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3. Basic and Necessary Conditions for
Planning for Sustainable Development

3.1 Local conditions necessary

During interviews, stakeholders (respondents) were requested to point out local conditions they considered necessary for the realization of sustainable development. Most of the conditions raised were those considered basic for making things work better economically and socially. The environmental aspect was not explicitly stated (Tables 3 and 4).

Table 3: Enabling Local Conditions for Planning for Sustainable Development in Mbeya Region

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Sn	Enabling Conditions	Regional Secretariat	Mbozi District	Rungwe District	Mbarali District
1.	Acceptance of the plans for sustainable development by those who have the capability to make them prosper/successful
2.	Community should be capable of understanding and using their right to participate in formulating plans for sustainable development
3.	Politicians should not interfere with the plans for sustainable development
4.	Accessibility to rural areas
5.	Availability of resources
6.	Existence of technocrats with enthusiasm to implement their responsibilities through incentive schemes
7.	Capital for the stakeholders through contributions
8.	Formulating laws and policies that take into consideration the interests of the stakeholders
9.	Transparency
10.	Political will
11.	Doing away with cultures and habits that prohibit development
12.	Projects Management
13.	Security and management of the people and their assets
14.	Knowledge
15.	Availability of assets and financial resources

Based on the table above, one indicator (Number 2) out of 15 was identified by three stakeholder groups, and one (Number 8) was identified by two groups. The rest were identified by a single group.

Table 4: Enabling Local conditions for Plans for Sustainable Development in Arumeru District, Arusha Region

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Sn.	Enabling Preconditions	Ng’iresi Village	Oloitushula Village	Lekitatu Village	Regional Secretariat
1.	Involvement of the community from the level of the household by giving them training on planning for sustainable development
2.	Available resources (Human resource, Land, Good leadership and good politics)
3.	Availability of good infrastructure (communications – telephones, roads)
4.	Availability of technical staff with experience and expertise
5.	Presence of peace and security
6.	Availability of by-laws for sustainable development
7.	Villagers be sensitized on the concept of sustainable development
8.	Availability of data in the villages to be able to know their needs
9.	Citizens should know the laws which govern them
10.	Availability of good government at all levels
11.	A law should be in place which states categorically that plans which do not involve the stakeholders are not valid

Again, looking at the table above, one observes that two conditions (Number 2 and 3) were identified by all stakeholder discussion groups, three (Number 1, 4 and 5) were identified by three groups and one (Number 8) by two groups. The only condition which appeared to have weight in both Mbeya and Arusha discussion groups is that of “accessibility to rural areas” which is number 4 in table 3 and number 3 in table 4.

3.2 The Understanding/Knowledge of the Community on Sustainable Development

The understanding or knowledge of the community is one of the necessary conditions for planning for sustainable development. This can be achieved through social mobilization and sensitisation which has to be carried out by the leadership at all levels. When the key players and/or implementers have adequate knowledge on issues which affect their wellbeing and ownership, accountability and transparency is usually guaranteed. A few practical examples (1 and 2) are given below on what the community can do when they know their needs, problems and solutions. They were drawn from stakeholder consultations in Mbeya and Arusha regions.

Example 1: Measures taken by the Mbeya Region Community in Response to Understanding their Needs and Problems

(i) A Coffee Marketing Example given in Mbozi District

A group of coffee farmers have formed their own marketing club after having realized that they were being cheated by private coffee buyers. The marketing club is now producing very good high quality coffee. During the last marketing season they were able to sell their coffee at Tshs 1200 per kg. This price was higher than the purchase price which was offered to other farmers by more than 75%.

(ii) An Example of Fishing gear in Mbozi District

In another situation, the community was able to reinforce/enact a by-law to ensure that no illegal fishing gear is used for fishing in the Lake. The by-law was imposed after the community had discovered (understood) that the poor fish catch was due to the use of illegal fishing gear.

