By Damas Makangale
Mzumbe University has come a long way and a lot of water has passed under the bridge from the days of IDM Mzumbe. One of the greatest legacies Mwalimu Julius Nyerere left behind is the philosophy of education for self reliance.
Simply put, Nyerere attempted to relate school education with the real needs of society and the individual. That is to relate school education with work and the daily business of life in the community it deserves.
Mwalimu considered education as a liberating force and a tool for national development.
It is relieving to find out that even today the values of the founding father on the importance of education are still being upheld by our government under the leadership of H.E Jakaya Kikwete; not by mere words and wishful thinking but deeds.
The higher education development programme 2010-2020 that seeks to make Tanzanian universities more competitive regionally and globally by offering high quality courses among others shows the seriousness on the part of the government toward that noble goal.
However, for this to be achieved, individual universities, both public and private need to take actions and roll out new and quality academic programmes, increase students enrollment, acquire state of the art teaching equipments and embrace Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) among others if they really need to effectively perform in today’s global cut throat competition.
Mzumbe University is showing the way.
The University, in a bid to add value to its academic programmes, would start to work in partnership with the United Kingdom’s Hull University.
Explaining this achievement, Mzumbe University’s Vice Chancellor, Professor Joseph Kuzilwa says that the five-year partnership agreement was reached after a recent visit to Hull University where the two universities concurred to work together especially in areas of management and business.
“Our lecturers will get an opportunity from this collaboration specifically at PhDs level,” he says.
He explains that the arrangement would also bring in St. Augustine University of Tanzania and Tumaini University-affiliated Iringa College. Both universities offer business courses as well.
He says that following these collaboration lecturers from Hull University would now come and start teaching Mzumbe PhD candidates in business, finance and accountancy programmes.
“It was a challenge to get nearby universities that offer these courses at PhD level and therefore we are grateful for this new arrangement,” he says.
He further explains that this new alliance would greatly help in saving a lot of money otherwise required for sending students abroad.
According to the articulate VC, an approximate of 7,000 to 8,000 pounds per annum is required as a fee for training a Phd student in the United Kingdom, the amount he termed as an uphill task for young economies like Tanzania.
“This collaboration will cut the cost down to 4,000 pounds per annum,” he explains.
Taking into consideration such amount saved, arrangements like these should be emulated by other higher learning institutions in developing countries like Tanzania. Saved resources could be channelised to other areas for development.
According to the arrangement, Hull University professors would also supervise candidates’ proposals ready for them to conduct their research.
“The first batch of twelve PhD candidates from Mzumbe would go to the UK for an induction course in September this year,” he explains.
The two universities would also collaborate in writing fundable proposals and seek funds from various international funding agencies and later conduct studies.
There will be lecturers exchange programmes between the two universities which would help in exchanging experiences for the benefit of both academic institutions.
Students exchange programme also feature in the new collaboration between Mzumbe and Hull University.
Moreover, talks are going on between Mzumbe University and University of Alberta in Canada to identify areas of cooperation and see how they can mutually benefit each other and forge their countries’ development.
This endeavor is in accordance with the Mzumbe’s strategic plan and higher education development programme 2010-2020 that seeks to make Tanzanian universities more competitive.
A week ago, a team from the Canadian university headed by their Provost and Vice-President, Prof. Carl Amhein met with their Tanzanian counterparts in preliminary discussions that would see this collaboration materialise.
Prof. Kuzilwa led his colleagues in the discussion held at the Dar es Salaam’s Mzumbe campus.
“We have a cordial relationship,” Prof. Kuzilwa says. Already, one candidate from Mzumbe has completed his Phd at Alberta in the area of Public Policy and Good Governance.
The VC says that the focus of the cooperation with Alberta University would be in the areas of strengthening research, administration and management, health disciplines and ICT.
The talks dwelt on teaching nursing courses with emphasis on administration where it is hoped that this unique course would help in strengthening delivery of health services in the country.
Also the university wants to start a degree on agriculture, putting emphasis on administration and management aspects. The VC believes that this would help in making the governments’ Kilimo Kwanza initiative a success.
Kilimo Kwanza is the government’s ambitious initiative that seeks to attain green revolution in the country. It seeks to use agriculture as a path toward building a strong economy and eventually attain development.
The other important area where the collaboration with Alberta would help would be in training quality teachers for Tanzania and initiating students and lecturers exchange programmes between the two universities.
The Deputy Vice Chancellor (Academic) at Mzumbe University, Prof. Magishi Mgasa is optimistic that the collaboration would help in improving the quality of courses offered at the university, hence assist addressing national challenges especially in areas of health sciences, research and development and capacity building.
