MAYORS in city and municipal councils, chairmen of councils and directors need to ensure that they create new sources of income and prevent tax evasion loopholes in their councils.

Mohamed Mchengerwa, the Regional Administration and Local Governments state minister in the President's Office (PO-RALG) made this appeal at the opening of the 38th annual general meeting of the Association of Local Authorities of Tanzania (ALAT) here yesterday.

Standing in for President Samia Suluhu Hassan, he said that the councils must develop new sources of income, build efficiency and target people’s development in each district council.

Those methods and revenue sources will provide the main impetus for development in the councils, managing council income and spending based on revenue collections, he stated.

“Executives must be creative in decision making,” he said, asserting that the various councils must invent methods and ways that we will ensure that they a large percentage of income is collected in the councils.

Income and spending must be adapted to needs for the people’s development, the minister underlined.

Council directors need to ensure that they are fair in collection of government revenues, especially in the use of electronic systems, the speech underlined, hinting at information about the use of fake revenue collection machines.

This habit is depriving the government of a lot of revenue, thus council directors must effectively manage all projects implemented in their areas so that they are completed on time, it further noted.

“There are projects such as health, water education and road infrastructure, so these projects should be managed by reaching the project areas,” he stated.

Masoud Ali Mohammed, state minister in the Zanzibar President's Office for Regional Administration, Local Governments and Special Departments, said that ALAT in the Mainland and the Zanzibar Local Governments Association (ZLGA) are vital entities for supervising government activities.

The failure of these institutions will lead to the failure of every part of the government because the government at the national level can have good laws, good allowances but if there is no political will then we will not succeed,” the speech underlined, stressing the need for good performance in local authorities.

ALAT chairman Murshid Hashim Ngezi said the government's move to increase allowances for directors, councillors and other officials is likely to inculcate efficiency at work.

Allowance increase will help executives to work efficiently and rely less on their councils, he said, hailing changes the government has instituted in the councils “to work on the challenges that exist in the councils.”

He praised councils that have done well in revenue in collection, urging other councils to imitate those examples.

Adam Mihayo, the Tanzania Commercial Bank (TCB) chief executive officer, said the bank maintains its support for lower levels of the government in their various social projects.

What TCB gets from people it returns through various projects, including supporting loans to venture capital groups, he added.