Africa-Press – Tanzania. THE United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Country Representative, Jacqueline Mahon has said the prevailing peace in Tanzania has been a catalyst for the country’s development.
“The UN thanks Tanzania for continuing being a strong base of peace and bringing countries together while helping to build peace in neighbouring countries in East and Southern Africa,” Ms Mahon stated during an event at the Open University of Tanzania (OUT) on Tuesday to mark the International Day of Peace.
She thanked the government for contributing peacekeepers to the UN peacekeeping missions all over the world.The International Day of Peace, sometimes officially known as World Peace Day, is a United Nations-sanctioned holiday observed annually on September 21.
The day seeks to strengthen the ideals of peace, through observing 24 hours of non-violence and cease-fire. This day promotes global solidarity for building a peaceful and sustainable world.
Tanzania also hosts over 300,000 refugees from the Democratic Republic of Congo and Burundi who fled their conflict-ridden countries.
The theme for this year’s commemoration is, ‘Recovering better for an equitable and sustainable world.’
The theme reminds of the need to take precautions and work to overcome the Covid-19 pandemic.
At the OUT, experts discussed education, employment, and health in relation to peace.
OUT Vice Chancellor Prof Elifas Bisanda, commended the government for offering free basic education, which is crucial in defeating three enemies; poverty, diseases and ignorance, which could also contribute to peace disruption.
However, he said the number of Tanzanians joining tertiary education is still low, something which needs support from different stakeholders.
He said the country faces shortage of skilled people to serve the rapidly growing manufacturing sector.
Hamisi Malebo, Professor of Medicinal Chemistry, dwelt on health in relation to peace.
Prof Malebo said the spread of Covid-19 is not only a global health threat but also a threat to peace.
He argued that as countries grapple with the pandemic, unbalanced delivery of healthcare can lead to peace disruption.
“On psychosocial aspect, the pandemic can cause trauma which leads to peace disruption in communities. The connection between health and peace is real,” he said.
Commenting, Mr Deodatus Kinawiro, Country Director of the Fairmont Royal Group, said the International Day of Peace is an important day for Tanzania to celebrate since the country has been an ‘Island of Peace’.
Mr Kinawiro argued that to continue sustaining peace, youth have to be economically empowered by creating more employment opportunities because jobless youths could engage in criminal acts and disrupt peace.
