Entrepreneurship is a multifaceted field that requires a broad range of skills, including creativity, innovation, problem-solving, and strategic thinking. Art, design, and culture are all essential components that play a crucial role in entrepreneurship. This blog post will explore the importance of art, design, and culture in entrepreneurship.
First and foremost, art, design, and culture are integral to branding and marketing. A business incorporating art and design into its branding strategy can create a unique identity and stand out from competitors. The right design can effectively convey a business’s mission and values, making it easier to connect with potential customers. Art and culture also play a significant role in advertising campaigns, as they can help create a connection with a target audience and memorably convey the message.
Secondly, art, design, and culture can inspire innovation and creativity. Artistic expressions and cultural traditions can help entrepreneurs develop new ideas and concepts to apply to their businesses. These inspirations can come in different forms, such as visual art, music, literature, and even culinary arts. By incorporating these influences into their work, entrepreneurs can develop new and innovative products and services that stand out in the market.
Furthermore, art, design, and culture can help entrepreneurs think critically and solve problems creatively. The creative process often requires thinking outside the box, and art, design, and culture can help entrepreneurs develop their critical thinking skills. In addition, by analyzing and interpreting different forms of art and culture, entrepreneurs can learn to see things from different perspectives and develop unique solutions to complex problems.
Moreover, art, design, and culture can also foster collaboration and teamwork. Entrepreneurs can work with artists, designers, and cultural experts to create new products and services that reflect the values and aesthetics of different cultures. This collaboration can lead to new ideas and innovations that benefit the business and the community.
In conclusion, art, design, and culture are essential to entrepreneurship. By incorporating these elements into their businesses, entrepreneurs can create unique branding and marketing strategies, inspire innovation and creativity, develop critical thinking skills, and foster collaboration and teamwork. These skills are crucial for any entrepreneur seeking to succeed in today’s competitive market. As an aspiring entrepreneur, it is essential to recognize the value of art, design, and culture in achieving your goals and positively impacting the world.
American Psychological Association. (2019). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (7th ed.). https://doi.org/10.1037/0000165-000
Eastern Africa is a region of the African continent experiencing significant economic growth and development. Comprising of countries such as Kenya, Tanzania, Ethiopia, and Uganda, this region is home to over 300 million people. In this blog post, we will explore the economic future of Eastern Africa, including the factors contributing to its growth and the challenges that lie ahead.
One of the key factors contributing to the economic growth of Eastern Africa is the region’s rich natural resources. These resources include minerals such as gold, diamonds, and copper and agricultural products such as coffee, tea, and flowers. In addition, the region is also home to significant oil and gas reserves, with important discoveries made in recent years.
Another critical driver of economic growth in Eastern Africa is the region’s strategic location. Eastern Africa is at the intersection of crucial trade routes, including those linking the Middle East, Asia, and Europe. This location provides opportunities for the region to serve as a hub for trade and investment, contributing to its economic development.
The region has also experienced significant investment in infrastructure, including the construction of ports, airports, and highways. These investments aim to improve connectivity within the region and the rest of the world, promoting economic growth and development.
Despite these positive developments, Eastern Africa still faces several challenges that could affect its economic future. One of the primary challenges is the need for more significant investment in human capital. The region has a young and growing population, and it is essential to invest in education, health, and other social services to ensure that this population can contribute to economic growth in the long term.
Another significant challenge facing the region is political instability. Some countries in the region, such as Somalia and South Sudan, continue to experience conflict and instability, which can negatively impact economic development. Therefore, it is vital for the region’s leaders to address these challenges and work towards building stable and peaceful societies.
Climate change is another significant challenge that could affect the economic future of Eastern Africa. The region is already experiencing the effects of climate change, including droughts, floods, and other extreme weather events. These events can significantly impact agricultural productivity, a crucial driver of economic growth in the region.
In conclusion, the economic future of Eastern Africa is bright, with rich natural resources, a strategic location, and investments in infrastructure driving economic growth and development. However, challenges like the need for more significant investment in human capital, political instability, and climate change could impact the region’s economic future. Therefore, the region’s leaders must address these challenges and work towards building a more prosperous and sustainable future for the people of Eastern Africa.
“Africa could play a vital role in the future of climate change if aid is promised.” – William Ruto, President of Kenya
In response to the climate crisis, people worldwide have been paying attention to Africa as a continent that can provide clean energy and leverage as a driving force for growth. Among them, one notable resource is solar energy.
North African countries intend to use their best solar energy capabilities.
The Government of Tanzania has committed to increasing the use of renewable energy sources, including solar power, as part of its national energy mix. The country has significant potential for solar energy due to its abundant sunlight, and the government has established several initiatives and programs to promote the development and use of solar energy. For example, the government has established the Rural Energy Agency to promote renewable energy in rural areas, including solar power for lighting, cooking, and other applications.
Additionally, several private sector initiatives aimed at increasing the use of solar energy in Tanzania, such as developing solar power plants and distribution networks for households and businesses. The government is also working to improve access to financing for renewable energy projects, including solar projects, to encourage further investment and growth in the sector.
At COP27 in November 2022 (the 27th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change held in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt), United Arab Emirates global energy company Masdar said in a report that Africa could account for up to 10% of the world’s green hydrogen market by 2050. In particular, Morocco’s credit highlighted, noting that it expects to produce green hydrogen at less than $2 per kilogram in 2030 and less than $1 per kilogram in 2050. The report also said Morocco’s green hydrogen industry is expected to create nearly four million additional jobs and add $60-120 billion (about 76 trillion-152 trillion won) to the continent’s GDP by 2050.
This will be a significant achievement if it materializes, considering that Morocco’s GDP in 2021 exceeded USD 132 billion (about KRW 167.44 trillion). In September 2022, while Morocco was building its first green hydrogen production system, the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) reported that Morocco is expected to produce the third cheapest green hydrogen by 2050.
Meanwhile, Tunur (TuNur: a renewable energy, storage, and transmission developer focused on Tunisia and the Mediterranean region) has committed to investing $1.5 billion (W1.9 trillion) in power plants in Tunisia. Considering that Tunisia’s gross domestic product (GDP) currently exceeds about $40 billion (about 50.74 trillion won), it is indeed a huge investment.
Like Morocco, Tunisia announced its green hydrogen strategy in 2022 and aims to pursue it by 2024. In partnership with multinational company Chariot Energy, Mauritania focused on Project Nour, which aims to make Mauritania one of Africa’s cheapest global green hydrogen exporters by leveraging its world-class wind and solar access.
Traps to Consider
Currently, many exciting projects are taking place across Africa. However, concerns about other factors, such as the bureaucracy of certain governments that could delay such projects and the risk of the investment not aiming to benefit residents, have been lingering. As a result, electricity utilization is often very low in some African countries, while electricity utilization is less than 50% in 24 countries. Therefore, governments and investors must improve their domestic infrastructure so that people across the continent can fully benefit from this energy transition.
