EDITORIAL: IT’S CRUCIAL TO INVOLVE PRIVATE SECTOR IN PLANS
On Monday, February 8, 2021, the government tabled in Parliament a draft of the Third Five-Year Development Plan (FYDP-III) for the period starting from July 1, 2021.
Covering the period from the 2021/22 to 2025/26 financial years (FY-2021/22 to FY-2025/26), the Plan is slated to cost a total of Sh114.8 trillion.
As we reported in these august pages on Wednesday (ebruary 10, 2021), the goodly sum of Sh74.2 trillion of the funding will come from the public sector, while the remaining Sh40.6 will be sourced from the private sector.
In our considered view, one of the more intriguing aspects of the whole shebang is that, not only will the whole Five Year Development Plan be financed using domestic funds.
Equally intriguing is the fact that a considerable part of the funding – a little more than 35.36 percent – will be obtained from private sector sources within the country, with the other 64.63 percent coming from the public sector.
Not only that… in addition to funding FYDP-III, private sector players will also be given the chance as much as possible to participate in the formulation and implementation of relevant policies and regulatory frameworks, as well as other pertinent roles.
Generally speaking, the private sector involves an assortment of vested interests, ranging from micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) to Big Businesses – but all being creators of jobs, wealth, and other socioeconomic development opportunities.
Despite formidable challenges, the private sector created at least 716,624 jobs, and accounted for 68 percent of the national capital increment, between 2016 and 2019 – with total private capital rising from Sh24 trillion to Sh41.8 trillion during that period.
All in all, we have the fifth-phase government of President John Magufuli – in power since November 5, 2015 – to thank for this very noble adventure into self-reliant territory in the socioeconomic development stakes.
CURB HUMAN/WILDLIFE DISCORD
Conflicts between humans and wildlife are commonplace, but population explosions on either side cause concern.
There is huge human population pressure, which fuels conversion of wildlife habitats into areas for human activities – with the main losers being the wildlife whose foraging grasslands are increasingly turned into crop-fields.
The wild animals are forced to migrate in search of new habitats for shelter, feeding, water, breeding, safety...
In this regard, the Tanzania National Parks Authority (Tanapa) has to swing into action to ensure the safety of both people and wild animals.
Poaching considerably reduced the number of elephants a few years ago, but the number has grown – which is good news all-round.
Much as we applaud the anti-poaching endeavours of the authorities, there still is a looming danger for communities surrounding wildlife parks and reserves. Stray elephants are already causing devastation in parts of the country’s southern villages.
Indeed, Namtumbo constituency legislator Vita Kawawa was spot-on in raising the red flag in Parliament early this week over large herds of elephants feeding on and destroying farm crops.
Again, the human population is rising on the edges of protected areas. This calls for effective but also friendly ways (and means?) of discouraging economic activities that adversely impact wild ecosystems and/or trigger human/wildlife conflicts.
Understanding these pressures is crucial for protecting people and wildlife - and also to curb illegal activities such as poaching.
