Dr Philip Mpango, Tanzania’s Minister for Finance and Planning, spelt out four priority areas that the government of President John Magufuli had promised to implement.

He said the Annual National Development Plan 2016/17 is looking at interventions to foster economic growth and industrialisation, integrate economic development and human resources, create an enabling business environment and have an effective implementation of project.

In order to achieve these goals, the government intends to pursue strategies that will attract private sector to industries and other sectors especially through public private partnerships (PPPs).

It will also address bottlenecks related to investments and hurdles in doing business and to strengthen, monitor and evaluate implementation of the Annual National Development Plan.

With a theme of “Industrial Growth for Job Creation” the 2016/2017 budget has various strategies that are expected to stimulate industrial investment.

Among these are valuation of land and property in strategic investment areas and the requisite compensation to those who are be displaced to make way for investors to occupy the land.

The government will develop infrastructure for small-scale industries through the Small Industries Development Organisation (Sido) by developing industrial clusters to provide simple and affordable industrial technology.

In 2016/17, the government will spend 25 per cent of its total annual budget of Tsh29.5 trillion ($14 billion) on industrial development.

Other key economic areas targeted are infrastructure, such as the construction of a new central railway line running from Dar es Salaam to Kigoma on the shores of Lake Tanganyika, roads and the purchase of three aircraft.

Expenditure on improving business and infrastructure will account for 15 per cent of the total budget, and combined with allocations to other sectors will amount to 40 per cent of the total budget going into development expenditure.

Dr Mpango said in the year 2016/17, the government will also finalise the evaluation of public industries that were privatised and put in place strategies to revamp them. “The government will start with the following industries: textiles, livestock products, agro-processing including rubber products, cashew nuts, tobacco, sugar cane, tea and paddy,” he told parliament.

“In implementing these, the government has budgeted funds in various votes in order to develop commercial farms and to improve production of agricultural and livestock produce,” he added.

Much as the government intends to promote private sector investment, appropriate action will be taken against those who do not comply with the privatisation agreements and have abandoned the factories.

Out of 274 privatised industries, only 34 are functioning and operating profitably. “The government intends to address unnecessary bureaucracy and expedite decision making, propose tax incentives, facilitate availability of credit through the Tanzania Investment Bank and other financial institutions in order to attract investors and the private sector,” he said.

Dr Mpango told parliament that he had set aside Tsh4.77 trillion ($2.2 billion) for the education sector equivalent to 22.1 per cent of the budget excluding public debt service, and Tsh1.99 trillion ($927m) will go to the health sector.