Dodoma — THE Parliamentary Committee on Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries has proposed for a review of all laws and policies for water, livestock, fisheries environment and energy legislations, saying that the move will help the country to avert the impacts of climate change.
Presenting a report in the National Assembly, the Committee Chairperson, Dr Christine Ishengoma on Tuesday said that in reviewing the laws, the government should capitalise on the need to harvest rain water, putting strategies for robust irrigation projects, having min-tanks for irrigation farming as well as strengthening massive education on the proper use of land resources, tree planting on various water sources as well as education on nutrition and production of agricultural products that are climate resilient.
Dr Ishengoma further noted that the country needs to strengthen cooperatives in the country in efforts to make them own major factories.
"My committee noted with concern that apart from other issues, the Cooperatives Policy, 2002 and the Cooperatives Act, 2013 and the COASCO Act, 2005 were impeding cooperatives in the course ofdischarging their duties," she said.
The committee chair equally told parliamentarians that it was high time the government came up with amendments in those laws at different aspects, among them, criteria and systems to obtain officials and the cooperatives board.
Others, she said, are increasing the value chain in ensuring that they get major industries as well as putting up major development projects, adding a section that gives the Cooperatives Registrar to supervise several projects, especially where there were shares in order to reduce misuse of funds.
Also, Dr Ishengoma said, there was yet a dire need for education and training to members of various cooperative unions, officials and members of the board as well as institutions dealing with AMCOSs.
"Also, there is a need to have a Unified Cooperative Management Services System in efforts to ensure that AMCOSs are run by professional persons," she insisted.
Regarding horticulture, the committee touted the establishment of the Horticulture Development Authority which will coordinate all horticultural products in efforts to have the sector contributing immensely to the country's economy and Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