Moreover, as the International Energy Agency IEA pointed out, Africa has 60% of the world’s best solar resources. Still, it is in the early stages of development, accounting for only 1% of the solar power capacity. The pipeline now aims to export natural gas from West and North Africa to Europe. In particular, Algeria is a natural gas supplier, particularly of fossil fuels. However, pipelines require repurposing and can be used to transport hydrogen. Critically, some observers have raised concerns about essential ‘extractionist’ projects.
Africa’s regional resources can aim to benefit global markets outside the continent at the expense of its local population. In addition, some investment projects could cause significant debt to African governments. There are undoubtedly positive aspects, and investment is essential, but whoever the initiator will be must ensure that extensive infrastructure development takes place so that ordinary civilians can also benefit, especially given the continent’s more comprehensive climate vulnerability.
If these projects are carried out ethically, the global and African economies will become more intertwined and positively contribute to the continent’s economic growth.
Art in Tanzania Climate Change volunteering and internship program.
The growth prospects for the continent are strong. However, the national governments and businesses must ensure that indigenous people have access to alternative energy sources.”
Discussions about the climate crisis have often described the continent as a victim and innocent bystander, primarily because it contributes less than 4% to total global greenhouse gas emissions. But as the world strives to find new clean energy sources, it is increasingly difficult to ignore Africa’s phenomenal potential to help the climate crisis and provide clean energy.
From Sahara’s solar energy to vast land wind levels, Africa has much potential to convert its energy resources into green hydrogen, which climate researchers believe is the key to producing cleaner energy. However, there is scepticism about whether African countries can fully exploit this energy potential to benefit their citizens and whether development projects can be essential ‘extractions’.
Green Hydrogen Case
Green hydrogen is attracting attention as a new and renewable energy that can solve the climate crisis due to its low price, ease of storage, and low pollution gas. In addition, it can double car production other than diesel, replacing coal, oil and gas in all applications and releasing only water vapour. Hydrogen is the most abundant element in the universe and is used for various purposes, such as automobile fuel, metal treatment, fertilizer production, and food processing. However, because it is not an absolute natural resource from Earth, it takes energy to separate it, wherein an electrolysis process is essential to extract the purest form of hydrogen completely. This electrolysis process sends a strong current through the water tank (H2O) and separates the molecules into two elements (hydrogen and oxygen).
When electricity comes from renewable sources such as solar heat and wind power, hydrogen production through electrolysis does not generate greenhouse gases, making green hydrogen renewable. Given Africa’s abundant solar and wind energy, the continent has the perfect natural potential to create green hydrogen. Indeed, the International Energy Agency (IEA) announced in its ‘Africa Energy Outlook 2022’ report that Africa’s abundant renewable resources are crucial to achieving this potential.
The report said that this potential allows the continent to produce 5,000 megatons of hydrogen per year at less than $2 per kilogram, equivalent to the world’s total energy supply. The IEA’s report also said Africa could produce 80 per cent of the energy needed from solar, wind, hydro and other renewable energies by 2030.
African Continental Development
Over the past decade, various projects have been underway to produce and ultimately export green hydrogen. As an evident example, Tanzania is expected to become one of the continental leaders of green hydrogen energy due to its excellent solar, wind and precious metal resources. Furthermore, in 2012, Tanzania announced its climate change strategy, aiming to enable Tanzania to adapt effectively to climate change and participate in global efforts to mitigate climate change while achieving sustainable development. After several revisions, Tanzania will implement various climate change response policies worth $750 million annually by 2030.
Tanzania’s climate change adaptation strategy is widely applied to water resources, coastal and marine environments, forestry, wildlife, agriculture and food security, human health, tourism, energy (water dams), industry, livestock and fisheries, infrastructure, human settlement and land use, and mitigation includes low-emission energy technology, livestock management and food improvement, efficiency in transport, mining, agriculture and waste management.
In February 2022, South Africa announced a pipeline of various green hydrogen initiatives worth approximately $17.8 billion (KRW 22.6 trillion) by 2030. On November 27, Cyril Ramaphosa, President of the African National Congress, hosted the Green Hydrogen Summit in Cape Town, inviting several world leaders, ambassadors and high commissioners. At the meeting, Ramaphosa said, “South Africa is determined to become a global leader in the field of green hydrogen.” At the same time, he estimated, “South Africa has the potential to produce 6 million to 13 million tons of green hydrogen and derivatives every year by 2050.
His announcement came after South African petrochemical giant Sasol and Luxembourg’s world’s largest steelmaker ArcelorMittal announced a project to explore green hydrogen in October, along with extraction from a hydrogen-producing hub and North Cape area in Saldanha Bay. In September of that same year, Sasol worked with the Japanese company Itochu to explore Japan’s green hydrogen export projects and supply chains. The latter promised to subsidize such projects.
The project aims to supply the European market as well. In January 2022, Rotterdam Port signed a memorandum of agreement acting as “the aggregator of demand for green hydrogen in Europe.” Other European countries, such as Germany, therefore noted cooperation with South Africa in this area. The investment will undoubtedly be significant because South Africa has said it will need approximately $250 billion (about 317.125 trillion won) by 2050 to meet its long-term hydrogen production target. Other countries, including Egypt, Nigeria, and Kenya, are also in several stages of building initiatives that will be implemented over the next decade. In 2021, Namibia and Botswana also signed a memorandum of intent with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to build a super-large solar power plant to produce green hydrogen.
Africa’s continental development, coupled with its environmental change response strategy, is expected to create the power to respond sensitively to environmental changes and serve as a springboard for new national growth that can lead to economic growth.
A marketing strategy refers to a business’s overall game plan for reaching prospective consumers and turning them into customers of their products or services. A marketing strategy contains the company’s value proposition, essential brand messaging, data on target customer demographics, and other high-level elements. A thorough marketing strategy covers “the four Ps” of marketing: product, price, place, and people.
Understanding Marketing Strategies
A clear marketing strategy should revolve around the company’s value proposition, which communicates to consumers what it stands for, how it operates, and why it deserves their business. This provides marketing teams with a template that should inform their initiatives across all of the company’s products and services.
Benefits of a Marketing Strategy
The ultimate goal of a marketing strategy is to achieve and communicate a sustainable competitive advantage over rival companies by understanding the needs and wants of its consumers. Whether it’s a print ad design, mass customisation, or a social media campaign, a marketing asset can be judged based on how effectively it communicates a company’s core value proposition. In addition, market research can help chart a given campaign’s efficacy and help identify untapped audiences to achieve bottom-line goals and increase sales.
What does a marketing strategy look like?
