Africa-Press – Tanzania. THE government wants to see the National Environment Management Council (NEMC) paying critical attention to national strategic projects over and above standing firm in protecting the country’s environment.
Minister of State in the Vice-President’s Office (Union and Environment) Ummy Mwalimu told NEMC leaders during her visit to the council’s offices recently in Dar es Salaam, that national strategic projects currently being implemented by the government were very important to the national development agenda and needed particular attention from every quarter to ensure they succeeded and were completed on schedule.
Apart from overall task of protecting and managing Tanzania’s environment, the minister said NEMC should pay due and critical attention to national strategic projects that were being implemented because they meant a lot in defining the Tanzania of tomorrow.
She said NEMC experts must make field visits and talk to investors instead of relying on consultants to advise investors on environment impact assessment processes.
“You must get out of your offices and advise investors on what to do instead of leaving the task to consultants, because some of these consultants are dishonest; they lengthen the assessment process and have contributed to delays in giving investors Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) certificates,” the minister said.
The minister also called on the council to strengthen zonal offices and empower workers to enable them match the government’s investment tempo.
“We need to do a lot of work to meet the needs and expectations of investors. This will only happen if you will strengthen zonal offices and give workers all the necessary facilitation in order to remove the enormous workload currently found at the headquarters,” she said.
The minister called on Tanzanians to ensure they protect the environment in whatever they did because, Tanzania was part of this planet facing unprecedented rise in temperatures.
NEMC Director General, Samuel Gwamaka told the minister that the council shared the concern of the minister, telling her that NEMC appreciated the importance of the strategic projects being implemented and paid special attention to them.
“The council appreciates your concern on all the raised issues, and we shall implement all your directives and advices relating to management and workers.
We have our own schedule that we employ to ensure strategic projects are implemented well. Indeed, the implementation will now be easier that there is a ministerial push through your directives,” the DG said
