AfricaPress-Tanzania: THE government announced yesterday details of its much-awaited heralded action plan for tackling the job crisis, which indicates it targets to get over 44,000 more staff during the next financial year.
Minister of State President’s Office (Public Service Management and Good Governance) George Mkuchika, revealed here that the State is further considering to promote an addition of 222,290 in-service civil servants during the 2020/21 financial year.
Tabling the ministry’s budget estimates and expenditures for the 2020/21 financial year, the minister said the government will be recruiting extra 13,529 employees for its education sector.
There will be 10,467 slots for the health sector, 2,145 posts for agriculture, livestock and fisheries profession.
Mr Mkuchika who prayed to the National Assembly to endorse 700.2bn/- , explained that an additional 2,725 new jobs will be for the police force, an extra 685 positions for the prisons department, 501 jobs for fire and rescue unit as well as 495 job opening for the immigration department.
“We will be recruiting at least 1,262 people for religious-based hospitals,” he said, adding. “Some 13,002 more professionals will be hired for other sectors, including lecturers in public universities.”
The new arrangement shows that a total of 44,811 new jobs will be created, a whopping increment from only 6,975 jobs that were created for the civil service in the current year.
Details from the minister further showed that about 290,625 State employees were promoted between July 2019 and March 2020.
Minister Mkuchika told parliamentarians that the government has been working tirelessly to improve working conditions, including paying salary arrears.
Over the last four years of President John Magufuli’s administration, the government reviewed and paid over 130.4bn/- to about 100,684 employees.
It is also finalizing payment process worth over 33.7bn/- for 23,923 employees and a review of claims from 23,923 staff worth over 54.67bn/-.
“We plan to review the salaries of some 20,027 civil servants worth over 45.7bn/- during the next financial year,” he added.
Dr Jasson Rweikiza, Chairman of the Parliamentary Administration and Local Government Committee, said the challenge facing the public service include limited salary adjustments and staff promotions.
“The government must work on how to eliminate challenges, including shortage of employees especially in the health and education sector that was heavily affected during the countrywide academic certificates verification exercise,” he said.
He added salary increment for civil servants is vital to help the key group address the emerging cost of living.
“The committee further advised the government to confirm officials who are still acting in various positions considering that they hold the needed qualifications,” he said.
Legislator Joseph Kakunda (Sikonge—CCM) advised the government to fast track the process of reviewing salary and allowance claims from the civil servants before the October general election.
MPs Upendo Peneza (Special Seats—Chadema) and Elibariki Kingu (CCM) asked the government to reconsider salary increments of all civil servants and especially health professionals.
Debating the ministry’s budget, Mr Kingu further advised the government to reconsider new measures to protect the tourism industry that he said had a huge contribution to the nation’s economy.
The legislator was concerned that the current battle against the COVID-19 pandemic would disrupt a number of sectors and that civil servants would also be affected.