A marketing strategy will detail the advertising, outreach, and PR campaigns to be carried out by a firm, including how the company will measure the effect of these initiatives. They will typically follow the “four Ps”: product, price, place, and people. The functions and components of a marketing plan include
market research to support pricing decisions and new market entries
tailored messaging that targets specific demographics and geographic areas
platform selection for product and service promotion
digital, radio, Internet, trade magazines, and the mix of those platforms for each campaign metrics that measure the results of marketing efforts and their reporting timelines.
Is a marketing strategy the same as a marketing plan?
The terms marketing plan and strategy are often used interchangeably because a marketing plan is developed based on an overarching strategic framework. In some cases, the strategy and the program may be incorporated into one document, particularly for smaller companies that may only run one or two major campaigns in a year. The plan outlines marketing activities monthly, quarterly, or annual, while the marketing strategy outlines the overall value proposition.
Four types of marketing strategies
Cause Marketing
Cause marketing, also known as cause-related marketing, links a company, its products, and services to a social cause or issue.
Relationship Marketing
Relationship marketing focuses on customer retention and satisfaction to enhance your relationships with existing customers to increase loyalty.
Scarcity Marketing
Scarcity marketing creates a perception of a shortage which aims to entice customers to purchase out of fear that they may not be able to get it in the future.
Undercover Marketing
Undercover marketing, also known as stealth marketing, involves marketing to consumers in a way that they do not realise they are being marketed to.
The first two – cause and relationship marketing — are considered “positive” marketing techniques that focus on the benefits to others. The second two – scarcity and undercover marketing – are more unconventional and potentially controversial techniques.
What are the 5 P’s of Marketing?
The 5 P’s of Marketing – Product, Price, Promotion, Place, and People – are key marketing elements used to position a business strategically. The 5 P’s of Marketing, also known as the marketing mix, are variables that managers and owners control to satisfy customers in their target market, add value to their business, and help differentiate their business from competitors.
Product
Product refers to the products and services offered by a business. Product decisions include function, packaging, appearance, warranty, quality, etc.
Customers need to understand the features, advantages, and benefits of buying goods or services. Therefore, when thinking about a product, consider the key features, benefits, and the needs and wants of customers.
Price
Price refers to the pricing strategy for products and services and how it will affect customers. Pricing decisions do not include just the selling price but also discounts, payment arrangements, credit terms, and any price-matching services offered.
When determining a pricing strategy, it is essential to consider the business’s position in the current marketplace. For example, if the company is advertised as a high-quality provider of mechanical equipment, the product pricing should reflect that.
Promotion
Promotion refers to the activities that make the business more known to consumers. It includes items such as sponsorships, advertising, and public relations activities.
Since promotion costs can be substantial, it is essential to conduct a break-even analysis when making promotion decisions. It is necessary to understand the value of a customer and whether it is worth running promotions to acquire them.
Place
Place refers to where the product/service of the business is seen, made, sold, or distributed. In essence, place decisions are associated with distribution channels and getting the product to targeted vital customers.
It is essential to consider how accessible the product or service is and ensure that customers can easily find you. The product or service must be available to customers at the right time, place, and quantity.
For example, a business may want to provide their products over an e-commerce site, retail store, or third-party distributor.
People
People refer to the staff, salespeople, and those who work for the business. People’s decisions are usually centred around customer service – how do you want your employees to be perceived by customers?
CONCLUSION: Through marketing strategy, it allows the company to oversee from far how it will be moving from the current situation to its desired position.
By Faraja Ntilulagomba – Art in Tanzania Internship
‘Climate Change’ denotes to long-term change in the statistical distribution of weather patterns (e.g., temperature, precipitation etc.) over decades to millions of years of time. Climate on earth has changed over millions of years since the beginning long before human activity could have played a role in its transformation.
But the United Nation of Framework Conservation on Climate Change (UNFCCC), defined Climate Change as “a change of climate which is attributed directly or indirectly to human activity that alters the composition of the global atmosphere and which is in addition to natural climate variability observed over comparable time periods”. However, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC) definition of climate change includes changes due to natural variability alongside human activity. Australian Government’s DCCEE, on its website described Climate Change- ‘our climate is changing, largely due to the observed increases in human produced greenhouse gases. Greenhouse gases absorb heat from the sun in the atmosphere and reduce the amount of heat escaping into space. This extra heat has been found to be the primary cause of observed changes in the climate system over the 20th century’.
Thus, in the environmental discourse different stakeholders have characterized Climate Change as mainly the change in modern climate augmented by human activities. The adverse human activities for example are burning of fossil fuel or deforestation, which are considered likely to bring change in some climatic aspects.
Climate change is the global phenomenon of climate transformation characterized by the changes in the usual climate of the planet (regarding temperature, precipitation, and wind) that are especially caused by human activities or climate change is “a broad range of global phenomena created predominantly by burning fossil fuels, which add heat-trapping gases to Earth’s atmosphere. Some aspects or examples of climate changes include increase in temperature (which is global warming), drought, floods, ozone layer depletion, shrinking ice sheets, rise in sea level, ocean acidification, greenhouse gases etc. Some causes of climate change are Industrial activities, meteorite impacts, quantity of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, burning of fossil fuel, deforestation etc. According to Rahman M.I(2012) said that Climate Change, the most uttered environmental term of present time has been used to refer to the change in modern climate brought predominantly by human beings.
European Research on Climate change funded by Seventh Framework Programme said that Climate change is arguably among the most pressing societal challenges of our times, and now certainly the most well-known amongst the public. From initial observations of global warming and proposed ideas about the root causes, a steady consensus has built up that climate change is one of the most serious threats facing the world in the near future. It is very clearly stated in the recently released 5th Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) on the physical science basis, that global warming is mostly caused by human activities.
Agriculture can be defined as the science or practice of farming, including cultivation of the soil for the growing of crops and the rearing of animals to provide food, wool, and other
products. It involves crop cultivation and animal keeping. Agriculture is a critical economic sector, representing 29.1 percent of Tanzania’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and almost three quarters of the productive workforce. Moreover, it is the main source of food, industrial raw materials, and foreign exchange earnings. Since Tanzania is endowed with a diversity of climatic and geographical zones, farmers grow a wide variety of annual and permanent crops. This includes food and cash crops as well as fruits, vegetables, and spices. Major agricultural exports include tea, coffee, tobacco, cotton, and cashew nuts. In addition, some farmers raise livestock including cattle, goats, sheep, pigs, and chicken as well as small numbers of turkeys, ducks, rabbits, donkeys, and horses.
In Tanzania climate change affects agricultural activities. The following are negative impacts of Climate change on agriculture in Tanzania.
Reduction of Productivity in agriculture; for example, increase in temperature, drought, and floods can decrease the rate of production in agricultural sectors. Increase in temperature lead the dry of crops like maize and beans hence results low in production to farmers.
