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Minister says war on poverty far from won
2007-02-21 09:14:28
By Patrick Kisembo, Bagamoyo
Planning, Economy and Empowerment minister Juma Ngasongwa has said the achievements that the government has got in the form of stability in macroeconomic performance are not enough to lead to a substantial reduction in poverty levels in the country.
He made the remarks in Bagamoyo yesterday when opening a three-day National Planners Annual Conference organised by his ministry.
Dr Ngasongwa noted that the stability in macroeconomic performance has led to steady growth and in a number of social and economic sectors.
`While we pride ourselves with the commendable achievements realised so far, they are not yet sufficient to make a substantial dent on the poverty levels our people are experiencing,` he stated.
He added: `This can only mean one thing - that there is a need for more efforts in staying the course of reforms required in attaining higher levels of economic performance.`
The minister urged the public to work increasingly harder in order to boost their own incomes and that of the nation, warning: `If efforts are not put in performing our duties, the gap of income to an ordinary Tanzanian will not be covered.`
Dr Ngasongwa said although the nation went through a long period of serious drought and electricity cuts, it has managed to raise its monthly revenue from 25bn/- to over 200bn/-.
Asked when ordinary Tanzanians should expect to feel comfortable with the level of income they get, the minister said it was no easy task improving the people`s standard of living in a short period.
`These things take time. What we are discussing here today will give us a way on how we can facilitate this matter.
But we have up to now managed to reduce inflation and the national income rate has improved,` he observed.
`It is the wish of the government to see the development of economic growth so that even an ordinary person in the village could feel that economy has grown,` he added.
The minister said the government was faced with the challenge of ensuring wananchi have higher incomes and lead better lives.
Charles Mutalemwa, permanent secretary in the ministry, earlier explained that the aim of the conference was to discuss, share experiences and adapt a common understanding on important development issues that impact on the role and responsibilities of development planners.
This year`s edition of the annual conference had `Economic growth for improved livelihoods’ as its theme.
Participants were drawn from government ministries, regional secretariats, professional bodies and the academia whose preoccupations relate to the national social and economic policies.
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