Questions

1. Your office as the High Commissioner of Tanzania to the United Kingdom follows from prestigious positions in academia, government services and in the world body, the United Nations. Could you share the milestones of your journey and how these roles have come together in shaping your diplomatic service and personal philosophy?

Well, thanks very much for the complements. I have deep gratitude to our President, H. E. Dr. John Pombe Joseph Magufuli, for the honour he has bestowed upon me to serve as High Commissioner for the United Republic of Tanzania to the Court of St. James’s. The United Kingdom is a great country, an important partner to us both bilaterally and multilaterally. So surely it adds significantly to previous positions I have held in my life – for which I am extremely humbled.

When I was in upper primary school I used to admire my teachers a lot. It’s like I had some desire of being like them. I cannot really say I wanted to be a teacher but there was something that attracted me to serving others. As I went past primary school, my mind drifted to something else. I started having an interest in legal matters, thanks to my father who worked in the Judiciary. I often read some of his books and found them interesting. That came, as I see it today, to shape my future. After secondary education I enrolled as a law student at the University of Dar es Salaam. I passed my examinations well and some of my professors advised that I take up a teaching career at the Faculty of Law to which I agreed.

In my early time as a Tutorial Assistant I joined hands with my professors and other colleagues to provide legal aid to those who could not afford a lawyer – not just for that reason. That kind of service was very much inspired by our first President and Father of our nation, Mwalimu Julius Nyerere, whose philosophy enjoined young women and men to give back to society what only a few were privileged to get – public and quality education as a return for the sacrifice that the society made for us to receive an education.

In legal aid I learned quite a lot, appreciated the challenges that women, men and children faced in pursuing their rights in different spheres of their lives. That now awakened my desire, I developed a passion to serve. So what might have appeared as ‘legal activism’ drove me closer and closer to the work of my Political Party, Chama cha Mapinduzi, for surely it is not easy to separate the struggle for equality from politics – people’s rights have a lot to do with the political landscape of any society.

After I finished my doctorate in 1992 at the University of Konstanz in the former West Germany, I went back to Tanzania – continued my career in academia as well as my service in legal aid. In the course of time my friends and I had an opportunity to interact with Members of Parliament in analysing pieces of legislation mainly as they impacted rights and welfare of the underprivileged. Increasingly I realised that there was a lot more that we could do together to initiate change especially through enactment of law. So when an opportunity arose I contested for Parliament in 2000 through special seats for women from the academia. I was privileged when the President of the time, H.E. Benjamin William Mkapa, appointed me Minister for Community Development, Gender and Children. I was in charge of gender and development policy and had an opportunity to contribute to the law-making process through Cabinet. In 2005, I got nominated again to stand for women’s special seats representing academia. The new President then who came after President Mkapa finished his term, H.E. Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete, gave me the privilege to serve in his Cabinet as Minister for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation. The first woman ever to hold that position. Nine months later the 8th Secretary-General of the United Nations, H.E. Ban Ki-moon, appointed me DeputySecretary General of the United Nations. The experience I had from academia, political work and development issues helped me settle in very quickly in my new job. As it turned out development was a key aspect of my responsibilities there – so together with the team at the UN Secretariat we contributed to global strategies on development such as the Millenium Development Goals (later Sustainable Development Goals); climate change especially as it related to food security and sustainable energy; peace and security; UN System-wide coherence; establishment of UN Women (UN Entity for Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment); under the leadership of Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon.

Upon returning to Tanzania from the United Nations, I again was privileged to serve in Chama cha Mapinduzi, as Secretary for International Relations and later appointed to Cabinet as Minister for Constitutional and Legal Affairs.

Yes indeed, I humbly acknowledge that my background as an academician and lawyer prepared me for each position that I was privileged to hold. When I joined government from academia I already had the tools to analyse policy and law as well as the practical experience in community development, gender and children’s affairs through my previous work in legal aid and interaction with communities at the grassroots. Then my stint at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation prepared me well for the job I had to do at the United Nations as an international civil servant. Looked like a choreography with each position moulding me for the next. And now, here I am, High Commissioner for the United Republic of Tanzania, utilising all the knowledge and experience gained nationally and internationally

2. ‘The Commonwealth creates the strength of unity. Through this organisation member states have forged common positions on issues of common interest and built a stronger bargaining voice in regional and international fora.’ These words by the former President Jakaya Kikwete are an exposition of instrumental role the body has played in Tanzania, could you elaborate upon this tangible relationship?

