The European Commission (EC) in Dar es Salaam and the Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs, together with the Coordinating Committee members of the Non-State Actors Support Programme are pleased to officially launch today the Non-State Actors’ Central Policy Resource Centre at Mwalimu House in Dar es Salaam. Mr. Rene Van Nes, Head of the Economic Section at the EC Delegation to Tanzania will officiate the event which is set to start at 10.00.
The Non-State Actors Central Policy Resource Centre has been set up as part of the 3 million EURO (equivalent to approximately 5.600 million TSH) EU-funded Non-State Actors Support Programme (NSASP), the goal of which is to empower NSAs to play a greater role in the formulation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of development policies and processes. The aim of the new Resource Centre is to provide NSA representatives from civil society, trade unions and the private sector with access to the equipment, information and meeting facilities they need to engage in policy processes in a well-informed, coordinated and strategic manner. The Central Resource Centre will be linked with Zonal Resource Centres serving a similar purpose in Unguja, Pemba, Masasi, Mbeya, Kigoma, Mwanza and Arusha. Together they will enable greater, more effective, collaboration between the Government and NSAs at local, regional and national level, as an important key step towards more effective, responsive and inclusive national development in Tanzania.
The new Central Resource Centre in Mwalimu House, Ilala, is equipped with computers, printers, scanners, photocopiers and audio-visual equipment as well as a wide range of development-oriented publications and policy related information. The Centre offers its users internet access and secretarial services, as well as comfortable space for undertaking meetings, research and peer-to-peer networking. Furthermore, the Central Resource Centre will function as a hub for coordination and information sharing between all eight nationwide Resource Centres, permitting easy consultation, collaboration and coalition building on policy issues between NSAs.
Since 2007 the European Union has provided funding of Euro 3 million (over 5 billion Tanzanian shillings) from the 9th European Development Fund (EDF) to support and strengthen NSA engagement in policy process in Tanzania. This funding has made possible a wide range of capacity building and policy engagement processes for local organisations, institutions and networks driving development throughout Tanzania. This body of work has been managed by the Programme Management and Facilitation Unit (PMFU), which operates under the authority of the National Authorizing Office (NAO) and works in close collaboration with the Programme Coordinating Committee, comprising elected NSA representatives from around the country and from a diverse range of organisations.
The European Commission contributes annually, on behalf of the European Union over 100 million Euros (2 trillion Tanzanian shillings) of development cooperation to Tanzania. The European Union and its member states together contribute about 500 million Euros (10 trillion shillings) per year to the Tanzanian economy. It also the world’s largest contribution of official aid to Africa and plans to increase its aid contributions to the continent over the next decade. Its support to NSAs in Tanzania is consistent with the commitments given by the EU in the Cotonou Agreement (2000) to tackle poverty and support sustainable development in nations throughout Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific regions.
In addition to involving representatives of the EC, the government, PMFU, the Programme Coordinating Committee (PCC) and the Programme Steering Committee (PSC), today’s launching ceremony involves representatives of an array of local Non-State Actors, international Development Partners, academic institutions and the media.
The Zonal Resource Centres are also fully operational; they are located at Mbeya for Southern Highlands zone, Masasi for Southern zone, Arusha for Northern Zone, Mwanza for Lake Zone, Kigoma for Western and Central Tanzania zone, Chake Chake for Pemba zone and Unguja for Zanzibar zone.
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