Tanzania Roundup: Mudslide, disability employment, carbon project

Heavy rains cause Mudslide

Overnight rains caused a mudslide in the Katesh township in northern Tanzania, killing some residents, injuring others and displacing hundreds of households. The tragedy occurred on December 3 with rescue attempts still ongoing. The President of Tanzania Samia Suluhu who was at the COP28 in Dubai when the tragedy happened in a statement said, “We have received the blessing of heavy rain in Katesh area, Hanang district, Manyara region which unfortunately has also brought disaster of floods. I am very sorry for the victims of this incident. I have directed our disaster response agencies to this area where they have already started the work to help rescue and prevent more disasters from happening. While these rescue efforts continue, let us put in prayers and supplications for all the victims and those who are on the front lines of the rescue work.”

Disability employment

Tanzania's Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office has announced the plans of the government of Tanzania to advertise over 11,000 new job opportunities in the education and health sectors. Persons with disabilities (PWDs) will receive 3% of the slots in the newly released guidelines for employment in the public service, local media Daily News reports. In an event organised by the Tanzania Federation of Disabled People’s Organisations in collaboration with the WHO for PWDs on December 1, the deputy minister told reporters that PWDs will make up 3% of every employment opportunity announced by the government.

Tanzania National Parks carbon project

Tanzania National Parks (TANAPA) and Carbon Tanzania have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to implement a transformative carbon project across six national parks in the East African nation. The project, covers 1.8 million hectares, making it the largest land-based carbon initiative in East Africa. Local media the Citizen quotes the CEO of Carbon Tanzania saying, “Our innovative approach and unique business model is dedicated to conserving natural resources. We have extensive experience in collaboration with various levels of the Tanzanian government, from villages to districts and at a national level. Carbon Tanzania is the first, and only company, in Tanzania to develop carbon projects based on forest conservation and successfully channel revenues to local communities.”

Support for mudslide victims

The government of Tanzania will provide support for the victims of the mudslide disaster. The President of Tanzania Samia Suluhu has ordered the West African nation’s Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa to ensure that all treatments of injured victims are covered by the government. She added that the government provide permanent housing for those who lost their homes. “All our Government units and institutions related to the disaster are present at the scene and work day and night to ensure that the situation returns to normal…While the Government continues with these efforts, let's continue to keep all those affected by this disaster in our prayers and supplications,” she said in a statement.

Digital economic framework

 Tanzania is set to launch the Tanzanian Digital Economic Framework (DEF), a proposed national digital economy programme. The DEF will guide Tanzania in handling electronic messages and documents in its daily economic activities, Daily News reports. The Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Information, Communication and Information Technology told reporters that the DEF is a full-fledged official document ready for formal launch. He added that the DEF will be formally submitted to the National Chairman of the Tanzania National Business Council, President Samia Hassan.