Extractive industries transparency bill ready - minister

Extractive industries transparency bill ready - minister

The Tanzania Extractive Industries Transparency and Accountability Act, 2015 will be ready in the 2015/2016, the National Assembly heard yesterday.

Minister for Energy and Minerals, George Simbachawene told legislators here that the draft of the law to strengthen operations in the energy sector was ready.

Speaking while tabling the ministry’s Sh536,960,436,000 budget estimates for the 2015/2016 financial year, he said the law will start operating in the new fiscal year after undergoing all the necessary steps.

“The aim is to strengthen operation and oversee the wider energy sector by maintaining transparency,” he said.

In his speech, the minister dwelt on successes registered by his ministry in the 2014/2015 fiscal year.

He said more than 240,000 people have been connected to the national grid under the Rural Electrification Turnkey Project Phase II from July 2014 to April 2015, being 68 percent of the target compared to 143,113 connected to electricity in 2013/2014 fiscal year.

The regions and the village  connections in brackets are Arusha (1,333), Dodoma (389), Geita (55), Iringa(73), Kagera (1,437), Katavi (73), Kilimanjaro (1,778), Lindi (114), Mtwara (213) Mara (315), Njombe 942), Simiyu (750), Singida (1,030),  and Tanga (476).

He noted that through REA a total of 52 power distribution projects were implemented in Lindi and Mtwara regions at a cost of Sh 6.1 billion by March 2015, connecting 2,270 customers to the grid. Out out this 1, 038 customers reside in Lindi and 1,232 in Mtwara.

In the second phase, the government through REA in collaboration with the Tanzania Electricity Supply Company (TANESCO) conducted an evaluation on the cost of implementing projects of distributing electricity in the two regions along the natural gas pipeline from Mtwara to Somanga w Sh48billion that will be needed.

The minister  elaborated that the government in 2014/15 continued implementing its distribution project off grid, under the Tanzania Energy Development and Access Expansion Project (TEDAP), under which the phase I of the sustainable solar market package (SSMP-I) was implemented and completed in Sumbawanga district in Rukwa region.

The project enabled connections of 285 solar units in various institutions, including 35 dispensaries, nine secondary schools, six health centers, 71 teachers and health officers’ houses, 240 police posts and road lights.

In Tarime, Bunda and Chemba areas, the project connected 50 solar units in schools, dispensaries, health centers, teachers and health officers’ houses.