Pomp as Uhuru is sworn in

  

Nairobi. Uhuru Kenyatta was sworn in as Kenya’s fourth president yesterday to thunderous cheers from tens of thousands of supporters, despite facing trial on charges of crimes against humanity.

“I do swear that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to the Republic of Kenya,” said Kenyatta, the son of the country’s first president, clutching a bible as he took the oath of office.Wearing a dark suit and red tie, he also pledged to “protect and uphold, the sovereignty, integrity and dignity of the people of Kenya”.

 Officials had to appeal for quiet as 60,000 people packed into Kenya’s national football stadium chanted Kenyatta’s name and roared in support as they danced.

 William Ruto, who like Kenyatta faces trial at the International Criminal Court (ICC) for crimes against humanity related to post-election violence five years ago, took the oath of office as vice-president.“I will always truly and diligently serve the people and the Republic of Kenya in the office of the deputy president,” Ruto said.

 “I will do justice to all without fear, favour, affection and ill will,” he added. Kenyatta, one of Africa’s richest men, won the March 4 polls by more than 800,000 votes ahead of his nearest rival, outgoing Prime Minister Raila Odinga.

The 51-year-old is Kenya’s youngest president.

 Security was heavy as Kenyatta loyalists, dressed in the red colours of the winning Jubilee Coalition party, waved and military bands played tunes to welcome the new leader and bid farewell to outgoing President Mwai Kibaki, 81, retiring after more than a decade in power.

Kibaki handed over Kenya’s symbols of power -- a sword and the constitution -- to Kenyatta, with both smiling broadly and shaking hands. The handover was followed by a booming 21-gun salute.Regional leaders and foreign diplomats watched as the full to capacity stadium danced and sang along to music and a military parade.

Among the heads of state attending the ceremony were Ethiopia’s Hailemariam Desalegn, Somalia’s Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, South Sudan’s Salva Kiir, Tanzania’s Jakaya Kikwete and Uganda’s Yoweri Museveni.

Odinga, who failed in his court bid to overturn Kenyatta’s victory, did not attend.Western nations, many of which have a policy of only “essential contact” with ICC indictees, sent ambassadors to the ceremony.

Many supporters packed in buses arrived long before dawn from central Kenya and the Rift Valley, strong support bases of Kenyatta and Ruho.

“This is a great day,” 23-year-old student Martin Munyua told AFP. “People thought Uhuru could not be president but we showed them that we believe in him. This is our day to celebrate.”

“We have come to welcome our new sons to the State House,” said 35-year old high school teacher Jairus Koech, who travelled all night from the Rift Valley town of Eldoret to attend the celebrations.Odinga and civil society groups filed legal challenges alleging the March polls were marred by a series of irregularities that skewed the results.

However, Kenya’s Supreme Court last month unanimously ruled the election had been fair and credible and Odinga said he would respect the ruling.

The polls were peaceful apart from isolated incidents, avoiding a repeat of the ethnic killings and widespread violence that followed the 2007 election, when more than 1,100 people were murdered and several hundred thousand forced to flee their homes.

Local media on Tuesday warned that Kenyatta faced a tough task in uniting the country.

“Fortunately the country remained peaceful during the elections, but unfortunately many still feel disenfranchised,” The Star newspaper said in an editorial.

“A sense of national unity, patriotism, belonging and pride will only come about with a very deliberate programme to heal the septic ethnic wounds that so pollute our politics,” the Daily Nation said.

“We hope that magnanimity in victory will be reciprocated by grace in defeat.”

Both Kenyatta and Ruto, who are due to appear at the ICC later this year for their trial in The Hague, said they will cooperate fully with the court.

They deny the charges against them.Kenya, as a signatory of the Rome Statute of the ICC, would be expected to act on any arrest warrant issued by the court should the pair fail to appear for trial. (AFP)

RELIEF AS TANZANIA INFLATION FINALLY DROP TO SINGLE DIGITS

Monday, 08 April 2013 22:16  

 Dar es Salaam. The rate at which prices of goods and services increases slowed down to a 21-month low record of 9.8 per cent in March this year, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) announced yesterday.

 Inflation reached double-digit levels in June 2011 when it was recorded at 10.9 per cent from the May 2011 level of 9.7 per cent due to increasing prices of food, fuel and other non-food products.

