has directed the Ministries of Works, Transport and Communications and Information Technology to work together to ensure the installation of the National Physical Addressing (NaPA) application system in all government vehicles to enhance location recognition across the country.
The Premier issued the directive in Dodoma on Saturday during the climax of Postcode Commemoration Week, instructing the ministries to extend the installation to privately owned vehicles as well.
Speaking shortly after launching the NaPA application system at a well-attended event, Majaliwa tasked the Tanzania Electrical, Mechanical and Electronics Services Agency (TEMESA) with ensuring the proper installation of the application in all government-owned vehicles.
Furthermore, he launched a navigation application system designed to monitor and track vehicles.
Majaliwa emphasised that, in addition to helping drivers and passengers navigate accurately, the system will create new employment opportunities for youth.
“Young people familiar with digital technologies— this is an opportunity for you. Seize it by participating in the installation of this system (NaPA) in these vehicles,” Mr Majaliwa urged.
He also highlighted Tanzania’s success in postcode operations, which has garnered interest from several African countries looking to learn from its system.
Comoros, Eswatini, Kenya, and Uganda were named as nations that have already visited Tanzania to study the initiative.
“I urge all executives, leaders, and wananchi to install and start using this application on their phones and iPads,” he said before of- ficially launching NaPA. The PM also directed the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology to collaborate with the Min- istry of Finance to ensure the continuous improvement of NaPA to accommodate new developments.
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“This commemoration should be sustained to pro- vide wananchi with an av- enue for learning about post- codes. I expect the same event next year—it must not be a one-time occasion,” he said.
Speaking at the event, Minister for Communications and Information Technology, Jerry Silaa, said that various stakeholders from both pub- lic and private sectors were present.
He noted that NaPA has significantly improved service delivery, particularly in the 4th, 5th, and 6th industrial phases, which rely heavily on ICT.
“The implementation of this system was stalled for 12 years until President Samia Suluhu Hassan issued a directive to complete the exercise within four months.
The President’s decision deserves recognition,” he said. By May 31, 2022, when the implementation con- cluded, over 12.3 million postcodes had been registered and integrated into the NaPA system.
Under the theme “Understanding and Using Postcodes to Enhance Delivery and Access to Services,” Minister Silaa said that the three-day event aims to strengthen the adoption and sustainable use of the NaPA system.
Deputy Minister in the President’s Office for Regional Administration and Local Government (PO-RALG), Festo Dugange, said that his docket is one of the primary beneficiaries of the system, as it has enhanced service delivery in both urban and rural areas.
Beyond administration, the application is now being used in medicine supply chains and school inspections.
“Now, the Medical Stores Department (MSD) no longer gets lost—they go directly to health centres without need- ing to ask for directions.
School inspectors also know exactly where schools are lo- cated,” he explained.
At the conclusion of the event, the Premier handed out iPads to selected representatives from Zanzibar and Mainland Tanzania as part of the government’s plan to distribute digital devices na- tionwide.
The initiative aims to help ward executives issue digital introduction letters ef- ficiently.