The Commonwealth is a large and diverse family. It is an organisation whose presence spans six continents. It has a membership of 53 countries - out of which 31 are small states with a combined GDP of 10 trillion USD (14 percent of the World’s GDP) under one roof, one common heritage and shared common values. This offers each member state an immense opportunity for development but more importantly a strong bargaining muscle in multilateral fora – giving a voice to small states, the most vulnerable and those facing huge developmental challenges.

Tanzania is proud to be part of this large family. Our country joined the Commonwealth soon after independence in 1961 and has since remained loyal to the organisation. Our legal and governance systems have borrowed a lot from the Commonwealth heritage, and as a country benefited from capacity building in terms of training, technical cooperation, strengthening of institutions and our people. That altogether has made government to government, business to business and people to people interactions easy and fruitful.

3. Significant challenges to good governance in the country have been the social consequences of youth unemployment, gender inequalities perpetuated by sociocultural norms and rampant corruption. As one of the most politically stable countries in the region, how does Tanzania envision to overcome these and what are the potential roadblocks to achievement?

Governance carries a wide meaning indeed. But we can all agree that good governance entails such principles as the rule of law, democracy, equality, transparency, accountability, inclusive participation of the people in determining their political future, to mention but a few. Tanzania is a country that boasts of good governance, I can confidently affirm. Our country has a Constitution that embodies all the principles of good governance. Tanzania’s Vision 2025 carries these principles as critical for the country’s sustainable development. Since the country’s return to multiparty democracy in 1992 we have had peaceful elections every five years. The Constitution has term limits which have been strictly observed with handing over power from one leadership to the other being both predictable and consistent. None of our retired Presidents has had to go on exile or face political persecution. We have eight retired Prime Ministers, all living peacefully in-country. A major attribute to good governance

With regards to corruption, that has been the banner of our President, H. E. Dr. John Pombe Joseph Magufuli. Since he took the leadership of our country in 2015, action and policy have been reinforced. Transparency and accountability have been engrained in public service. The Prevention and Combating of Corruption Bureau (PCCB) has been strengthened and given more resources, both monetary and personnel. Social services are being improved. We have rapidly expanded access to education by making primary and secondary education free and increased the availability of health services.

Particular emphasis is being put on girls’ education; maternal, child and reproductive health; access to clean and safe water and rural electrification. All these measures go a long way to addressing unemployment and inequality be it gender-based or any other. They aim at economically empowering communities, especially women and young people, and enabling them to utilise their full potential.

As with many other developing countries, sufficient resources to tap the wealth that our country is endowed with (gas, minerals, fertile land, water resources) remains a big challenge. However, the current administration, led by President Magufuli, is determined to mobilise internal resources as a major basis for our development; attract foreign direct investment through investor-friendly policies ensuring a win-win situation; foster development cooperation that targets key and priority sectors of our country. A lot of ground has been covered, a lot more can be done. And this is what the current administration is focussing on

4. In anticipation of Britain’s impending departure from the European Union, what do you think would be the ramifications for Tanzania? Do you see this as an opportunity to better the ties with Britain or does an undivided European Union hold greater preference, in economic terms?

Britain and Tanzania ties go way back to the pre-independence era for both Tanganyika and Zanzibar. Since Tanganyika’s independence in 1961 and after the union between Tanganyika and Zanzibar to form the United Republic of Tanzania in 1964, these two countries have enjoyed cordial diplomatic relations. The Commonwealth has given the two countries a platform for strengthening their ties in pursuit of matters of common heritage and interest.

With this background it is anticipated that our bilateral relations will continue. Economically the United Kingdom is among the top 3 countries trading with our country. There are about 300 companies that have invested in Tanzania contributing to about 5 percent of the tax collection. We look forward to the forthcoming UKAfrica Investment Conference in January 2020 which we see as an opportunity to reposition our countries in terms of trade and investment after the United Kingdom leaves the Europen Union.

5. Despite the steady growth of the Tanzanian economy, 25 million Tanzanians still live on less than $1.90 a day. Foreign Direct Investment from the United Kingdom and investment aid from the Department for International Development (DFID) have massively contributed to the socio-economic landscape of the country. In your opinion, will this relationship change post Brexit, and in turn, will Brexit impact the stability of the Tanzanian economy?

