AfricaPress-Tanzania: Anthony Mavunde, the Deputy Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s Office (Policy, Parliamentary Affairs, Labour, Employment, Youth and the Disabled), said here yesterday that employers must abide by joint guidelines on employment especially during the fight against Covid-19 infections.
He said the minister, Jenista Mhagama, had already issued directives to employers who retrench workers without following laid down procedures, citing the coronavirus pandemic.
“The minister’s directives notwithstanding, the ministry will make its position clear on the matter, and the rules will be made known for every employer to abide by,” he said.
“The Prime Minister’s Office works on employment issues by tripartite consultation, for workers, employers and the government. Already a joint meeting took place last week; we are waiting for its resolutions and we will issue the guidelines accordingly,” he said.
The deputy minister said they will issue directives on what is to be done as the meeting involved all the three sides.
On youth employment, Mavunde said as of now they are working with the Ministry of Agriculture to enable the youth to give their views on their being engaged in agriculture.
“It was seen that agriculture was the last resort after failing to engage in other occupations, and we in the government saw that the only area that can directly solve the youth unemployment challenge was the agricultural sector,” he stated.
He said in the last five years great achievements were seen as the youth began changing their mindsets and many of them have made economic gains in the sector.
In another development, Ummy Mwalimu, the minister for Health, Community Development, Gender, Elderly and Children yesterday confirmed 14 new cases in the Mainland, while her Isles counterpart Hamad Rashid Mohamed confirmed three new cases, a total of 17 new cases during the Easter period.
The minister’s announcement brings the number of cases in Tanzania to 49, up from 32 confirmed cases on Friday. Of the new cases, 13 are in Dar es Salaam and one in Arusha.
“All the patients continue with treatment under special care from medical experts,” said Mwalimu in a media release yesterday.
Health experts continue to trace and test individuals who have had contacts with the patients, she said, urging the public to take precautions and adhere to coronavirus preventive measures.
For his part, minister Hamad said that during the past four days, three people tested positive making a total of 12 confirmed Covid-19 cases in Zanzibar.
The patients were admitted at a designated coronavirus treatment centre at Kidimni in Central district, Unguja.
The Isles minister announced the recovery of two patients who were admitted at the centre, but they will be isolated at home for 14 days.
“The new patients were infected via community transmission,” he said, noting that all there are from the Zanzibar Urban West region. One is a 30 years female residing at Mwanakwerekwe, another a 22 years male, resident of Jang’ombe in Unguja and the third a male (19) from Bumbwisudi district.
The ministry has opened another center for treatment of Covid-19 patients at JKU secondary school in Mtoni, Unguja.
He said the move follows an increasing trend of individuals testing positive for the virus.
As of Sunday, about 164 persons who had contacts with coronavirus patients were being closely monitored by health experts while 232 others who arrived in Zanzibar from abroad have been quarantined.
“We have released 264 people from quarantine following negative results from blood test after completing the 14 days mandatory isolation,” he said.
On 16 March the first case in Tanzania was confirmed in Arusha, of a 46-year-old Tanzanian lady who had come to Arusha from Belgium.
