A tribute to Juma Mwapachu - Tanzania’s one and only ‘development specialist’

What you need to know:

It is no surprise that JV in his book touches on the benefit of the course of development studies at UDSM as compulsory under the Institute for Development Studies (IDS) of which JV served on the board whilst as a DDD. It appears the course is no more, which is something most deplorable.

Now juxtapose that with the University of Dar es Salaam (Udsm) - which can’t be gainsaid was very dear to JV going back to the years of his legal studies in the 1960s, as well as his leadership roles twenty years after – that was represented in the most underwhelming fashion to put it mildly. Ordinarily JV’s contributions at Udsm spanning a continous period of about 15 years ought to have been a matter of colossal pride for the institution. The awarding of a Doctor of Literature Degree to JV in 2005 by Udsm should not have meant in any way that they had done all they needed to do. It is telling that JV’s successor as president of the Convocation in 2003 upon his own recommendation was a former prime minister by the name Joseph Sinde Warioba. Notably JV himself was elected in 1988 in abstentia.