(iii) An Example of Participation in Planning and Decision Making given in Rungwe District

The planning cycle in many villages of Rungwe district starts with compilation of ideas by different planing committees such as Finance and Planning, Security and defence, Social Services, Health, and Education. These ideas are submitted and discussed by the village before calling for a village assembly to discuss and endorse the proposed plans. Evidence from Ndaga and Idweli villages in Rungwe district had shown that many times, good ideas and plans had been rejected by the villagers during the assembly not because they were bad ideas but due to the poor understanding of the community. Knowing that the good ideas were rejected because the community was not well informed, village leaders had in many occassions taken initiatives to mobilize and sensitize the village members before re-submitting the same proposals to the village assembly. As a consequence they have successfully been able to get support and approval of the same agenda which were previously rejected.

(iv) An Example on Clean Water in Mbozi district

In another incidence stakeholders were able to participate in digging water wells when they recognized that the supply of clean water could reduce health hazards and water borne diseases.

Example 2: Measures taken by Arusha Region Community in Response to

Understanding their Needs and Problems

(i) Oloitushula Village Land Conservation Project

When the Soil Conservation and Afforestation Project in Arumeru District (SCAPA) started at Oloitushula village, some of the farmers were against the construction of contours in their farms on the grounds that they spoiled the landscape and beauty of their farms.

It was reported that this problem still exists although it has to a great extent been reduced. The reduction in the protest against contours has largely been due to the efforts of SCAPA and district officials with the help of village leaders and especially the traditional leaders (Laigwani). These leaders sensitized, persuaded and educated their fellow members on the advantages of constructing contours in their farms.

(ii) Protection of Water Canals in Ng’iresi Village

The Traditional Irrigation Programme (TIP) with the assistance from the district and the regional office do conduct training and sensitization on the better use of the water canals. This involves the protection of water sources, cleanliness of the canals, non-stoppage of the canals as well as avoiding unnecessary water spillover on the road.

Many successes in respect of fertile land which is suitable for agriculture, and operating canals with water throughout the year, is largely a reflection of the villagers’ awareness on the importance of protecting water sources, canals etc. for themselves and for the future generations.

(iii) An example of fish ponds and irrigation agriculture at Lekitatu Village

The fish ponds project at Lekitatu village is about to die. Members of the project who are women know the problems of the project but they do not know how to solve them. These problems include: ants, thefts and destructive birds. But they think their biggest problem is first, lack of good leadership within the group. The second problem relates to the pulling out of the donor who has in the past been managing the project.

During the operation of the project a lot of fish was being harvested which provided nutrition and income to the members. After the donor had pulled out, the members of the project have been managing the project without following cooperative principles and their records have been kept secret. Despite the village government effort to advise them, the members continued to operate their activities without cooperation with the village. This attitude has led to poor performance of the project.

Contrary to the above situation, the rice irrigation farming which uses traditional irrigation in Lekitatu and Manyata, exhibits remarkable success. This is due to the fact that the villagers know the importance of water and the protection and maintenance of canals for their farms. The community in the two villages know very well that without water, they themselves and the future generations cannot survive.

3.3 Participatory Planning and Decision Making

Participation of stakeholders in planning and decision-making can improve accountability, transparency, ownership of projects and other economic, social and environmental activities.

It was noted during consultations in the study districts (3 districts in Mbeya, 1 in Arusha) that there is poor participation of stakeholders in planning and decision making. It was remarked that this problem is one of the major causes of not being able to attain sustainability of projects and strategies in respective areas. A few examples from Mbeya are provided below (Example 3 and 4).

Example 3: Examples Depicting the Importance of Community Participation in Planning – Mbeya Region

(i) An Example of Water Supply at Bagamoyo Ward, Rungwe District

For a long time women in one of the localities of Bagamoyo Ward had to take a long time to fetch water. Two factors were mentioned to be the causes of this problem. First, was the long distance between the locality and the water source, and second, was the fact that the water pressure from the taps was very low and therefore it was taking very long to fill a bucket with water. Following this problem, women of the locality presented the case to their husbands and/or men in the locality who took the agenda to the chairman of the locality. Subsequently, the chairman called a meeting of the members, discussed over the issue and agreed to make contributions for a proper maintenance of the water pipe. The timeframe for contributions was specified and the money collected was used to buy water pipes and pay for labour. Today, women in this locality spend shorter time to fetch water^{fn 1} thus saving time for other more productive activities..