Reduction of water availability; for example, drought can result in loss of water in the agricultural sector. Water is the primary medium through which we will feel the effects of climate change. Also, water availability is becoming less predictable in many places, and increased incidences of flooding threaten to destroy water points and sanitation facilities and contaminate water sources. Higher temperatures and more extreme, less predictable, weather conditions are projected to affect availability and distribution of rainfall, snowmelt, river flows, and groundwater, further deteriorating water quality and insufficient supply of water. Due to these irrigation activities in the agricultural sectors, plant growth may fail due to lack of moisture in the soil.
Destruction of plants and decrease in number of animals; for example, Global warming affects plants and animals, some of which may die. Most plants and animals live in areas with very specific climate conditions, such as temperature and rainfall patterns, that enable them to thrive. Any change in the climate of an area can affect the plants and animals living there, as well as the makeup of the entire ecosystem. Some species are already responding to a warmer climate by moving to cooler locations. For example, some animals and plants in Tanzania are moving farther in other place or to higher elevations to find suitable places to live. Climate change also alters the life cycles of plants and animals. For example, as temperatures get warmer, many plants are starting to grow and bloom earlier in the spring and survive longer into the fall. Some animals are waking from hibernation sooner or migrating at different times, too.
Increase of evapo-transpiration; for example, increase in temperature result loss of water from water bodies by evaporation and loss of water from plants by transpiration. So excessive loss of water from plants results the decrease or loss of water in other soil, so crops or plants my fail to grow due to lack of moisture in the soil.
Decrease of income to farmers; This because climate change like global warming, ozone layer depletion, drought, and floods result low in production in agricultural sector hence income decreases because farmer have a low crop yield
Soil erosion: Increasing in available moisture, also called effective precipitation, would tend to promote both runoff and soil erosion on the one hand, and vegetation cover on the other. Since vegetation reduces erosion, we have another case of the result hinging on the net effects of “competing” processes. Effective precipitation result floods so hence lead soil erosion, this results the loss of nutrients hence bringing less growth of crops in agricultural sector.
Destruction of agricultural infrastructures, for example high rainfall and increase in temperature result the loss of vegetations. Also, floods may cause land degradation. So, climate change result destruction of agricultural infrastructure.
Delay of plant or crop growth, for example, when there are seasonal rainfall plants or crops my lack water for growth. When there are no rainfall crops may fail to grow and develop but if there is minimum rainfall crops mat develop and grow.
Reducing crop quality, due to the reduced growth period following high levels of temperature rise; reduced sugar content, bad coloration, and reduced storage stability in fruits; increase of weeds, blights, and harmful insects in agricultural crops.
Reducing land fertility; Due to the accelerated decomposition of organic substances; and increased soil erosion due the increased rainfall.
Therefore, Climate change is a rapidly growing concern for the Government of Tanzania and development partners alike. Policy and strategy processes related to climate change must be undertaken in some sectors in order to reduce climate change aspects, Climate change is a cross cutting issue affecting a number of sectors including forestry, agriculture, water, lands, energy, infrastructure, and others. So, we need to take action on climate change action (mitigation and adaptation) in order to reduce the effects of climate change on agricultural sector in Tanzania.
REFFERENCES
Arndt, Channing; Farmer, William; Strzepek, Kenneth; Thurlow, James. 2012. Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security in Tanzania.
In today’s world, there has been intense struggle for water resources. This is due to rising population currently standing at 7 billion, their usage of water and extreme competition over water resources, water dependent crops and urbanization. Therefore, it is no surprise that the world is running out of fresh water every day. The need for water will continue to rise unless there are steps to conserve and recycle this crucial element. As of 2020, about 1.5 billion people are dealing with water scarcity due to climate change, drought, increasing population, poor management of water and increasing agricultural output under multiple stressors. This figure is said to increase to around 3 billion by 2025. Currently, the increasing population shows huge demand and competition over water resources in terms of household, commercial, and district uses which has been a massive contributing factor towards water scarcity.
As an outsider, Zanzibar looks like a wonderous cluster of coral islands off the east African coast. The island has white sandy beaches alongside the ocean blue water and a total of about 1.7 million population that survive on a mere £10 a week. This fast-growing population is faced by water shortage especially in areas like the Michamvi village and other small towns. Despite making multiple efforts to address the water issue, the Zanzibar islands heavily depend on the groundwater for domestic and commercial uses of water for their agriculture. The climate change and rising sea level largely affect the quality and quantity of water on the island which reflects the sensitivity of Zanzibar to such variability.
The Impact of Water Crisis in Zanzibar
The coastal island of Zanzibar off the mainland of Tanzania is faced with many challenges such as the high demands for agriculture, poverty, poor technological infrastructure, and availability of water resources particularly in the rural areas where clean and hygienic consumption of water remains difficult to achieve. This water scarcity largely affects women and children who end up walking for miles to obtain the vital source which is quite time consuming as it deprives the children of their education.
Zanzibar, like many other developing areas has obtained international aid for the establishment of wells, power cables, manufacturing desalinization systems, infrastructure and constructing sanitation systems in order to prove beneficial for the island. Unfortunately, despite huge foreign aid investments, the island failed to sustain these systems due to lack of education, resources and training resulting in only short-term benefits. To address this issue, an organization called Zanzibar Water Authority (ZAWA) was established which initiated Urban Water Supply and Sanitation project aimed towards enhancing the water supply mechanism and reconstructing the financial control of the distribution of water. ZAWA installed pay-stations for the citizens to pay off their water bills, but such system asked for a cultural change. If such change is adapted by locals, the future of this system seems fruitful but all-round accessibility to hygienic and safe consumption of water still remains a challenge in Zanzibar.
Addressing the Water Quality Issue
Access to clean and safe drinking water remains a huge challenge in Zanzibar as it is one of the driest areas around the world. Because of the rise in sea levels, the underground water is growing saline and getting polluted due to increase in germs and wastewater. For this purpose, three German organizations joined together in 2015 to provide access to clean drinking water to public on the island. These companies are supported by GIZ (the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit) working on the behalf of the government of Germany. Due to their efforts, about 2000 locals in the areas of Kijito Upele and Michamvi have gained access to affordable and hygienic consumption of water. Moreover, this new system also enabled the local services to keep a constant check on the quality of water within Zanzibar.
Challenges of Water Security and Climate Change in the Coastal Communities of Zanzibar
Similar to other small islands in the region, utilization and proper use of water sources are fundamental towards the elimination of poverty and food shortage in Zanzibar. Water management is also important in order to execute the Sustainable Development Goals 2030 set by United Nations especially the First SDG of “No Poverty”, Second on “Zero Hunger”, and sixth on “Clean Water and Sanitation for all”. This is due to the fact that this vital resource may reduce food shortage in local areas, decrease poverty, and enhance agricultural output. Even though Zanzibar has made multiple attempts in upgrading the water supply particularly in the domestic level in the past 10 years, in some villages around the coast, the availability and accessibility to water sources remain out of reach. Therefore, addressing the water security issue is important for the welfare and survival of human beings. Furthermore, people living in these areas rely on well and water from caves which are vulnerable to contamination and climate change.
