FLY ON THE WALL : Make Dodoma more than just the capital

Technology expert Charles Makakula Jr beat me to it on the idea of making Dodoma more than just the political capital of Tanzania.

In a post on his LinkedIn page, Mr Makakula Jr decries the fact that several months after President John Magufuli declared his government’s intention to move to Dodoma, commentators are still busy commending him instead of thinking how to make the decision beneficial to Tanzanians.

The smart cities concept, as described by Wikipedia, refers to an urban development vision to incorporate multiple information and communication technologies (ICT) and Internet of Things (IoT) solutions in a secure fashion to manage city assets.

The assets would include schools, water, power, libraries, transport systems, hospitals, waste management, law enforcement and other community services. The goal of smart cities is to improve quality of life by using urban informatics and technology to better the delivery of efficient services and meet residents’ needs.

According to the National Bureau of Statistics, 20 per cent of Tanzania’s population lives in urban areas. This figure is increasing by the day owing to rural-urban migration, perceived lack of opportunities in rural areas, access to better services in urban areas and higher life expectancy.

Tanzania’s erstwhile capital, Dar es Salaam, is not only the most densely populated city in the country, but is probably the worst in terms of lack of planning. Charcoal use is extremely high among the urban poor in Dar es Salaam, and the city is a key driver of deforestation, which could be reduced drastically with the promotion of alternative fuel use.

That makes a case for Dodoma not just as the country’s capital but a smart city and Tanzania’s technological hub. A well-planned city that takes cognizance of sustainable use of space, well designed homes and green energy sources, which would go a long way in reducing carbon emissions, thus offsetting effects of climate change.

These well planned homes and office buildings would be internet-ready, power efficient and built to blend in with the environment. As it were, we have already moved in with brick and mortar without a care in the world as to considerations that would have long-term benefits if technology were taken into account.

Elsewhere in the world, India is experimenting with technologies and recently during the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Tanzania, yours truly, for Midas Touché East Africa, signed a bilateral agreement with an Indian firm, Dhanush Infotech, which specializes in technology and has been involved in implementing the smart cities project in India. I declare that while I have an interest in the matter, it should not cloud the fact that making Dodoma a smart city would create hundreds of thousands of jobs.

The world has woken up to the reality that more people are moving to urban areas and there is a need to put in place comfortable, efficient and user-friendly environments, while rural areas are reserved for agriculture. It is estimated that half of Tanzania’s population will be living in urban areas by 2050. That would be a whooping 30 million people at current growth rates.

According to Robin Rick, Director of Smart Cities UK, we can attain smart city startups through stakeholder forums, establishing what resources are required and available and ensuring that residents are part of the process.

Next-door Kenya has its Konza Technocity, which though now lacking political goodwill, has good lessons from which we can learn. The Kenyan experience shows that political will is of utmost importance and, fortunately, we have plenty of that. Kenya has already led the way with Huduma centres, which show the range of possibilities where technology is resolving issues that are part and parcel of people’s everyday life. At these Huduma centres one can do everything from renewing a driver’s licence and making payments for social amenities, title deeds and passports, among others. Next week I will discuss the possibilities for Dodoma as a smart city.