 But Tanzanians may have found solace in yesterday’s announcement by the NBS director of population census and social statistics, Mr Ephraim Kwesigabo, that inflation was once again in single-digit levels, having dropped further from the February 2013 level of 10.4 per cent due to reduced food prices.

 “The decrease is mainly on account of the government’s effort to ensure that food prices are dropping,” he told journalists in Dar es Salaam.

 Analysts say a lower inflation rate pushes up the purchasing power of the local currency.

 It also helps to bring down the lending interest rates by captains and titans in the financial sector since, hoping that all other factors remain constant, the higher the inflation, the higher the interest a financial institution will charge.

 Higher inflation rates also imply huge losses to people with fixed incomes that are not inflation-adjusted as well as lenders with no inflation-adjusted interest rates – a majority of whom are those in the informal money lending markets, according to Dr Honest Ngowi, an economic analyst.

 And according to Mr Kwesigabo, the slowdown in inflation rate will enhance average return on investments in equities and improve investors’ appetite for equities.

 The drop in inflation rate augurs well for the government efforts to contain it back to single-digit levels as outlined in the 2012/2013 budget.

 The minister for Finance, Dr William Mgimwa, told The Citizen in Dar es Salaam recently that the government took the right measures and will continue to do so until inflation was contained to manageable levels before the next financial year.

 “We have done a lot to attain the 10.4 per cent in inflation rate, especially in both fiscal and monetary policies."

 "We expect that our single-digit target will be achieved before June,” Dr Mgimwa said on the sidelines of a meeting with MPs to discuss the 2013/14 budget guidelines in Dar es Salam recently.

 To control inflation, the government took several policy measures.

 In November 2011, when inflation reached 19.2 per cent, the BoT raised minimum reserve requirements on government deposits held by commercial banks from 20 per cent to 30 per cent and increased the bank rate to 12.0 per cent

 The bank rate is the basis on which the Bank of Tanzania charges interest on loans it extends to commercial financial houses and overdrafts to government.

 The BoT also announced reduction of core capital of foreign exchange dealers from 20 per cent to 10 per cent to facilitate the release of more forex into the market to strengthen the struggling shilling.

 A combination of factors including the depreciating local currency, which was changing at the lowest point of Sh1,850 per dollar, had sparked an increase in commodity prices, mainly foodstuffs, making basic necessities less affordable.

 All measures aimed at strengthening the local currency and reducing the cash supply in the market to contain inflation.

 And Mr Kwesigabo said yesterday that food and non-alcoholic beverages inflation rate has slightly decreased to 11.1 per cent in March from 12 per cent posted in February 2013.

TANZANIA 2013/2014 BUDGET

By Alawi Masare

The Citizen Reporter

Dar es Salaam. The Minister for Finance, Dr William Mgimwa, has outlined eight areas including Information and Communication Technology (ICT), ports and railways as his priorities in the next national Budget.

Other priorities in Dr Mgimwa’s Sh17.7 trillion financial plan for 2013/14 include power improvement, water, education, health and entrepreneurship services and agriculture.

Contrary to what is stipulated in the Budget Frame for 2013/14 – 2015/16, Dr Mgimwa said in Dar es Salaam yesterday that the government is expecting to collect Sh17.7 trillion for the next financial year.

On ports, the Finance minister said substantial amounts would go towards improving the Mtwara Port and initial work towards the construction of a new port at Bagamoyo.

“We also want to improve water supply, review the education system in response to findings of the recently formed education commission,” said Dr Mgimwa.

Out of the Sh17.7 trillion, Dr Mgimwa said, the government plans to spend Sh5.2 trillion, equivalent to 35 per cent, for development expenditure and Sh12.6 trillion, 65 per cent of the total budget for recurrent expenditure.

In the development expenditure, Sh2.46 trillion would come from domestic sources and Sh2.69 trillion would be sourced externally.

The central government collections are expected to be Sh10.6 trillion from both tax and non-tax revenue.

Local authorities will contribute Sh372.6 billion while grants and external loans will bring in Sh3.85 trillion.

Domestic and non-concessional loans will make available a total of Sh2.9 trillion.

In what gives the impression that donor funding is getting increasingly unreliable, Dr Mgimwa poined out that until December 2012, the country’s development partners had disbursed only 33 per cent of their total pledges.

