Dar es Salaam. Good morning! The Chanzo is here with a rundown of major news stories reported in Tanzania on Wednesday, August 29, 2023.
NDI President Ambassador Derek Mitchell: Solutions lie in more democracy, not less
The President of the National Democratic Institute (NDI), Derek Mitchell, thinks that the solutions to most world problems, which include underdevelopment and populism, lie in the availability of more and better democracy, not less.
Mr Mitchell made the remarks during an exclusive interview with The Chanzo on August 25, 2023, in the city following his two-day visit to Tanzania as part of his African tour, which also saw him visiting Ethiopia and Côte d’Ivoire. NDI is a US-based non-profit that strengthens democratic institutions worldwide.
Recent studies have documented how the belief in democracy has been increasingly decreasing worldwide, with more and more young Africans, for instance, seeming to be more tolerant of military coups, as the latest Afrobarometer survey has demonstrated.
Studies indicate that this decreasing support for democracy stems from an imagined failure of the governance model to provide for people’s basic needs, including improving their living conditions. But Mr Mitchel thinks that something else has failed, not democracy, as demagogues would want their followers to believe.
Full story here.
Analysts put Samia’s latest cabinet reshuffle in perspective
Multiple theories have emerged in an attempt to explain the motivation behind the latest move by President Samia Suluhu Hassan to undertake a minor reshuffle in her cabinet, with some interpreting it as the Head of State’s strategy to consolidate power as the general election nears.
During Wednesday’s cabinet reshuffle, Samia created a new position of Deputy Prime Minister, appointing Bukombe MP (Chama cha Mapinduzi – CCM) Dotto Biteko to it, who became the third person to serve the position in the history of Tanzania after the late Augustino Mrema and Salim Ahmed Salim.
Mr Biteko, who was heading the mineral docket before the reshuffle, will also serve as the new Minister for Energy, replacing January Makamba, who has been transferred to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Mr Makamba is replacing Stergomena Tax, who has been returned to the Ministry of Defense and National Service.
Full story here.
TARI introduces high-yielding cassava seeds to boost productivity
The Tanzania Agricultural Research Institute (TARI) has researched and spearheaded the release of 26 new cassava seed varieties as part of efforts to heighten production and productivity of the economic cash crop in the country.
Tanzania is the twelfth largest producer of cassava in the world and the sixth in Africa, with a current productivity of 8.5 tons per hectare, the lowest extent compared to 60 tons that can be produced per hectare through the application of improved seeds and recommended agronomic practices.
To reverse the situation, TARI has been researching and producing improved seeds and running different capacity-building programs to impart the extension officers and growers of the tuber crop with the best agronomic practices.
A cassava scientist at TARI Ukiriguru, Mr Innocent Ndyetabula, told The Chanzo that out of the 26 officially released improved varieties, at least nine varieties have become the farmer’s best choice and are widely cultivated while their demand is increasing.
Full story here.
AuKing Mining fires starting gun on uranium exploration in Ruvuma
Australia-based early-stage exploration company AuKing Mining Ltd announced Wednesday that it has started its planned exploration at the Mkuju Uranium Project in Ruvuma, southern Tanzania.
The company’s CEO, Paul Williams, said in a statement that the initial 3,000-metre drilling and associated soil sampling program will target parts of a large radiometric anomalous zone adjacent to the world-class Russian-owned Nyota Uranium Project.
AuKing holds six contiguous prospecting licences (PLs) and one near-granted PL application covering 730 square kilometres in the Mkuju region, about 470 kilometres southwest of Dar es Salaam.
“We are pleased to be conducting our initial exploration program at Mkuju finally,” Williams said.
“Due to its proximity to the world-class Nyota Uranium Project and based on historical exploration on our ground, we have high expectations for strong results from this program – thereby establishing Mkuju as a significant extension of the already known Nyota uranium resources.
“Our initial focus will be near-surface soil sampling and auger drilling and pending results from these initial activities, go back in with deeper RC drilling later in the year,” Williams added.
This is it for today, and we hope you enjoyed our briefing. Please consider subscribing to our newsletter (see below), or following us on Twitter (here), or joining us on Telegram (here). And in case you have any questions or comments, please drop a word to our editors at editor@thechanzo.com.
