Tanzania’s ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi’s stranglehold on power received a major knock in the just-concluded elections. CCM candidate Jakaya Kikwete won the presidential race comfortably with some 61 per cent of the vote. But that in Tanzania amounts to a massive setback in a system where the party candidate is routinely guaranteed close to 90 per cent of the vote and the opposition can barely gather a handful of MPs.

A second Tanzanian opposition party criticised the country's presidential and parliamentary electoral process on Thursday as authorities continued releasing results at a snail's pace. Tanzania's National Electoral Commission (NEC) admitted on Wednesday that there could have been irregularities in the vote tallying but said any errors would not influence the final result and rejected calls for a fresh poll.

A deadly animal virus which broke out earlier this year in Tanzania could spread to Southern Africa, threatening the lives of more than 50 million sheep and goats in 15 countries, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has warned. Known as Peste des Petits Ruminants, or small ruminants’ plague (PPR), it is considered the most destructive viral disease affecting small flocks, on par with rinderpest, a deadly cattle plague that has wreaked havoc on agriculture for millennia, resulting in famine and economic destruction.

For a place to be deemed a health facility, there are things that are considered to be necessities such as human resources and medicinal drugs, among many others. However, we find so many health facilities in this country failing to meet these standards thereby being reduced to nothing but white elephants. Recently, it was reported that Dar es Salaam municipal hospitals are facing serious shortages of medicines and medical staff such as nurses and doctors, something that cripples the operations of these health facilities, aggravating the suffering of the general public as they fail to provide quality services to patients.

Nine days after the general elections in Tanzania a panel of experts will discuss the scene on the ground leading up to the elections, the election process itself and the what next for Tanzania.

The Electoral Institute for the Sustainability of Democracy in Africa (EISA) deployed a observer mission to the Zanzibar General Elections of 31 October 2010 and has issued preliminary findings and recommendations. The mission noted that there has been a significant improvement in levels of political tolerance since the last elections held in Zanzibar in 2005. The agreement between President Amane Abeid Karume, leader of Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) in Zanzibar and Seif Sharif Hamad, leader of Civic United Front (CUF) contributed significantly to this observable change in political tolerance.

The poor countries must have an exit policy away from aid dependency especially since the North will be cutting their aid as a result of the global crisis. Moreover, the South and its political leaders must think more for themselves, listen to their own experts and redefine development. This message was conveyed by South Centre chairman Benjamin Mkapa at the closing ceremony of the conference on the Global Economy in Beijing on 4 August.

Tanzanians voted on on 31 October 2010 to elect the President of the United Republic of Tanzania, President of Zanzibar, Members of Parliament and Members of the Zanzibar House of Representatives. Using hashtags #UchaguziTZ, #uchaguzi, and #TZelect, Tanzanian netizens have been keeping their followers updated with results and on-the-ground observations.

Cynical observers among the international media will be disappointed by the relative calm accompanying Tanzania's elections, suggests Gado.

Tanzania grants high levels of tax exemptions relative to what it collects in revenue. This raises concerns about whether the practice is justified for a country that can barely raise enough to finance its budget. Analysis by civil society organisation Uwazi at Twaweza shows that tax exemptions have increased sharply during the second part of this decade (2006-2010) compared to what was granted in the earlier half of this decade (2001-2005). The analysis, presented in a policy brief titled, 'Tanzania’s Tax Exemptions: are they too high and making us too dependent on foreign aid?' suggests that Tanzania could make significant savings in revenues if it granted tax exemptions less liberally.

Tanzania is one of a number of countries in the Southern African region that have sought to include ICTs in their national development plans. A Panos policy brief summarises a report of the achievements and weaknesses of this approach in Tanzania, and considers the next steps that are needed to meet the information and communication needs of the coming generation.

On 31 October Tanzanians will elect a new President and a 10th Parliament (Bunge). Many of those standing for election served during the 9th Bunge between 2005 and 2010. How did these MPs perform? Did they participate actively and represent their constituencies by asking questions and making interventions, or were they silent backbenchers? Using official Bunge data sources, Uwazi at Twaweza, an organisation that seeks to 'liberate' data and information so as to better inform public discussion, has presented a ranking of the most and least active MPs in Parliament.

Uganda is the leading country in gender equality in East Africa, according to the World Economic Forum's Global Gender Gap report 2010. The report released this week ranked Uganda at 33rd position out of 134 countries surveyed worldwide. Tanzania was the second in the EA region at number 66, while Kenya was the least performer at number 96. The report showed that Tanzania has been recording a steep drop since 2006 when the country ranked 24th out of 115 countries.

Tanzania is facing a new debt crisis as budget crunches in rich countries are bringing cuts in aid spending, forcing the government to seek loans to meet budget deficits. During the year ending July 2010, the national debt stock soared by more than $1.185 billion to a staggering $10.1 billion, according to Bank of Tanzania figures.

Tanzanians preparing to go to the polls on 31 October are ‘keenly aware that the country’s political future is at stake’, says Salma Maoulidi. Their votes, writes Maoulidi, could redefine the direction of a country ‘jeopardised by the dominance of economic interests and buddy patronage pursued by the government of the incumbent candidate and ruling party.’

Tanzania will go to the polls on October 30, 2010 and the general election campaign is well underway. As the campaigns heat up, presidential candidates and other candidates fighting for parliamentary seats are using new media tools to communicate with potential voters. Along with campaign rallies, which target the majority of the population, a small number of politicians have started to use social media tools such as blogs, online videos, Facebook and twitter to create deeper engagement with voters.

Tanzanian NGO Sikika and Policy Forum, a network of Tanzanian NGOs, recently undertook an analysis of unnecessary expenditures to find out if government commitments to spend more efficiently were being met. Slashing unnecessary expenditure, their report states, could enable the Tanzanian government to build more than 100 dispensaries in remote areas or buy 5,000 delivery beds to reduce the number of pregnant women who deliver on the ?oors of hospitals and clinics.

Seven presidential candidates will take part in the 31 October general elections in Tanzania, with incumbent President Jakaya Kikwete being the clear favourite. But the opposition may make important gains. Education, health and employment are some of the main issues dominating the election campaign as Tanzanians prepare for the 31 October election. President Kikwete and the CCM are expected to be rewarded by voters for the positive economic development in Tanzania during his first period.

Gender Training Institute (GTI) is a centre for feminist leadership under the Tanzania Gender Networking Programme (TGNP). Since 1993, the institute under Tanzania Gender Networking Programme (TGNP) has been providing transformative gender training and capacity development services based on animation/participatory approaches. The core purpose of GTI is to provide learning and capacity development in support for transformative feminist movement building, policy engagement and social transformation at all levels within the country and beyond. The organisation’s vision is to become the epicenter for feminism transformation through effective capacity building. The course is being conducted in the context that there still exists unequal global, regional and national economic and social relations and limited focus of pro-poor and gender considerations in macro- economic policies and budget.

For hundreds of years, pastoralists in Tanzania’s Ngorongoro District have lived off cattle, managing grazing land communally. But this way of life is under threat, as business interests trump traditional land rights, with the blessing of the government. Susanna Nordlund has written a blog about her visit to Loliondo to explore reports of conflict between local Masaai communities and a foreign-owned safari company, in which she raises a number of allegations. We reproduce her post in the hope that this might stimulate a serious investigation of these events.