Tanzanians will go into an election likely to be very competitive this October. One key concern is that the top political parties keep well-trained militias, despite the law prohibiting this. This has caused security fears around the election.

NGOs and activists need to give themselves a really hard look. They cannot possibly be partners of, and stakeholders in, systems that oppress and dehumanize the large majority of people. They must choose the side of those who are struggling for a better world and against those who want to maintain the existing world. Neutrality is betrayal.

Tanzania’s general elections are set for October 2015 and the liberation party CCM that has ruled since independence already has 20 presidential aspirants. One of them is the young and ambitious January Makamba, whose announcement to stand for presidency has caused some excitement in the land. What chances does he have?

The Embassy of the State of Palestine in Tanzania condemns in the strongest terms the Israel’s extrajudicial killing of Palestinian Minister and Head of the Committee against the Wall and Settlements, Mr. Ziad Abu Ein.

cc pz How much are Tanzania’s artists giving voice to the varied and changing cultural landscape of identity, values and beliefs in this globally influenced but locally anchored, culturally diverse, and technologically advancing world?

Tanzania under its pan-Africanist president Julius Nyerere staunchly supported the struggle of the Palestinian people against the US-backed brutal occupation by the Jewish state of Israel, thereby providing a shining example of an African nation’s commitment to emancipation of all oppressed peoples

With its eight chapters and more than a dozen rare photographs of Zanzibar, this book is a well-researched study by a respected author of long-standing. It outlines the dramatic history of Zanzibar and its anti-colonial and anti-imperialist struggles

There is growing fear and self-censorship in Tanzanian newsrooms following violent attacks on journalists in recent months. The country is fast losing its reputation as a peaceful and tolerant society

Sources say the peacekeepers are struggling with equipment problems, poor training of some contingents and the reluctance by some governments to send their soldiers into combat zones

Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete is an enthusiastic supporter of Monsanto, but now pressure is mounting on his government to reject GMO technologies as solutions to end hunger

Walter was an institution. He left a huge shadow on the left, on the African left, and in Tanzania itself. His own learning and foundation were laid in the east African nation

As the fate of over 66,000 Maasai families continues to hang in the balance over a government decision to declare village lands in Loliondo as a ‘Game Controlled Area’, Minority Rights Group International (MRG) urges the government of Tanzania to halt the decision.

For the international community and the government of Tanzania, closing Mtabila Camp and emptying it of refugees might make it look like the problem has been solved, but in reality it has only displaced or dispersed it to Burundi and elsewhere in the region

The Tanzanian Budget Explorer is an initiative to make information about the way the Treasury allocates taxpayers money more accessible: transparent, easy to understand and exciting to follow. Public access to information about how the government spends money in Tanzania is beginning to improve. When available in reports or budget books, however, this information often is too bulky and complex to grasp. It can be a time consuming job to understand, and many people simply don’t have time to invest in doing it.

A heated debate ensued in Parliament after Kawe lawmaker Halima Mdee moved a private motion calling on the House to adopt a resolution pressing the government to suspend the allocation of huge chunks of land for investment to foreigners. Tabling the motion, the outspoken MP, who also doubles as shadow minister for Lands, Housing and Human Settlements Development said increasing land conflicts in various corners of the country had prompted her to call for suspension of allocation of parcels of land to foreign investors.

Amid the doctors’ strike in Tanzania policy analysts met in Dar es Salaam recently, and they said that the on-going crises at the major hospitals are due to poor budgetary allocation, and to mismanagement of funds by some leaders in various Government circles. The analysts say the low budget allocated to the health sector is against the Abuja Declaration on Health Equity. They warned that the health sector is deteriorating fast, and it needed financial intervention.

Since the 2010 boycotted elections, Burundi is steadily drifting away from what was initially regarded as a peacemaking model, and violence from both the ruling party and the opposition is threatening stability. 'Burundi: Bye-bye Arusha?', the latest report from the International Crisis Group, analyses how the control of the institutions by the ruling party and the boycott of the 2010 elections by the main opposition parties made the power-sharing system defined by the 2000 Arusha agreement irrelevant.

Reports of extra-judicial killings and injury of citizens by police officers point to the need for an independent body, like the one established in Kenya, to oversee the operations of the police service.

Malawi's President Joyce Banda has asked the African Union to intervene in the country's border dispute with Tanzania, state media has reported. The southern African nation broke off talks with Tanzania earlier this month over the border on Lake Malawi, which is potentially rich in oil and gas. Malawi disputes Tanzania's claim to half the lake - Africa's third biggest.

Riots erupted in Zanzibar’s Stone Town and Tanzania’s commercial city of Dar es Salaam Wednesday following the arrest and disappearance of Muslim clerics. According to information posted by the US Embassy in Tanzania on its website, there have been roadblocks, tyre burning, rock throwing and rioting in Darajani, Mbuyuni and Kisonge in Zanzibar following the disappearance of Sheikh Farid Haji.