 |
| Elder woman at her "tembe house" |
The Breton Woods institution said the country has been performing well
over the past few years, thanks to effective demand polices. Gross Domestic Product is this year expected
to grow by six per cent.
 |
| Mr Morisset |
“If Tanzania aims at reducing the income gap between itself and middle
income countries, it has to grow faster and better,” World Bank’s acting
Country Representative Jacques Morisset said, “For the (economic) growth to
tickle down, the country has to consistently grow at between six and seven per
cent, but quality education and job creation will have better impact on the
national development.”
The report named Stairways to Heaven: Fiscal Prudence, Value for Money
in Education, and Economic Transformation of Firms says money has put children
in schools, but learning outcomes are lagging behind as the pass rates have
actually declined.
 |
| Prof Ndulu |
The report, the first of its kind to be published
biannually, shows that since 2005 the combined expenditure on education and
health has increased by 190 per cent in real term, the equivalent of an average
of 10 per cent par capita per year.
“While low rates of return are the result of multiple factor, they are
partially due to the persistent low quality of education, with many school
leavers unprepared for the labour market,” the report shows.
Bank of Tanzania
Governor Prof Benno Ndulu said the first challenge was to put children into
schools, followed by what the nation wants out of the education sector.
“The second challenge is where we are and what we want out of
education,” charged Prof Ndulu, who was one of the panelists, adding that the economic update was a good
way forward as the current focus was on the future, not the past.
 |
| Mr Mafuruki |
Another panelist,
Infotech Founder and Chairman Ali Mafuruki said the report should not only
target pass rates but whether the type of education offered supports other
sectors of economic growth.
“Suppose we attained a 100 per cent pass rate but the system cannot consume
the entire population…we will still have many youths on the streets…the best
way is to improve vocational training and prepare our people to engage in self
employment,” Mr Mafuruki who is also Woolworth CEO said.
TOL Gases Chairman Arnold Kileo, said the quality of education was
import and the government should let free market to determine the price of
education provided by private sector.
The report indicates that Tanzania is
heading towards becoming the gas hub in the region although revenues will only
materialize in the next five to seven years: “During the transition, Tanzania
policymakers will have to find alternative channels to promote growth.
”Prof Ndulu said the economy’s center stage in the next coming years is
going to be in Mtwara following the discovery of more natural gas and probably
oil.
The report also considers that signs of economic transformation have
emerged from the private sector with technological and educational improvements
as the main drivers. SMEs are now reliable sources of employment and
manufacturing exports have been booming in the last seven years.
Source: The Daily News, www.dailynews.co.tz, reported by Abduel Elinaza
0 comments :
Post a Comment