The efforts Mzumbe University is taking to upgrade her staff especially to the PhD level should be supported. About 48 lecturers from the institution are now undergoing training in various universities such as Sokoine in Tanzania, Malawi University and Jomo Kenyatta University in Kenya .
Do Tanzanian MPs do their job?
By Timothy Kitundu
The question of whether Tanzanian Members of Parliament (MPs) represent their voters or whether they perform their functions is overlooked and taken for granted in most instances.
However, this is a fundamental question as MPs are elected to represent the voters and to voice their problems and challenges. MPs have to act on the complaints of his voters particularly in his constituency.
In Parliament MPs can hold the government to account by making three kinds of interventions: MPs can ask basic questions, supplementary questions and contribute during debates. But when they do, they do not represent what their voters want them to. Instead of real grievances, the MPs take up questions which are bound to give them more limelight.
Hai constituency MP honourable Fuya Godwin Kimbita had told the house about education, agriculture and livestock. He said that ample cattle are raised in his constituency but the price is very low and that land is underutilized for agriculture in the constituency.
He also spoke about the problems facing the education sector in the constituency going on to say that the perception that all residents of the constituency know how to read and write was wrong and that the sector is faced by acute school shortage.
However, an investigation carried out in Hai constituency last month revealed what the MP had said were not the pressing problems faced by voters as the main problem in the constituency is health services namely lack of drugs in government health centres, dispensaries and hospitals.
The investigation also revealed that the Waivers and Exemptions Policy is not implemented as old people have to bear the cost of treatment which is against the law. Asked why were the issues not addressed, Omari Bakari (65 years old), a voter who is based at Bomang’ombe town said the MP could have solved this problem but he never visited them.
A further survey done in Machame North Ward, Hai constituency revealed that very few people or voters know the MP. Vivian Massawe said that although the MP is based in Masama Ward, not very far from Machame, he has never visited them to listen to their grievances. This is proof that most MPs do not perform their functions to the satisfaction of voters.
This week, an MP for Ukonga at the new Segerea constituency was “tortured” with queries allegedly for suppressing people’s development. The voters at Mnazi Mmoja, Mgombani and Mwale wards wanted him to apologise for promising what he couldn’t fulfil.
Another MP and Minister for Natural Resources and Tourism Shamsa Mwangunga had to kneel down when trying to restore confidence to voters at Makuburi ward in Dar es Salaam this week. They accused her of embezzlement of UWT funds a fact which the voters said she won’t represent them fully.
.So why do they not do their job? Most of the MPs are not sure to be elected again so use bribes to win the confidence of voters or other desperate measures as the election period nears. This is because they do not do their job properly while in term.
MPs become humble when they go back to their constituencies to seek votes. Would it not be easier to see them just more than once in the five years before elections?
In June, a group of journalists was assigned by the Media Institute of Southern Africa Tanzania chapter (MISATan) with funding from the Tanzania Media Fund (TMF) to cover parliamentary proceedings in Dodoma.
As a way of balancing the news stories and having more details, comments from MPs were thought to be vital. It was advantageous for these scribes that they stayed at the House for seven days so the appointments for comments would be a simple matter to organise it was thought.
But to the astonishment of the project mentors and MISA Tan, during a feedback meeting held early July, the journalists stated that most MPs were so occupied (and maybe desperate) that they never had the time to meet the journalists.
The major reason of why these honourables were desperate is because of the by-elections to be held in October and that most of them were unsure of their comeback due to various reasons.
According to a document called ‘MPs, do they Work for Us’ by Uwazi Infoshop, an organization that looks at the function of MPs, affirms that one of the Parliamentarians’ jobs is to oversee the executive branch of the government.
The document points out that the function of the Parliament is to ensure that the country is well governed, that services are properly delivered to citizens, and that money entrusted to the Government is well spent and accounted for.
The questions are the main tool available to MPs to scrutinize the dealings of the government. Basic questions are put in writing and submitted to the Government prior to the relevant session of Parliament.
Statistics given by the document reveal that although CCM is the most active party in the Parliament, opposition MPs are more active than ruling party members. By comparison, elected MPs perform better than nominated MPs. Female MPs are less active than male MPs.
Chadema MP Dr. Wilbroad Silaa was voted the most active MP with 268 interventions followed by CCM’s Mgana Msindai with 256 interventions while CCM’s George Lubeleje had 225 interventions. Three CCM MPs; Dr. Hussein Mwinyi, Edward Lowassa and Rostam Aziz did not ask a question and did not contribute.
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