Loliondo dust settles...at last

THE nearly three decades long wrangle centred on Loliondo regarding land use has finally been put to rest, as a sweet outcome of Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa’s spirited initiatives.

The dispute has been raging since 1992 when Loliondo Game Controlled Area hunting block was leased to Ortello Business Corporation Ltd (OBC) without consultations with local communities. The United Arab Emirates based OBC has held exclusive hunting rights in an expansive 400,000 hectares land to the east of the Serengeti National Park.

A breakthrough was made on Wednesday, at a meeting convened by the premier at his office in Dodoma basically to announce the government’s stance regarding the dispute after receiving the committee’s report. During a tour of Ngorongoro District in December last year, Mr Majaliwa was informed about the simmering dispute centred on land use in the Loliondo Forest Reserve.

In January this year, he formed a 27-member probe committee chaired by Arusha Regional Commissioner Mrisho Gambo, which was tasked to get to the root of the issue and come up with recommendations on how to resolve it.

A press statement issued yesterday by the Prime Minister’s Office said Mr Majaliwa agreed with the committee’s recommendations, which among others, pushed for establishment of a special body to oversee Loliondo area which is vital for Serengeti’s ecological conservation.

“After going through various systems, a team of experts floated a proposal for the formation of a special body that would serve the interests of all parties concerned and help restore peace in the area,” the premier said.

Mr Majaliwa directed the Ministry of Tourism and Natural Resources to prepare a bill proposing the establishment of a special body or authority that would oversee Loliondo’s affairs and help to conserve Serengeti’s ecology.

“The envisaged law must put into consideration the interest of the community surrounding the area (Loliondo), their culture and traditions and their relationship and land use,” noted the PM amid deafening cheers from over 60 members who attended the meeting.

In the same vein, Premier Majaliwa instructed the ministry to prepare a special circular for tabling before the Cabinet on the importance of enacting laws specifically for Loliondo area.

He underscored the need for engaging all key stakeholders as soon as the first draft was completed, to facilitate inclusion of their views. Mr Majaliwa further directed that the second draft should be ready by between February and March 2018, so as to be incorporated in the 2018/2019 budget proposals.

The premier also ordered ministers and permanent secretaries to conduct frequent visits to the Loliondo Forest Reserve areas, so as to get adequate information and a clear picture of the challenges facing the surrounding community.

Meanwhile, the government is finalizing the crafting of the new Dodoma City Master Plan which will allocate areas for a new airport, industrial areas, international organizations and embassy buildings in the country’s designated capital city. Prime Minister Majaliwa noted here yesterday that the City Master Plan had been designed in the light of the envisaged city, setting aside huge investment, recreational and residential areas.

“The government continues to improve social service infrastructure in Dodoma to meet the standards of modern and ideal cities in the world,” said the Premier at a ceremony to launch the United Nations (UN) office building along Mlimwa Road in Dodoma Municipality.

UN has become the first international organization to respond to the government’s call to relocate offices from Dar es Salaam to Dodoma. The UN building will initially house seven of the 23 UN agencies in the country, namely UNICEF, UNDP, UNFPA, UN-WOMEN, IOM, FAO and WHO.

Mr Majaliwa hailed the UN administration in the country for joining hands with the government to relocate its offices to Dodoma, pointing out that the move was an important step in supporting the government’s ambitious and critical shift-to-Dodoma mission.

Mr Majaliwa observed that so far, a total of 2,346 public servants had moved to Dodoma from Dar es Salaam while Vice- President Samia Suluhu Hassan will shift to the country’s designated capital city at the end of this month. The UN Resident Coordinator, Mr Alvaro Rodriguez, said the launch of the office was the first step towards UN’s move to Dodoma, pointing out that United Nations works closely with the government.

“The launch of the office will facilitate and bring UN closer to the government at this crucial time when the government is moving to Dodoma,” said the UN Residents Coordinator who doubles as UNDP Resident Representative.

Foreign Affairs and East African Cooperation Minister, Dr Augustine Mahiga, noted that the new UN office in Dodoma promotes the UN spirit of ‘Delivering as One’, which is based on four pillars of oneness having One Programme, One Leader and Team, One Budgetary Framework and One Office.

He said the launch of UN offices in Dodoma will encourage other international organizations and embassies to relocate to the country’s designated capital city, saying the government will continue to accord UN maximum cooperation to efficiently carry out its activities in the country.

Speaking at the same event, the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) Representative in the country, Ms Maniza Zaman, noted that UN agencies will continue to work closely with the government in supporting its five-year development plan through the United Nations Development Assistance Plan (UNDAP II).


The country’s Five-Year Development Plan (FYDP) aims to nurture industrialization for economic transformation and human development with focus on economic growth and transformation to reduce poverty.