He was, however, confident that by the end of the current financial year, much more could have been disbursed.

”Basically, it is too early to comment on the contribution of development partners to Tanzania’s Budget.

This is because the current financial year is still far from over, but as of December last year, donors had given us just 33 per cent of the total amount they had promised,” he told journalists in Dar es Salaam yesterday.

The country’s aim, he said was to reduce dependence on donors to the country’s gross domestic product by 0.5 per cent.

“It currently stands at 5.5 per cent of our GDP, but our goal is to bring it down to five per cent in the 2013/2014 budget,” he said.

 

TANZANIA - MALAWI BOARDER DISPUTS

     By The Citizen Reporters

Dar es Salaam/Lilongwe. Malawi says it is still banking on the SADC Forum of Former Heads of State and Government to resolve its border dispute with Tanzania.

In an apparent softening of Malawian President Joyce Banda’s earlier hard line stance, the country’s Foreign Affairs minister, Mr Ephraim Chiume, said Malawi had not yet pulled out of mediation led by the forum’s chairman, former Mozambican President Joaquim Chissano.

Mr Chiume said in a press statement released in Lilongwe on Saturday that Malawi was committed to finding an amicable and lasting solution to the lake boundary dispute with Tanzania, through peaceful dialogue and diplomatic efforts.

“This is why Malawi gladly resorted to the mediation on the matter by the Forum of Former African Heads of State and Government, which is being chaired by His Excellency Joaquim Chissano, former President of the Republic of Mozambique,” he said.

The statement was issued a day after Tanzanian Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation minister Bernard Membe urged Malawi to continue with the mediation process.

Mr Membe told reporters on Friday that Malawi should revisit what was agreed at the Dar es Salaam meeting, in which the southern African country was represented by Mr Chiume. It was agreed that both countries should stick to the SADC mediation.

Mr Membe said the Sadc forum also confirmed to Tanzania last week that it was continuing with mediation.

“We have received the letter from Mr Chissano stressing the forum’s commitment to resolving the Lake Nyasa border dispute. We are happy that they have remained firm and honoured what Malawi and Tanzania agreed on during the November meeting in Dar es Salaam.”

In the letter, Mr Chissano says he has consulted with a number of high-profile legal experts and those with vast experience in border disputes within the continent.

Mr Chiume said a point of contention in the mediation was the Tanzanian national accused by President Banda of leaking information from the Malawian dossier on the dispute to Tanzania.

“It was the view of the Malawi government that the Executive Secretary’s participation may compromise the mediation process, and that the playing field may not be level,” the Malawian minister said in his statement.

The statement was issued a few days after President Banda told a press conference on her return from the US that the country would proceed to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and dismissed the Sadc intervention as a “a waste of time.”

“Our earlier position was to go to the ICJ over this matter, but we did not want to be seen to be underrating the forum of former SADC leaders as our friends (Tanzania) had proposed to engage them,” she said. “We’re still waiting for them to make a determination. But if I have to tell Malawians the truth – it is a waste of time. It is better to go to the ICJ as we will be happy to respect the ruling of the court.”

But Saturday’s statement made no reference to the ICJ.

Malawi and Tanzania are at loggerheads over the ownership of Lake Nyasa, which is known in Malawi as Lake Malawi.

While Malawi claims its border is on the eastern shore of the lake, according to the 1890 Heligoland agreement, Tanzania says the border must be in the middle of the lake in accordance with international laws.

Negotiations over the dispute were initiated last year.

The first round of talks were held in the Malawian border town of Mzuzu in August but collapsed in September after Malawi said it was aggrieved by, according to President Banda, “Tanzania’s aggressive bahaviour.” This was after Tanzania published a new map, which, among other features, showed the boundary between Tanzania and Malawi as being in the middle of Lake Nyasa.

Tanzania offered an explanation by saying the new map was published to show a change in internal boundaries following the creation of new regions and districts. Dar es Salaam officials reminded their Malawi counterparts that Tanzanian maps have always showed that the common border runs at the middle of the lake.

But Malawi also claimed Tanzania’s security and defence forces were harassing fishermen in the lake. Lilongwe officials said negotiations would continue only after Dar es Salaam clarified on the new map and harassment issues. Last week, Lilongwe said Dar es Salaam had offered an explanation, but more clarification would be sought during the latest talks.