The factors that depend on climate and local sources of wells and caves include household needs, livestock keeping, and crop farming as it largely depends on rainfall. It is also understood that water supply is not consistent but instant variable around these islands which allow the locals to experience water insecurity both in domestic and commercial level. Ultimately, those with less access to local water sources are more prone to water insecurity. Apart from arduous access to water supply, the communities also face other challenges including poverty and hydrogeology which contribute to water insecurity. Despite making efforts to improve water quality and quantity in Zanzibar, there is also potential for collecting rainwater to address the water issues. This harvest would not only improve water security in domestic level but also support the communities that are prone to climate change and depend on local sources in Zanzibar.
Access to Clean Drinking Water by Rotarians Despite Pandemic
The Zanzibar Island is said to have rich and freshwater aquifers which constantly face challenges including environmental sustainability, lack of water management and tourism. Even though Zanzibar experiences a huge number of tourists entering these islands, only 2.5% of the total population i.e. 30,000 of the people are employed. These tourists take up ten times more water usage than the local residents and few of the hotels dispose of their sewage into the sea which forms a thin line of soil over the coral areas.
The tiny settlements on the island acquire water through wells which are getting more and more polluted due to tourists, rise in population, and insufficient sewage treatment. Zanzibar Rotary in partnership with the Rotary club of Oadby Launde, a project formed in Leicester, United Kingdom, financed £1,000 and raised further £500 for the project Kiss Solar Energy to provide clean and safe drinking water in Mpadeni village. Despite the delay in project due to COVID-19, a sample was taken from the well dug about 20 meters deep in the Mpadeni village in October 2020. After being tested by ZAWA, it was passed as good quality of water.
Makame Omar Makame, R. Y. (2018, May 18). Water Security and Local People Sensitivity to Climate Variability and Change Among Coastal Communities in Zanzibar. Journal of Sustainable Development, 11(3). Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.5539/jsd.v11n3p23
Legal aid is the provision of assistance to people who are unable to afford legal representation and access to the court system. Legal aid is regarded as central in providing access to justice by ensuring equality. Before the law, the right to counsel and the right to a fair trial. Aid provided by an organizations established specially to serve the legal needs of the poor.
Legal aid is the provision of assistance to people who are unable to afford legal representation and access to the court system. Legal aid is regarded as central in providing access to justice by ensuring equality before the law, the right to counsel and the right to a fair trial.
Importance of legal aid
-Legal aid may be taken to mean free legal assistance to the low-income people in any judicial proceedings before the Court, Tribunals, or any authority. It intends to provide free legal assistance to the low-income people who are not able to enforce the rights given to them by law.
-For those that cannot afford a lawyer, access to legal advice and assistance can not only empower a person to resolve their legal problem, but also to prevent that problem from negatively impacting the other aspects of their life.
-An advantage of using Legal Aid, if you do qualify, is that it normally protects you from having to pay the other side’s costs if you lose the case. However with Legal Aid you do have to make a contribution to your own legal costs. Is legal aid important?
-Legal aid is the provision of assistance to people who are unable to afford legal representation and access to the court system. Legal aid is regarded as central in providing access to justice by ensuring equality before the law, the right to counsel, and the right to a fair trial.
Types;
There are two types of legal aid: for civil and for criminal cases. All applications for legal aid for criminal cases are means tested. But some applications for legal aid for civil cases are not means tested, for example care cases and Mental Health Tribunal cases.
Below is a summary of the types of free legal services that may be available in your state.
Public Defenders
If you have been arrested and charged with a crime, you may be dreading heading to court, especially if you do not have the resources to afford a lawyer. You may be entitled to obtain legal services without charge. However under the United States Constitution, you have the right to free legal services for your criminal trial if you cannot afford an attorney of your own. Often, these attorneys are appointed by a judge from a public defender’s office when you are formally charged with criminal counts. This attorney will be assigned to your case for the duration of your criminal trial, as well as your first appeal if you lose the initial criminal case. To find out more, you can contact your local public defender’s office.
Legal Aid Clinics
If you think that you need to file a lawsuit to protect your interests but are unable to afford a private lawyer, you may be able to qualify for legal aid, often called legal services. Legal aid organizations and attorneys often receive funds from the government and are normally tasked with taking on cases concerning the poor and the low-income. Because of their limited funding, however, legal aid societies and lawyers can usually only take on a select few cases. The lawsuits that legal aid attorneys normally litigate are ones involving denial of unemployment benefits, social security benefits, consumer credit issues, and eviction and other landlord tenant lawsuits.
Before you begin looking to obtain services from a legal aid organization, make sure you are eligible. Often times, legal aid organizations only take cases from those who make less than a certain amount of money each year. You can look in the phone book or contact a local bar association in order to get in touch with a legal aid society to see if you may qualify for free legal services. Government funding to these organizations is usually limited, and because of this, they may not be able to take your case, or you may be in for a long wait.
Personal Injury Attorneys on Contingency
Many personal injury attorneys take cases on a contingency fee basis, which means that you do not pay anything to the attorney up front and the lawyer only gets paid if you get paid. Contingency fee arrangements are great for those who have winning cases but no real means of paying an hourly fee to an attorney.
The way a contingency fee basis works is that you and your attorney will decide on a percentage amount of the reward that the attorney will get upon a successful lawsuit or settlement. This percentage is often in the neighborhood of 30-40%, but can vary depending upon your state and the laws governing these arrangements where you live. Keep in mind that this percentage does not cover the costs incurred by an attorney, such as filing and court fees. If your case does go to trial, however, and you are successful in your lawsuit, judges often award the costs of the lawsuit in addition to the judgment amount for your injury.
Pro Bono Services
Attorneys working in private practice and in firms often set aside a portion of their time to work on pro bono cases. As with community legal aid clinics, pro bono services typically are offered to individuals whose combined household income is less than 125 percent of the federal poverty level. There are some exceptions to these income limits, which you would need to learn about from each pro bono program.
Social Justice Organizations
Often times you may find an attorney willing to provide free legal services if your case involves some issue of social justice. Social justice issues are easy to spot as they will have implications that extend well beyond the scope of your case and include things like sexual harassment in the workplace or freedom of speech. For example, if you are attempting to sue your landlord for racially discriminating against you, you may be able to find an attorney willing to work for you on a pro bono basis as this case may have a broader influence on the community than just your specific problem.
Law School Legal Clinics
You can find free legal services at many law schools’ legal clinics that provide free legal services to low-income clients by law students under the supervision of an attorney (usually a clinical professor). Generally, this type of pro bono work is offered in one or more particular areas, including family law, elder law, landlord-tenant issues, health care law, and financial assistance. Moreover, law students can provide a range of legal services including, but not limited to, research and writing, drafting legal documents, client interviews, negotiation, and court preparation.