Development cooperation between Tanzania and the United Kingdom has contributed immensely to the socio-economic growth of our country. With UK support, combining with our own efforts, we have made great strides especially in education, health and infrastructure development, and socio-economic development in general. Foreign Direct Investment is steady and we know that there is a lot of enthusiasm for more investment to come. So we are confident that the relationship will continue not only for the good of Tanzania but I believe international development cooperation is an important aspect of British policy as well.

6. You chaired the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Ministerial Committee of the Organ on Politics, Defense and Security Cooperation and President of the UN Security Council during its open debate on peace, security and development in the Great Lakes Region. Tanzania’s vulnerability to climate change and ivory poaching is an increasing cause of concern. What path has the country adopted to decisively respond to these issues, do you regard them as being adequate in your assessment?

Climate change is the biggest challenge of our time as it threatens the very existence of our land and communities. Like many other countries Tanzania has suffered rising temperatures, drought, unpredictable and excessive rains, as well as rising water levels. This has affected food security, increased poverty levels and at the same time put pressure on infrastructure. To address these challenges Tanzania has been working with the United Nations and other development partners especially in the context of mitigation and adaptation. On the other hand, the government has put in place law and policy to protect water sources and resources, forests, to develop programs for sustainable land use and management, and encourage cleaner production processes. Recently the government imposed a ban on plastic bags to protect land and the marine environment. As the vagaries of climate change know no borders, Tanzania is poised to work with other countries and international organisations to chart out sustainable programs through experience exchange, resource mobilisation and technical cooperation.

For many years ivory poaching has been a huge problem in Tanzania. In a span of about 10-12 years alone Tanzania lost some of its most precious wildlife. Figures show that there was a dramatic decrease of the elephant population from 110,000 in 2009 to about 43,000 in 2014.

Earlier in the mid-1990s, the government had, at different times, carried major operations to combat poaching and illegal wildlife trade but with only limited results. Since 2015, when President Magufuli took the reigns of our country, the government stepped up the war on poaching. An intergovernmental team was set up in 2016 to form an integrated task force to address poaching and related crimes. It is a team that includes all law enforcement institutions such as the police, prisons, the Prevention and Combating of Corruption Bureau (PCCB) and others in order to ensure that all factors that lead to poaching and illegal wildlife trade are dealt with in a comprehensive manner.

The formation of this team went hand in hand with robust training of our game rangers, strengthening their capacity and providing them modern equipment with the appropriate technology to enhance surveillance and security in our parks. We continue to collaborate with other countries and partners as part of the global efforts to stop poaching and illegal wildlife trade. This is why in October, 2018, Tanzania was an active participant in the London International Conference on Illegal Wildlife Trade. Tanzania’s experience was widely shared especially the way we have managed to address poaching in an integrated way – which has led to huge success within a short time. Recent statistics show remarkable improvement in the population of rhinos and elephants while illegal wildlife trade has gone down significantly. The population of elephants has increased tremendously from 43,330 in 2014 to over 60,000 in 2019. A similar upward trend has been recorded for rhinos, rising from 15 in 2015 to 167 presently.

7. The Tanzania Development Vision 2025 is a very promising document. What do you identify as the unique elements that other nations can gain from? What would you see as the core challenges and how achievable do you think this target is?

The Tanzania Development Vision 2025 is the government’s strategy aimed at driving our country to a middle-income country by 2025. The purpose is to transform Tanzania from an agrarian to a semi-industrialised country by 2025. One of its unique features is the inclusiveness of the entire process of formulating the Vision. The Vision went through rounds of discussion and consultation from grassroots to the highest echelons of our society. This made it a very representative document that enjoyed the legitimacy it needed – every section of our society takes ownership of the Vision. The set of principles upon which the Vision stands gives it another unique feature. It is anchored at achieving high quality livelihood; peace, stability and unity; good governance; an educated and learning society as key to building a strong and competitive economy. I believe this kind of strong foundation is something that any country can take a cue from

The Vision is very much achievable and our country, under the leadership of President Magufuli, is steadfastly on track. To unleash the economic potential of the country, infrastructure development has become the blueprint of President Magufuli’s leadership. Roads and bridges have been built; a standard gage railway is under construction; the national airline is being revamped; airports are being rehabilitated with a new terminal soon to be opened in the commercial city of Dar es Salaam; the government has procured eight aircrafts in a short span of time. All these have set the stage for huge social and economic strides. Indeed, making Tanzania a middle-income country by 2025 is achievable. We are surely on track.