Talks resumed in November in Dar es Salaam but collapsed yet again and the two countries agreed to find a third party to mediate the dispute. They proceeded to the Sadc Forum.

Prospects of finding oil in the lake have intensified the wrangle after Malawi awarded a license to British firm Surestream to explore for oil in the north-eastern waters last year.

Brief Introduction to REPOA

 

 

Brief Introduction to REPOA

REPOA began operating in early 1995 and is now one of the leading independent research institutions in Tanzania specialising in policy research on socio-economic and development issues.

REPOA’s research is currently conducted in Mainland Tanzania and Zanzibar, with some research projects covering every district.
REPOA’s STRATEGIC PLAN FOR 2010-2014
Our Vision
To be a leading research institution in the production of knowledge to address development challenges.
Our Mission
To facilitate and undertake research, training and outreach.
Our Strategies for 2010-2014
Based on the stated mission and objectives, REPOA’s strategies are outlined as follows:
- Strategy I Develop Research Capacity
- Strategy II Facilitate and Undertake Strategic Research
- Strategy III Facilitate and Stimulate the Utilisation of Research Findings
- Strategy IV Enhance REPOA’S Capacity to Implement the Strategic Plan
REPOA’s Research Agenda is concerned with pro-poor growth and poverty reduction.
Research themes include:
- Growth and Development
- Governance
- Social Protection
Gender, Environment and Technology are cross-cutting in all the three themes.
Funding
Our primary sources of funding are from the governments of the Netherlands, Sweden, the United Kingdom and Tanzania. REPOA also receives funding from the Think Tank Initiative that is administered by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) of Canada, and from collaborative and/or commissioned work from local and international organisations.
REPOA’s Annual Plan for 2012
Please click here to access a summary of the 2012 Annual Plan and Budget.
Attachment: REPOA_Strategic_Plan_2010_-_2014-July_17-09_(14)

Public Expenditure Reviews of TANZANIA

　
2013 ISSUE 1

　
March 2013

Public Expenditure Reviews of TANZANIA

Tanzania¡¦s Public Expenditure Review (PER) process provides a forum where working groups comprising of representatives from the Government, development partners, academia, the private sector and civil society organizations agree on an analytical agenda, guide and finance its implementation and review all outputs. The overall objective is to improve fiscal policy formulation and management.
The Government and development partners agreed in 2012 to revitalize the PER process. As a result, a champions group has been established with the responsibility to define and approve an analytical work program of the ¡§new¡¨ PER process as well as ensure its dissemination to key policy makers as part of the budget cycle. A small Secretariat has also been put in place to support the implementation process.
This newsletter series provides a quarterly update on the public expenditure review process to ensure key stakeholders are kept informed and can effectively use the analysis generated from the public expenditure reviews to inform their decisions.
Overleaf, there is a brief summary of each of the studies planned for 2013. Once first drafts of the studies are available, key stakeholders will be invited to comment. If you have a particular interest in any of the studies, please contact the PER Secretariat (contact details below) to ensure that you are invited to stakeholder meetings. Please identify which of the studies are of particular interest.
Summary
PER Secretariat

Champions Group Meeting April 2013
Annual PER Consultative Meeting TBC
Upcoming Events
The PER Secretariat is headed by the Deputy Permanent Secretary (Ministry of Finance) and consists of 4 staff from the Government and representatives of Development Partners:
„h Paul Sulley (Ministry of Finance) sulleyp@yahoo.co.uk , psulley@mof.go.tz, Tel. 2122844
„h Alice Matembele (Ministry of Finance) allicemm@yahoo.com, amatembele@mof.go.tz, Tel. 2137792
„h Emmanuel Mungunasi (World Bank) emungunasi@worldbank.org , Tel. 2163232
„h Victoria Cunningham (World Bank) vcunningham1@worldbank.org, Tel. 2163712
Please do not hesitate to contact the PER Secretariat if you have any questions or comments .
Public Expenditure Reviews
2013 ISSUE 1.

PER Champions
The Champions’ Group under the chairmanship of the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Finance, was created with the mandate of approving the analytical agenda, delivering key messages from analytical outputs and evaluating the process. Other members include the Governor of the Bank of Tanzania, Executive Secretary of the Planning Commission, Permanent Secretary of the Prime Minister’s Office, World Bank Country Director, the GBS Chair (currently Head of DFID), EC Ambassador, UN Resident Representative, and the CEO of COSTEC as representative of research organizations in the country.

