Dar es Salaam — THE National Planning Commission has endorsed four major frameworks that will guide the implementation of Vision 2050, which officially takes effect on July 1st this year.
The frameworks include the National Planning Guideline, the National Guidelines for the Approval of Development Projects, the National Guidelines for Monitoring and Evaluation of Development Projects and the Five-Year Communication Strategy for the Tanzania Development Vision 2050 (2026/27-2030/31).
This was announced by the Minister of State in the President's Office (Planning and Investment), Professor Kitila Mkumbo during a media briefing on directives issued by the Commission regarding the commencement of Vision 2050 implementation, at State House in Dar es Salaam.
Prof Mkumbo said the Commission, which met in Dar es Salaam last week under its Chairperson, President Samia Suluhu Hassan, approved the four key instruments intended to ensure the successful execution of the country's long-term development blueprint.
Keep up with the latest headlines on WhatsApp | LinkedIn
"The National Planning Commission discussed and approved four key guidelines and strategies that will be used to oversee the implementation of Vision 2050, which begins on July 1, this year," he said.
He explained that the National Planning Guideline will steer ministries, government departments, public institutions and local government authorities in preparing development plans aligned with national priorities.
"This guideline provides direction on the issues that ministries, public institutions and local government authorities must consider when preparing their plans so that all plans are aligned with national objectives," he said.
The Commission also approved the National Development Projects Approval Guideline, which formalises its statutory role in scrutinising and approving development projects before they are submitted to the Ministry of Finance for funding.
"Any development project in this country must first pass through the National Planning Commission for review and approval before it is submitted to the Minister for Finance for funding consideration," he said.
Another approved instrument is the National Monitoring and Evaluation Guideline for Development Projects, which establishes performance indicators, responsibilities and accountability mechanisms.
"This framework defines the indicators that will be used to measure progress, identifies who is responsible for implementation and outlines what happens when obligations are not fulfilled," he said.
The fourth instrument is the Five-Year Vision 2050 Communication Strategy covering 2026/27 to 2030/31, which will guide public awareness and stakeholder engagement.
Prof Mkumbo further said that under the monitoring and evaluation framework, the Commission also approved three broad strategic reform areas containing a total of 142 indicators.
These include governance and civil service reforms with 13 indicators, structural transformation for investment, innovation and productivity with 53 indicators and socio-economic and environmental reforms with 76 indicators.
He also said the Commission endorsed 12 priority sectors under the Fourth Five-Year National Development Plan, which will be monitored through 206 performance indicators. The sectors include agriculture, industry and construction, mining and energy, tourism, sports and arts, digital content and creative industries, land and urban development, trade and investment, education, social protection and labour, the blue economy and science, technology and innovation.
Prof Mkumbo said Tanzania is entering the implementation phase of Vision 2050 with a stronger institutional and policy foundation than was the case at the launch of Vision 2025.
"When we started Vision 2025 in the year 2000, we only had the Vision itself. We did not have a long-term perspective plan, a five-year development plan, a monitoring and evaluation framework or a communication strategy," he said.
"This time, thanks to the leadership of Her Excellency President Samia Suluhu Hassan, we have Vision 2050 and all the tools required for implementation are now in place. There is no reason whatsoever for us to fail in implementing this Vision because all the necessary instruments have already been prepared."
To strengthen implementation oversight, Prof Mkumbo said the Commission directed its Secretariat to focus on supervising development programmes and projects.
He added that President Samia has instructed that when the Commission is not meeting in formal sessions, members should operate as a Delivery Bureau under the leadership of the Commission's Vice-Chairperson.
The Commission also called for the speedy conclusion of negotiations between the government and investors on several strategic projects considered essential for economic transformation, job creation and the realisation of Vision 2050.
These include the Liganga Iron Ore and Mchuchuma Coal Integrated Project, valued at approximately 3 billion US dollars (about 7.9tri/-). The Liganga and Mchuchuma projects are expected to lay a foundation for industrial development by increasing domestic steel production and energy supply.
Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters
Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox
Other projects include the 400 million US dollars (about 1.051tri/-) Engaruka Soda Ash Project, which is expected to help Tanzania meet growing domestic demand for raw materials used in the glass manufacturing industry. It will open new opportunities in the chemical industry and other manufacturing sectors based on locally available raw materials.
"We want to use this project to ensure self-sufficiency in supplying soda ash, which is a critical raw material for our expanding industrial sector," he said.
Also included are the 42 billion US dollars (about 110.4tri/-) Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) project and the 2.5 billion US dollars (about 6.6tri/-) Kabanga Nickel Project together with the Kahama refinery.
The Kabanga Nickel project positions Tanzania strongly within the global green economy, driven by rising demand for critical minerals used in battery manufacturing and clean energy technologies, while the LNG project is expected to be a major catalyst for growth in the energy sector and foreign exchange earnings
