Africa-Press – Tanzania. The Office of the Chief Parliamentary Draftsman (OCPD) is collaborating with the Attorney General’s Office and the Law Reform Commission to analyse and review laws that require improvement or new drafting in order to facilitate the smooth implementation of the National Development Vision (NDV) 2050.
OCPD’s Director of Revision, Research and Training, Ms Rehema Katuga, revealed this in Dodoma recently during a training session organised by the office to raise journalists’ awareness of its functions.
“One of our responsibilities is to ensure that laws being drafted reflect and help in the implementation of government policies and plans, including Dira ya 2050,” she said.
Since Vision 2050 focuses on the digital economy, Ms Katuga added that in the next 25 years most trade and business operations will be conducted digitally, including the use of artificial intelligence (AI). For this reason, OCPD has prioritised capacity-building to ensure its staff are well equipped to handle tasks related to these emerging areas.
“If digital systems are to be widely used, there must be adequate preparations to handle legal tasks from ministries requiring review or drafting,” she said.
The director also noted that the Office has completed the translation of all 446 laws into Kiswahili in a move aimed at enhancing access to justice, equality and development for Tanzanians.
Ms Katuga said OCPD is the institution mandated to draft, review and publish government bills, regulations and other legal instruments. The office works in collaboration with Parliament and the Judiciary to ensure that laws are accessible in simple language, in line with the objective of providing quality legislation for all.
She said the translation exercise has been completed, with all 446 laws submitted to the relevant authorities, and that they will soon come into effect.
“One of our major achievements has been translating our laws into Kiswahili. This will make it easier for Tanzanians to read and understand various laws,” she said.
She added that the Office of the Chief Parliamentary Draftsman plays a fundamental role in transforming policies into laws that promote access to justice, equality and development.
Earlier, Assistant Parliamentary Draftsman – Legal Translation, Mr Said Nzori, said the Office has successfully developed guidelines to facilitate the preparation of a Kiswahili legal dictionary and support the implementation of directives requiring all laws to be translated into Kiswahili.
Launching Dira 2050 last year, President Samia Suluhu Hassan issued several directives to public institutions to enhance the country’s efforts to attain a one-trillion-dollar economy in the next 25 years.
The President directed all ministries to review and update their policies to align with Dira 2050. She also instructed the Planning Commission, in collaboration with the Prime Minister’s Office, to develop a long-term implementation plan ahead of the official rollout in July 2026.
The Planning Commission has also been tasked with strengthening the monitoring and evaluation system to ensure it reflects the country’s long-term development goals.
President Samia further directed the Law Reform Commission and the Office of the Attorney General to review and propose necessary legal reforms to support the seamless execution of the vision.