(ii) An Example of Crop Levy at Ndaga and Idweli villages in Rungwe District

During consultations, villagers of Ndaga and Idweli repeatedly indicated that the linkage between their village planning process and that of the district is very poor. Many examples were given but perhaps one case which was more striking is the fact that the Wasafwa who are the minority in Rungwe District and who reside in Isongole Ward where Ndaga and Idweli villages are, strongly feel that they are being marginalized and discriminated.

There are 30 wards in the district out of which only 2 are occupied by the Wasafwa while the remaining 28 wards are occupied by the Wanyakyusa. As a result of this demographic structure, the leaders of the district council who are democratically elected have always come from Wanyakyusa. Unfortunately, the electorates have not been keen to promote the 2 wards belonging to Wasafwa. The present system has completely isolated the two villages from the planning as well as the decision making process. Grassroot participation has been abolished and is no longer part of the vertical planning system as it used to be in the past.

Another example from the same area which shows lack of involvement of stakeholders, refers to the official collection of crop levy. The levy collection method required that each vehicle transporting 10 tons of any type of crop pays to the respective village Tshs 10,000, out of which 20% was retained by the respective village. The retention was for the purpose of ensuring benefit sharing. In practice the 20% retention of tax revenue has been withdrawn by the district council without the knowledge of the villagers. Also, villages are no longer allowed to collect crop levy, a change which has come without their consent. The district council had decided to put a road block in Isongole ward, and tax collectors from the district headquarters perform the tax collection which would otherwise be done by Isongole villagers.

There is also another episode in this ward. All vehicles carrying 10 tons of round potatoes are charged Tshs 30,000 while vehicles with 10 tons of other crops such as bananas are charged Tshs 10,000.This is claimed to be done with the motive of marginalizing the minority Wasafwa whose dependent crop is round potatoes.

(iii) An example of building of teachers’ houses at Rujewa Secondary school (Mbarali)

Villagers strongly feel that they are not involved in the decision making as to how the project should be implemented.

Example 4: Examples Depicting the Importance of Community Participation in Planning – Arusha Region

(i) Land Conservation Project in Oloitushula and Ng’iresi Village

The success of the land conservation project and that of traditional irrigation which were discussed earlier, is due to the involvement of stakeholders from the beginning of the project. Most of the stakeholders who were interviewed in the two villages believed that the observed success is due to their involvement in the preparation and management of the project. It was pointed out that due to the knowledge of land conservation through contours and the planting of reeds, crop yields have increased needs from 2-4 tins of beans in 1990 to 3-4 bags in 2000. Maize yields have increased from 2-2.5 bags to 5 bags during the same period respectively.

(ii) An Example of the Current System of Planning at the District and Village Level

It was reported that one of the major causes of the failure of projects (or failure to provide benefit to many people for a long period) is the non-involvement of stakeholders in the identification and preparation of their “own” projects.

In principle the preparation of village projects is supposed to start from the bottom. Unfortunately, the “bottom up” approach has remained more at the level of rhetoric than actually putting it in practice. At the operational level, planning starts from the top and goes down to the village level “top down approach”. People at the lower levels are usually not involved in preparing plans. They are the receivers of decisions made at the district level.

This system of top-down, provides very narrow opportunity of attaining sustainable development. Often there are complaints from villages on how tax revenues are spent in preparing plans. Many villages are to some extent not involved in preparing plans because the fund allocated is only enough to meet expenses incurred during planning sessions which take place at the district level.

Education and Utilization of Capabilities

Training was also mentioned by stakeholders as an important factor towards sustainable development. Training (education) and the economic growth particularly industrial growth or development are inevitable if sustainable development is the primary goal. Also important is the public or community confidence which can only be attained when the people have adequate training (education).

The available professionals are poorly utilized. Some of them have no employment and others are given/are appointed for jobs which are different from their professions. Majority of experts are not given on the job training, which could have improved their efficiency tremendously. This is another constraint to sustainable development.

Relationship between Institutions and Different Sectors

The existing institutions are poorly coordinated. This is another constraint to sustainable development. There is a need for frequent consultations among institutions to address the problems of overlapping roles and dublication of efforts.