How can I get legal aid A person in need of free legal services can approach the concerned authority or committee through an application which could either be made by sending in written form, or by filling up the forms prepared by the said authorities stating in brief the reason for seeking legal aid or can be made orally.
Where we can approach for any legal help?
Where should I approach in order to seek free legal services/aid? The SupremeCourt Legal Services Committee for cases before the Hon’ble Supreme Court. Each District Legal Services Authority, High Court Legal Services Committee and State Legal Services Authority has a front office where an application can be moved.
Why is free legal aid important?
Free legal aid is provided to ensure that opportunities for justice are not denied to any citizen by reason of economic or other disabilities. Legal services includes rendering of any service in the conduct of any case or other legal proceedings before any court and giving of advice on any legal matter.
Since centuries ago, climate change has been a matter of grave concern globally. It is also one of the substantial global challenge in the 21st century. Many scientists and local people, through contemporary and indigenous practices respectively, have diverse views pertinent to the meaning, source, and impacts of climate change. In terms of the meaning, it is scientifically agreed that, climate change is a long process at which the components of climate systemvary for many years.
Climate change is further defined by the Intergovernmental Panel for Climate Change (IPCC) as a statistically significant variation that persists for an extended period, typically decades or longer. It includes shifts in the frequency and magnitude of sporadic weather events, as well as slow continuous rise in global mean surface temperature.
Historical Background of Climate Change;
Climate change began in the early of 19th century when the ice age and other natural changes in paleoclimate were first suspected and the natural greenhouse effect was first identified. In late 19th century scientist first urged that human emission of greenhouse effect could change the climate, also many other theories of climate changes were advanced involving, forces from volcanism and solar variation. In 1960 the warming effect of carbon dioxide become increasing. Some scientists also pointed out that human activities that generate atmospheric aerosols example pollution could have cooling effect as all. During the 1970s scientific opinions increasingly favored the warming effect. By 1990s, as result of improving observation work and confirming the Milankovitch theory of ice age consensus position formed greenhouse gases were deeply involved in most climate change and human cause emission are causing global warming
Moreover, there are some scientists who urged on the urgency on climate change, starting by Joseph Fourier (1768-1830) who started talking about something called the greenhouse effect. He knew that the atmosphere protects us from the sun, and he suggested that the composition of atmosphere will change and could lead to the warming of the earth. A few decades later in 1861 another scientist known as John Tyndall(1820-1893), identified the gases that may cause such effects when he was investigated the absorption of infrared radiation in the different gases, he found that water vapour and hydrocarbons like methane and carbon dioxide, strongly block the radiation and lead to cause the warming in the earth. Other scientist like James and peter kropotkin suggested that ice ages and other climate change were due to change in number of gases emitted in volcanism but was only one of possible causes. Another possibility was solar variation and shifts in ocean current which identified by them. (Croll, 1875)
According to the reportof United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) that gathered at Copenhagen in December 2009 to try to reach agreement on global action to combat climate change for the period until the 2012 successor to the Kyoto Protocol that will come from Africa. Based on what is Africa’s interest in this global effort to meet key climate change objectives? how will Africa perform in Copenhagen? will Africa make a difference to the outcomes of the negotiations and the Copenhagen Agreement, given its passive role in Kyoto?
Most analyses of the impacts of climate change that have influenced UNFCCC agreements focuses on medium to long-term projections of carbon emissions and forecasting models of global warming, and cover mainly countries and regions for which relevant data are readily available. This leaves out most developing countries and regions, particularly Africa, due to unavailable data and trajectories. From an African perspective, this is serious and costly. As the poorest continent, Africa is considered most susceptible to climate change due to its vulnerability and inability to cope with the physical, human, and socioeconomic consequences of climate extremes.
Moreover, existing adaptation mechanisms and resources under the Kyoto agreement designed to mitigate climate change’s effects on Africa and other developing regions have been directed at limiting future carbon emissions, rather than addressing the region’s vulnerability and lack of resilience to the impacts of climate change on its economies and populations. As lof ate as April 2007, a report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) warned that Africa was not acting quickly enough to stem the direct economic and environmental consequences of greenhouse gas emissions (IPCC, 2007). What this report seemed to have missed or overlooked is that Africa’s concern about climate change is not mainly in terms projections of carbon emission and future environmental damages. It is more about the links between climate change and droughts, desertification, floods, coastal storms, soil erosion contemporary disaster events that threaten lives and livelihoods, and hinder the continent’s economic growth and social progress. (Solomon & Qln, 2007)
Causes of Climate Change
There have been diverse views about the origin of climate change. The debate on the origin covers two major aspects.
First, tells that climate change has been in place for millions, thousands, hundreds and tens of years ago (decades). The proponents of this notion mention the disappearance of flora and fauna species like the dinosaurs which were extinct not because of human, rather due to variations in temperature and rainfalls. They further connect their views with mass extinctions which occurred millions of years ago. Previous studies have presented the first dimension which assert that, climate change is due to natural forces. They associate earth’s orbital variations, Sun rise and set, volcanism etc. as natural events which in turn cause unusual weather patterns out of human control Furthermore, their arguments maintain that, natural forces like land masses drifting, plate tectonics, earthquakes, volcanism etc. fueled climate change.
The second perspective urges that, climate change began in the early 19th century when ice ages and other natural changes in paleoclimate were first suspected and the natural greenhouse effect first identified. This notion went far to link that, human activities has been the cause of climate change as they rightly observed the industrial revolutions notably mounted from19th with immense greenhouse gases emissions. They associate Human activities like industrial activities, agricultural activities, mining transportation, and others cause emissions of gases hence lead to drought, floods, etc. not only that but also God’s punishment due to unrepentant human sins, and disobeying fore ancestor’s cultural setups is believed as the cause of climate change to same of the believers.
In Tanzania also there are various human activities which contribute to the emission of greenhouse gases hence influences climate changes. activities like industrial activities, agriculture activities, deforestations, mining activities and burning of fuels are among of the human causes of climate change.
Trigger’s force of climate change and its impacts
IMPACTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE IN TANZANIA
Over the centuries and decades, climate change has been perceived as a double sword in terms of its impacts to sectors of economy, living, and non-living worlds.
Climate change projection indicates that the frequency and severity of extreme climatic events will increase. In the last 40 years Tanzania has experienced severe and recurring droughts with devastating effects to agricultural, water and energy sectors. Currently more than 70% of all-natural disasters in Tanzania are hydro-meteorological, and are linked to droughts and floods. Climate change Impacts various sectors in Tanzania as follows
Agriculture and Food Security
Changing climate has resulted in a general decline in agricultural productivity, including changes in Agro-diversity. The prevalence of crop pest and diseases is also reported to have increased, posing more challenge to agriculture. Furthermore, due to the change in weather patterns that have disturb the agricultural production has impacted food security.
