Zanzibar commits to strengthening service delivery

Zanzibar’s political leaders and senior officials have agreed on measures to improve service delivery after a three-day landmark retreat convened to strengthen the political and administrative interface in the semi-autonomous Indian Ocean island. Zanzibar is part of the United Republic of Tanzania.

The 5-7 May retreat was chaired by newly-elected Zanzibar President Dr Ali Mohamed Shein and attended by his Government of National Unity partners, including his two vice-presidents, the entire cabinet, members of the House of Representatives and high ranking civil servants.

“Our obligation is to improve the welfare of our people through improved service delivery. There are many challenges, but we have to confront them because our citizens expect nothing less from us,” said Dr Shein.

The retreat examined the state of financial affairs in the island, budget management and options for improvement, strengthening institutions of governance such as the auditor-general’s office and the police force, and strengthening the political leaders and administrative interface. The forum also noted the importance of combating crime and strengthening key sectors of the economy such as services, agriculture and tourism.

The government retreat was co-organised by the Commonwealth Secretariat’s Governance and Institutional Development Division as part of its agenda to improve public leadership. Speaking at the forum, Dunstan Maina, Adviser for East Africa, urged the government to focus more on employment creation for the rising population of young people.

"Unemployment makes the youth vulnerable to extremism and other destructive forms of behaviour and urgent measures are therefore required to engage the youth more in nation-building," Mr Maina emphasised.

The Secretariat's Deputy Spokesperson, Manoah Esipisu, who also spoke at the retreat, urged the government to strengthen its use of media as agents of development and to open clear lines of communication with citizens.

“It does not help a government to hide its achievements in a file on a shelf. The people have a right to know what the government is doing to grow the economy and uplift the standards of living. I fear that this is one obligation that you cannot run away from,” said Mr Esipisu.

Dr Shein responded with a major policy decision, confirming he would schedule regular news briefings with media and would also consider appointment of government information officers to all government ministries to ensure improved communication.

The Secretariat pledged to collaborate with the Zanzibar Government in convening a follow-up forum to strengthen the understanding of government policies and their implementation for other senior government officials during the next financial year (July 2011 - June 2012).