PER Secretariat
Champions Group Meeting April 2013
Annual PER Consultative Meeting TBC
Upcoming Events
The PER Secretariat is headed by the Deputy Permanent Secretary (Ministry of Finance) and consists of 4 staff from the Government and representatives of Development Partners:
„h Paul Sulley (Ministry of Finance) sulleyp@yahoo.co.uk , psulley@mof.go.tz, Tel. 2122844
„h Alice Matembele (Ministry of Finance) allicemm@yahoo.com, amatembele@mof.go.tz, Tel. 2137792
„h Emmanuel Mungunasi (World Bank) emungunasi@worldbank.org , Tel. 2163232
„h Victoria Cunningham (World Bank) vcunningham1@worldbank.org, Tel. 2163712
Please do not hesitate to contact the PER Secretariat if you have any questions or comments .
Public Expenditure Reviews
2013 ISSUE 1
March 2013
PER Champions
The Champions¡¦ Group under the chairmanship of the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Finance, was created with the mandate of approving the analytical agenda, delivering key messages from analytical outputs and evaluating the process. Other members include the Governor of the Bank of Tanzania, Executive Secretary of the Planning Commission, Permanent Secretary of the Prime Minister¡¦s Office, World Bank Country Director, the GBS Chair (currently Head of DFID), EC Ambassador, UN Resident Representative, and the CEO of COSTEC as representative of research organizations in the country.
PAGE 2 PUBLIC EXPENDITURE REVIEWS
This study will provide a comprehensive cost-benefit assessment of the overall tax exemptions provided in Tanzania and take stock of the effectiveness and efficiency of the exemptions implemented over the last decade. The main objective of the study is to inform the policy and decision makers in the Government on the costs and benefits of tax exemptions in Tanzania. The study will also point to international best practice, which can be adopted to minimize unnecessary losses of revenue as a result of the application of tax exemptions and propose reforms to increase tax revenue.
The consultant has been procured and the study will be ready by June 2013.
Managing Tax Exemptions in Tanzania
The overall objective of this study is to assess the performance of the agricultural inputs support program (NAIVS) and determine the best options and systems for future implementation. The review will assess how the program has contributed to increased production, productivity and profitability of the Tanzanian farming/agriculture, the sustainability of these investments and the options for scaling up the program to cover a much larger farming population in the country.
The assessment of the NAIVS subsidy program is currently underway (undertaken by REPOA) and the TOR for the wider Agricultural study has been finalized, the study is expected to start in March.
Agricultural Subsidies
Public Expenditure Tracking Survey (PETS)
The overall aim of the PETS is to provide detailed evidence of PFM challenges in LGAs to inform ongoing reforms at local and central government level, and ultimately contribute to improving the quality and impact of expenditure programs. In broad terms, it is expected that the PETS will examine the effectiveness of implementation of results by selected funds in 2010/11; and provide a diagnostic of challenges that impact on the efficient and timely flow of funds.
A scoping exercise has been completed to outline previous PETS work and identify options for this study. The exercise will inform the future survey design and scope. The terms of reference are currently being drafted.
Public Private Partnerships (PPPs)
Public expenditure is critical to the success of PPPs, including early funding for preparation of transactions but also capital investment into transactions to ensure the financial, social and environmental viability of such functions. Public investment management is fundamental to the decision to finance investments either through PPP or purely public sources. This study will seek to determine how public funds can be best used to support PPPs, identifying where and how Government could use its scarce resources most efficiently to leverage private investment. In order to provide a worked example and improve impact, the ToRs will focus on the transport and power sectors. It should be noted that this does not imply any prioritization of these sectors by the Government; PPP will be relevant for all of the sectors indicated in the PPP Act. The terms of reference have been finalized and there will shortly be a tendering process undertaken by the PMO.
Public Investment Management (PIM)
This study will develop the Public Investment Management Operational Manual to guide government officials who prepare and develop projects/program proposals for financing at the central and local government levels. The manual will serve as a capacity strengthening tool and reference for government officials on standard procedures and methods for project appraisal. The terms of reference have been finalized and there will shortly be a tendering process undertaken by the POPC.
Summary of PER 2013 Studies.