Adverse impact of climate change in agriculture activities
Fresh Water Resources
Increasing rainfall variability and prolonged droughts cause serious pressure in the country’s available water resources. Severe and recurrent droughts in the past few years triggered a decrease in water flows in rivers, hence shrinkage of receiving lakes, declines of water levels in satellite lakes and hydropower dams. Furthermore, some of the perennial rivers have changed to seasonal rivers and some wetlands have dried up.
Human Health
Variability in precipitation may have direct consequences in infectious disease outbreaks. Increased precipitation may increase the presence of disease vectors by expanding the size of existent larval habitat and creating new breeding grounds. In addition, increased precipitation may support growth in food supplies, which in turn support a greater population of vertebrate reservoirs. Alternatively, flooding may force insect or rodent vectors into houses and increase the likelihood of vector-human contact. IPCC, 2001 indicates that many vector, food and water-borne diseases are sensitive to changes in climatic conditions.
There are also a wider set of indirect impacts from climate change on health, which are linked to other sectors such as food security and malnutrition through reduced agricultural productivity as a result of changes in soil quality, increased crop and livestock pests and diseases, prolonged drought and water scarcity. Reduced agricultural productivity associated with climate change/variability exposes communities to other health risk factors, such as HIV or AIDS.
larval habitat due to floods at Kinondoni
Coastal and Marine Environment
Major climate change related impacts are a result of increases in sea surface temperatures and associated sea level rise. Some of the impacts are destruction of coral reefs, coastal erosion, submergence of small islands, destruction of coastal infrastructures and human settlement, intrusion of sea water into freshwater wells, and degradation of mangrove.
Energy
As a result of increasing climate variability, over the last years, the country has experienced increasing incidents of recurrent and prolonged droughts with severe implications on hydro power generation. Power rationing and black outs have become a common phenomenon in Tanzania. This affects individuals’ household and industrial income generating activities. Consequently, additional resources which were committed for other development programs are sometimes being reallocated for thermal electricity generation
Forestry
The common impacts to all forest’s types include loss of biodiversity; disappearance of wildlife habitats, increased risk of bush fires, limited availability of forest products (timber and non-timber products) and ecosystem shift
Biodiversity
Overall, a very high possibility of irreversible losses of biodiversity as a result of such changes in climate are projected with many terrestrial, freshwater, and marine species being placed at a much greater risk of extinction than before. Water shortage for the large mammals especially in the years with low rainfall is one of the main challenges facing the wildlife. The places that naturally used to hold water during the dry season no longer hold water long into the dry season. For instance, water dependent animals especially hippopotamus, crocodiles, buffalos and elephants are often found crowded in few remaining water ponds, for example in the Ruaha and Katuma River system
Hippopotamus congregation in small water pools due to water shortage in Katavi River system in 2009
Tourism
Tourism has close connections to the environment and is considered to be a highly climate sensitive sector. Climate variability determines the length and quality of tourism seasons thus plays a major role in the destination choice and tourist spending. Climate also has an important influence on environmental conditions that can deter tourists, including infectious disease, wild fires, insects or waterborne pests, and extreme events such as tropical cyclones. the sector is already being impacted by climate change. The manifestations of climate change are highly relevant for tourism destinations and tourists alike. For instance, Mountain Kilimanjaro has lost 80% of its ice cover between 1912 and 2000
Apart from the impacts of sea level rise, which have destroyed cultural, historical, archaeological and heritage sites along coastal areas in the country, heat stress and drought have also caused massive wildlife deaths in the northern tourist zone. Destruction of infrastructure such as roads and bridges are devastating. Road maintenance becomes particularly difficult and expensive during prolonged heavy rains in many parts of the country. For example, the 2006 El Niño rains, left many park roads impassable for a long period of time, and resulted in reduced tourist visits and loss of revenue
Decrease ice coverage at Mount Kilimanjaro as the effect of climate change
Furthermore, climate change has impact on livestock sector, industrial sector, fishing sector infrastructures and transport sector, human settlement, land use and planning and education sector of which these sectors are important for development, employment opportunities and back born of the economy.
CLIMATE CHANGE INITIATIVES IN TANZANIA
In addressing climate change at national level, and local levels various initiatives and programs have been undertaken in Tanzania in the context of UNFCCC and its Kyoto Protocol. implementation of the UNFCCC and the Kyoto Protocol is further supported by the enabling environment including the National Environment Policy (1997) and the EMA. Not only that but also private sectors and private organizations has played an advantageous part in addressing climate change in Tanzania. Furthermore, climate change adaptation strategy and climate change related programs in the country including REDD and REDD+ projects are among of the initiates towards climate change mitigation, adaptation and coping strategies.
MITIGATION, ADAPTATION AND COPING MEASURES TO CLIMATE CHANGE IN TANZANIA
It is evident that, climate change is happening and will continue to ravage sectors and our livelihoods. Various studies have revealed that, people from different areas have been mitigating, adapting and/or cope with it in order to make lives goes on. In Tanzania also communities mitigate, adopt and cope with climate in various ways through in small extent due to poor awareness on climate change and normally the following are some of the measures taken and suggested for mitigating, adaptation and coping with climate change
Mitigation measures to climate change
Mitigation involves the efforts undertaken to reduce anthropogenic (greenhouse gases) emissions or to enhance natural sinks of greenhouse gases so as to reduce the threats of climate change (to lower the risks). Mitigation measures suggested and taken in Tanzania are like:
Afforestation
Reforestation
Intercropping/agroforestry
Building water reservoirs like dams, ponds etc.
Use of environmentally friendly energy sources like geothermal, natural gas, solar, and wind energy than charcoal, coal and fuelwoods.
Use of organic manure which prevent nutrient and water loss.
Soil as the biggest carbon sink on the planet, sequestrate greenhouse gases by proper soil conservation methods like contour planting and no-till farming which do not disturb the soil.
In reducing methane, farmers may prevent submergence of rice fields and cultivate uplands rice or other upland crops.
Adaptation to climate change involves the process of adjustment to actual or expected climate and its effects, in order to moderate harm or exploit beneficial opportunities. In Tanzania adaptation measures undertaken and suggested are like:
Farmers planting different crops for different seasons
Levees against sea level rise
Temporary and permanent migration
Destocking
Building water reservoirs
Re-use, recycle and Reduction of the use for resources like water
Rain water harvesting and retention
Changing the planting seasons
Intercropping
Use less greenhouse gases sources of energy
Livelihood/occupational diversifications
Growing early matured crops
Rearing drought resistant livestock.
Formulation of social climate resilient groups venturing in rural savings, table banking schemes, getting funding from innovations funds and micro-financing institutions.
Establishment of community-based climate change adaptation Organizations
Establishing climate early warning systems
Farming intensification and extensification
Mulching to conserve moisture during droughts.
