by Phyllis Johnson – SANF 05 No 110
The United Republic of Tanzania celebrated 44 years of independence on 9 December, with current economic indicators showing the highest levels to date.
Jakaya Kikwete, the presidential candidate of the ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) in the forthcoming Union elections, said that while Tanzania is still “a poor, underdeveloped country, when one compares what we are now with what we were at independence 44 years ago, there’s definitely remarkable progress.”
He quoted a number of indicators in this regard. “Micro-finance indicators place the economic growth rate now at 6.7 percent and inflation at 4.4 percent. These are levels we have never achieved since independence. Revenue collection has increased admirably.”
President Benjamin Mkapa, who is standing down after 10 years in office, hosted his last independence celebrations as Head of State and took his final salute from the Tanzania People’s Defence Forces (TPDF) as their commander-in-chief. He is the third president of the United Republic of Tanzania.
Asked in a local media interview about the legacy of the first three presidents, Kikwete said Mwalimu Julius Nyerere was “instrumental in building a united, peaceful, stable country; Mzee Ali Hassan Mwinyi spearheaded political and economic reforms; and I credit President Mkapa for managing macroeconomic stability.”
Kikwete also credited the incumbent with commendable efforts to stamp out corruption. “Had it not been for the interventions of President Mkapa, corruption would have become a normal way of life. We have got to continue with the efforts, strengthening the Prevention of Corruption Bureau is one of the means of fuelling the anti-corruption drive.”
After his election in 1995, Mkapa vowed to address corruption and he prioritised economic development, stabilising the macroeconomic environment and the exchange rate, widening the space for local and foreign investment, and reducing inflation to single digits, where it now stands at less than five percent.
Tanzania is now ranked ahead of Kenya and Uganda in the 2005 global economic competitiveness rating produced by the World Economic Forum (WEF), a ranking based on macro-economic stability, the quality of public institutions and technological readiness.
The health delivery system has improved significantly during Mkapa’s tenure as has the road network, and Tanzania expects to achieve the Millennium Development Goal of full enrolment in primary education by next year, well ahead of the 2015 deadline.
Mkapa predicts that his successor will focus on the next stage, that of agricultural development, and he has left a regional legacy in this sector through hosting a summit of leaders of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) on agriculture and food security which set development targets and plans, including a regional food reserve.
Based on this record and Mwalimu’s legacy, CCM with Kikwete as its candidate, is expected to win the forthcoming presidential elections on 14 December from a field of 10 candidates.
The main challengers are Ibrahim Lipumba of the Civic United Front (CUF) and Augustine Mrema of the Tanzania Labour Party, who got 16.26 and 7.8 percent of the votes respectively in the 2000 elections.
Freeman Mbowe of Chama cha Demokrasia na Maendelo (Chadema), who has been campaigning across the country with the help of a helicopter and his links to the Liberal Democrats in Britain who provided training for party cadres, is closing the gap with the two opposition leaders after CUF lost the Zanzibar elections on 30 October.
Zanzibar is a part of the United Republic of Tanzania, where the Union elections had to be postponed until 14 December due to the death of a vice-presidential candidate.
However, Zanzibar is a semi-autonomous region that also elects a local president and parliament. Zanzibar has its own president, with no jurisdiction over the mainland. For Zanzibar, legislative functions are vested in the House of Representatives which enacts laws except on constitutionally decreed Union matters, such as foreign affairs, home affairs and defence.
Amani Abeid Karume, the CCM candidate, won re-election to lead the islands for a second term, but he faced a stiff contest from his main challenger, Seif Shariff Hamad of CUF, in a field of seven candidates.
Karume was re-elected for a second five-year term by 53.2 percent of the vote. Hamad, his closest challenger, got 46.1 percent of the total valid votes cast.
CCM returned 30 of its candidates to the 50-seat House of Representatives in Zanzibar. All were elected on the main island of Unguja. CUF swept all 19 seats contested on the northern island of Pemba, its main stronghold. The election for one seat in Dole, on the southern island of Unguja, has been postponed to 14 December.
CUF has refused to accept the election results, despite the approval of local, regional and international election observers, including SADC, the African Union and the Commonwealth.
Under its Constitution, the United Republic of Tanzania is an independent, unitary, sovereign and democratic state committed to the rule of law. It was forged by two independent states – Tanganyika (independence 9 December 1961) and Zanzibar (independence 10 December 1963).
The Union was formalised on 26 April 1964. Its objective is to build a unified society based on freedom, human rights and peaceful existence.
The challenge for the next president of the United Republic of Tanzania to be elected on 14 December 2005 is to maintain the peace and stability prevailing in the country, while sustaining the momentum of economic growth that has been realised under President Mkapa’s leadership.
