EPAS TALKS SHOULD END IN WIN-WIN AGREEMENT
Fresh negotiations on Economic Partnership Agreements (Epas) are due to start soon. Retired President Benjamin Mkapa has restated his warning over a deal between the European Union (EU) and the East African Community (EAC), calling upon the latter to espouse a more sensible approach to attain regional developmental goals.
Mr Mkapa has urged EAC member states to concentrate on strengthening the region’s Common Market as well as helping the bloc to tap into the largely unexploited African market instead of banking on Epas for the region’s development.
Much as we neither support nor oppose Mr Mkapa’s stand, we believe that his words should not be taken lightly. It is an undeniable fact that Mr Mkapa boasts vast experience on the development front that the EAC could benefit from.
However, the negotiations are desirable in that the region needs a comprehensive agreement to supersede the preferential trade arrangements between EAC and EU, which are largely viewed as violating the WTO’s Most Favoured Nation (MFN) provisions.
This means that the future of the EAC’s industries is now in the hands of the region’s negotiators, who are required to bargain the Epas with the region’s best interests in mind. This, however, does not mean that we would like to see the EU ending up as the “loser”.
It should not be lost on us that the EU knows exactly what it is doing, taking into consideration the technological and industrial disparities between the two sides.It is always a challenge to negotiate with your benefactor, and EAC member states should know this only too well because most of them still depend on the EU for substantial budgetary aid.
However, the EAC negotiators need to participate in the discussions with the EU as equal partners instead of regarding the latter with awe. This will in the long run benefit East Africa much as it will benefit the EU.
Much as we neither support nor oppose Mr Mkapa’s stand, we believe that his words should not be taken lightly. It is an undeniable fact that Mr Mkapa boasts vast experience on the development front that the EAC could benefit from.
However, the negotiations are desirable in that the region needs a comprehensive agreement to supersede the preferential trade arrangements between EAC and EU, which are largely viewed as violating the WTO’s Most Favoured Nation (MFN) provisions.
This means that the future of the EAC’s industries is now in the hands of the region’s negotiators, who are required to bargain the Epas with the region’s best interests in mind. This, however, does not mean that we would like to see the EU ending up as the “loser”.
It should not be lost on us that the EU knows exactly what it is doing, taking into consideration the technological and industrial disparities between the two sides.It is always a challenge to negotiate with your benefactor, and EAC member states should know this only too well because most of them still depend on the EU for substantial budgetary aid.
However, the EAC negotiators need to participate in the discussions with the EU as equal partners instead of regarding the latter with awe. This will in the long run benefit East Africa much as it will benefit the EU.
WRONG APPROACH BY POLICE
The Police Force in Dar es Salaam has launched what is likely to be yet another short-lived campaign to reduce congestion on the city’s roads.The Dar es Salaam Special Police Zone Commander, Mr Suleiman Kova, on Tuesday announced a raft of measures police would take to ensure that motorists adhere to traffic rules, particularly in the city centre.
This latest attempt to solve a problem that has for the past two decades or so been getting worse by the day is bound to fail because it does not address the root cause of congestion and endless jams on the city’s roads.
The number of vehicles in Dar es Salaam has risen exponentially in the last 20 years, but the development of transport infrastructure in the city and its environs has not matched the pace of this increase. The number of vehicles being registered daily is mind-boggling, which means that traffic chaos is likely to worsen in spite of police measures meant to restore a semblance of sanity on the city’s roads.
Any plan to reduce congestion must include a strategy to get as many vehicles off the road as possible, and the most effective way to do this is to improve the efficiency, comfort and convenience of public transport. This is the only way to persuade people owning cars to switch to cheaper public transport and use their own vehicles only sparingly.
As long as people are willing to freely spend their hard-earned money running their private vehicles and be stuck in traffic jams for hours on end almost daily, we should not expect the chaos on our roads to ease any time soon. It is all well and good for police to make sure that motorists and other road users follow traffic rules to the letter, but we doubt if this alone will rid Dar es Salaam roads of congestion and jams that have now become synonymous with the city.
This latest attempt to solve a problem that has for the past two decades or so been getting worse by the day is bound to fail because it does not address the root cause of congestion and endless jams on the city’s roads.
The number of vehicles in Dar es Salaam has risen exponentially in the last 20 years, but the development of transport infrastructure in the city and its environs has not matched the pace of this increase. The number of vehicles being registered daily is mind-boggling, which means that traffic chaos is likely to worsen in spite of police measures meant to restore a semblance of sanity on the city’s roads.
Any plan to reduce congestion must include a strategy to get as many vehicles off the road as possible, and the most effective way to do this is to improve the efficiency, comfort and convenience of public transport. This is the only way to persuade people owning cars to switch to cheaper public transport and use their own vehicles only sparingly.
As long as people are willing to freely spend their hard-earned money running their private vehicles and be stuck in traffic jams for hours on end almost daily, we should not expect the chaos on our roads to ease any time soon. It is all well and good for police to make sure that motorists and other road users follow traffic rules to the letter, but we doubt if this alone will rid Dar es Salaam roads of congestion and jams that have now become synonymous with the city.
Constant training for drivers important
Perhaps the major cause of motor accidents in Tanzania is the human error. Whether the causes are mechanical defects, overloading or over-speeding, they all point to the human being.It is the human being who knows when the motor vehicle is due for service and takes it to a garage for this undertaking or fixing mechanical defects.
Yet, it is also the driver who knows the capacity of the motor vehicle and decides to carry more goods or passengers than its capacity.Further, it is also the driver has to stick to speed limits placed on road signs on certain sections of the road. Beyond them the driver endangers the vehicle, goods and passengers he/she is carrying.
Therefore, all these factors zero in on the driver, the human being. Yet, very little attention, if at all, has been given to drivers. So long as they pass their driving tests, and get licences that, unfortunately, is all that matters!
It is until they get an accident or they are stopped by a police officer that their licences are checked for validity. Otherwise, a driver can keep on driving for years on end without being ‘bothered’ about how he/she is driving.
But traffic rules and regulations are not static; sometimes they change, though not all the time. As such, it is necessary for drivers to update their skills on driving in conformity with the new rules and regulations.
We commend what has been going on in Iringa Region recently. The region has formed a special road safety team to train over 450 drivers in an effort to reduce road accidents. This also gives them an opportunity to acquire new driving licences that are internationally recognised.
Yet, it is also the driver who knows the capacity of the motor vehicle and decides to carry more goods or passengers than its capacity.Further, it is also the driver has to stick to speed limits placed on road signs on certain sections of the road. Beyond them the driver endangers the vehicle, goods and passengers he/she is carrying.
Therefore, all these factors zero in on the driver, the human being. Yet, very little attention, if at all, has been given to drivers. So long as they pass their driving tests, and get licences that, unfortunately, is all that matters!
It is until they get an accident or they are stopped by a police officer that their licences are checked for validity. Otherwise, a driver can keep on driving for years on end without being ‘bothered’ about how he/she is driving.
But traffic rules and regulations are not static; sometimes they change, though not all the time. As such, it is necessary for drivers to update their skills on driving in conformity with the new rules and regulations.
We commend what has been going on in Iringa Region recently. The region has formed a special road safety team to train over 450 drivers in an effort to reduce road accidents. This also gives them an opportunity to acquire new driving licences that are internationally recognised.
Carrying out the campaign in other regions during the annual road safety week will be a more effective way than doing it as an emergency case.
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