3.4 By-Laws

In order to implement successfully plans, strategies and projects, the respective laws must be understood, followed and respected. In other words, it is important that the law prevails rather than being prevailed.

By-laws are some of the issues, which stakeholders pointed out being important in realizing sustainable development. At the village level, by-laws are used to assist the implementation of policies, projects and resolutions, which have been concluded and agreed by the community. A good example is that of Oloitushula village where the following by-law is set. The by-law says, “any member of the village who neglects to pay the agreed contribution for a particular development project, is obliged to pay a goat, sheep or cow”. What, really happens is that the respective committee simply goes to the person and takes the required animal which is then sold. It was reported that this arrangement has made it easy to collect contributions for constructing schools. Likewise, contributions for school desks have been easily collected. The following examples show how by-laws assist development activities in the rural areas:-

(i) By-laws to protect children’s rights. For instance in Oloitushula village, every child who reaches the age of being able to read must be send to the kindergaten. Attending kindergarten is the criteria which qualifies a child to be selected to standard one. If a parent violates this law s/he is fined or his/her livestock taken away.

(ii) (ii) The health strategy of Oloitushula village. Every household in Oloitushula village is obliged to have a toilet and it must be used. Regular inspection is made to make sure that the toilets are utilized by all members of the family. If it is discovered that the toilet is not adequately used, the respective household is fined Tshs. 5000. Those who do not have a toilet are fined Tshs. 10,000. This strategy is assumed to ensure the presence of good health within the community.

In Ukwile village, Mbozi District there are 3 groups that have the responsibility for sustainable development. One of them is Ukwile Group, which is responsible for the conservation and protection of the forestry. The remaining 2 groups are Songambele Group and Chimbuya.The activities of each of these two groups are briefly described below:-

(a) Songambele Group

This group is responsible for ensuring the sustainability of Lake Tope. The villagers are sensitised on modern fishing methods and are made aware of the shortcomings of dangerous fishing methods. They are rehabilitating the source of water by planting trees.

(b) Chimbuya Group

This group is responsible for the rehabilitation of the wells and their protection against destruction. The rehabilitation is done by constructing foundations around the wells and planting trees.

The villagers of Ukwile have by laws which govern them against immature tree cutting, bush fire, illegal fishing gear and mis-use of the canals.

3.5 Peace and Security within and Outside the Country

Sustainable development is a dream if the security of those who implement strategies, projects and plans is non-existent. For example, if there is no security, the businessmen and women would not be able to move their products to the markets. Likewise, farmers would not be able to move their crops and buy inputs for fear of being attacked. Such acts affect development activity in the country. Further, security outside the country that is along the borders and in areas where refugees have settled is extremely important for achieving sustainable development. No business activities can take place when the country is at war. This is because war forces people to flee, abandon their homes, projects and development activities.

3.6 A market

Production has no meaning if there is no market for the products. For this reason there is a need of having good markets for the products, produced by different projects. Strengthening of the infrastructure would facilitate movement of products from surplus areas to deficit areas, such as from Sumbawanga to Mtwara.

3.9 Sensitization of the Community

Sensitization of the community is important in planning for sustainable development. Sensitization assists the community to understand the importance of planning, and participation in the preparation and implementation of projects.

3.10 Good governance and Expertise

Good governance and availability of expertise at different levels starting from the village ensures good politics, productivity, income, employment, development and sustainability of strategies in the community. Development and sustainable projects at the village level require leadership with a vision and wide knowledge. This is important for being able to conduct advocacy and properly supervising the implementation of development projects at the village level. Further, expertise, working facilities and inputs, are very important at all levels especially during preparation and implementation of plans and projects.

In practically all villages, complaints were made in respect of low relationship between the village and the districts during the preparation of plans. Most villages have high demand for planning capabilities and the possibility for solving the problem in the near future appears remote. In Ng’iresi village, the youth are lacking training on how to manage group projects.

Relatedly there is the issue of good leadership. In Rungwe there is a group called “Umoja wa Wafugaji wa Tukuyu (UWATU)” which has organised itself on cooperative basis for the purpose of selling livestock products. The group has expanded its services to include a transport project and the selling of farm inputs. The success of the group has been attributed to good leadership.