Kitchen gardens
Pumping irrigations
Chemical weed control
Switching to off-farm activities
COPING STRATEGIES/MEASURES
However, once we go deep to explore the adaptation measures, one has to find out that there are measures which take a long time to adapt and others take a short time. In this context, those measures that take a short time are referred to as coping mechanisms, as they may not demand adjustments to ecological, social, or economic systems in response to actual or expected climatic stimuli and their effects or impacts. Therefore, the coping strategies practiced in Tanzania and those suggested are like:
Receiving remittances from children/ relatives living in urban
Borrowing cash to buy food
Reduce the number of meals per day
Renting land for cash
Food borrowing
LIMITATIONS TO CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION, ADAPTATION, AND COPING STRATEGIES IN TANZANIA
Population growth
Lack of mitigation and adaptation technologies
Little awareness and researches on climate change
Lack of information on climate change impacts
Limited resources
Lack of access to early warnings and unreliable of seasonal forecast.
High cost of adaptation
Inadequate farm inputs
Weak institutional coordination and support
Low institutional capacity
Poor extension services
Poor enforcement and implementation of laws and by-laws
Too much bureaucracy
Insurance coverage
Conflicts between farmers and pastoralists
Satisfied that climate change is the will of God
Reluctant to take changes
Believing superstitions
Generally, most of disasters in Tanzania are related with the climate change impacts there fore mitigating, adopting and coping with climate change links with disaster risks reduction and management activities. And regarding various climate change related impacts Climate change is indeed real and evident, it is inevitable, and it has to be appropriately and sustainably addressed.
Since independence, Tanzania began its journey with economic dynamism until it was struck by the transition towards socialism which took a bad toll on the economy, and the 1980s global financial crisis which the country was not prepared for. From then onwards, growth became relatively slow and even more difficult to adjust towards the market economy. However, this growth rate gradually increased which is quite noticeable if we consider the past decade. It is considered that with the ongoing rate of growth, GDP is likely to double in the next two decades as the country has transitioned from the category of ‘low income’ countries to that of the ‘middle income’. Nonetheless, there are still concerns over the long-term sustainability considering the current elevated growth path. Tanzania has experienced immense political and economic developments in the past few years as well as adjustments in social welfare. This does not mean that there are no causes for concern, the country still has a long way to go to address the developmental challenges in significant areas such as rising population, corruption, divide between state and political parties, and distribution of wealth. Simultaneously, there are also new opportunities that may set the path to essential developments and reforms.
Political Overview
If we look at the political history of Tanzania, it has been relatively peaceful and has abode by the constitution even though there have been certain incidents in the past fifty years that have directed the country in different yet opposing paths. In the post-independent stage, Tanzania carried on with its colonial norms with an outbound marketing strategy. Gradually, it shifted towards the socialism stage intending to produce a self-dependent African socialist community that lasted 17 years. This stage underwent huge otherwise violent changes that greatly modified the minds of the people. Later, a new stage rose which attempted to retain the socialism stage injecting it with a liberal market economy and multi-party democratic system. Fast forward 13 years, this new stage is still running the country but the old seeds of socialism have not completely vanished from sight particularly in the civil servants and state-owned enterprises. On 19th March 2021, Samia Suluhu Hassan was sworn in as the first woman to become the President of the United Republic of Tanzania. She is now the sixth president replacing former President John Magufuli after his death and served as Vice President from October 2015. Since her presidency, the government has made attempts to bring down corruption, strengthen public administration and infrastructure systems, enhance accountability and transparency, and improve management of resources. Under the 2020 Worldwide Governance Indicators, Tanzania has worsened in the years between 2012 and 2019 with the most deterioration occurring in the legislation, transparency, effective government, and freedom of media and civil societies.
Economic Context
So far, Tanzania has become a macro-economic success in the past 20 years. The economic growth rate accelerated from 3.5% in the 1990s to 7% in the early 2000s. Although the 1980s global developmental crisis considerably affected the economy, the country gradually bounced back, stabilized, and is expected to increase its growth rate in the upcoming future. Moreover, years of foreign aid and the rising economic growth have established great results in Tanzania but development issues such as unemployment and poverty cease to come to an end. Although Tanzania has done well economically compared to other countries in the region, the economic growth is still quite slow. The GDP rate declined from 5.8% in 2019 to 2.0% in 2020 while the per capita growth changed to negative. The economic growth is centered around building and manufacturing the supply sector while investments dealt with the demand. The Fiscal policies have backed up the growth rate and credit but have reduced from 7% in 2018 to 5% in 2020.
Path to Development?
Currently, due to the pandemic, the global economic crisis has had an immense impact on the industries dealing with exports particularly the tourism sector, and a massive decline in foreign aid. The prices of gold elevated however between 2019 and 2020 which seems to be the only benefited export from the pandemic. Even though the government did not imply heavy travel restrictions, the crisis enabled the industries and firms to endorse safe and preventive measures which hindered the economic activities locally. On the other hand, there has also been a decrease in imports which declined the monetary revenue and the production and consumption have also experienced a sharp reduction. The Covid-19 crisis has brought many challenges to the financial sector and the bank loans which continue to increase while the credit growth to the private sectors has relatively declined. The inflation rate was estimated at around 3.5% in 2019 which dropped to 3.3.% in 2020 because of a slow decline in goods and services. The Bank of Tanzania managed to keep the foreign exchange rates steady with multiple interventions to ensure balance in the exchange market. The monetary policies by the government assisted the spending and disbursements but the impact of the pandemic on revenues elevated the monetary deficit ranging from 2% in 2019 to 2.3% in 2020. Despite all the challenges, Tanzania has a positive economic outlook with GDP expected to grow from 4.1% in 2021 to 5.8% by 2022 as the travel and tourism sectors continue to improve and trade corridors begin to open. The increase in the prices of fuel and energy is anticipated to remain in 2021 which may raise the inflation to 3.9% by the end of 2021 eventually dropping to 3.4% by 2022. The low revenue and high expenditures on infrastructures and projects are anticipated to increase the monetary deficit of GDP to 3.2% in 2021 and 2022 which are financed mainly through foreign loans.
Conclusion
Tanzania’s steady growth in the past 20 years achieved a milestone in July 2020 when it was finally considered as a lower-middle income country from low-income status. This highlights the country’s potential for macroeconomic sustainability based on the economic growth rate, rich natural resources, and strategic geographical location. Now as a middle-income country, Tanzania has embarked on a Tanzania Development Vision 2025 which lays out the development goals it has set to achieve by 2025 ranging from quality of life, proper education, peacefulness, good governance, stability, and a competitive market equipped with sustainable economic growth and mutual benefits. The Gross National Income per capita has so far been impressive but not enough to meet these goals. Tanzania must start with investing in human development and capital and simultaneously build high-quality livelihoods for everyone in the country to reach such broad vision.
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