Used motor vehicle spare parts is a choice of many fleet owners

MOTOR vehicle service industry in Tanzania has flourished following the liberalization of the sector almost two decades ago. With many imported cars currently flocking Tanzania market, the sale of used motor Spare-parts in cities and in big towns in the country is booming. With the rising cost of genuine vehicle spare parts which at present are mainly of the Ex-Japanese car models which accounts for the majority of vehicles mostly plying the Tanzanian roads, in spite of this, vehicle owners tend to buy the already used spare parts as their choice for their vehicles for they are easily available. A spot check carried out in most shops selling used spare parts in the city of Dar es Salaam recently shows that, many commercial and individual motorists tend to buy the fairly priced imported used spare-parts for their vehicles rather than the genuine ones which costs high. Fleet owners with small vehicles as well as big ones are becoming very popular about the source of their vehicle accessories and other auxiliaries, as genuine parts pricing could be a major factor an aspect that have paved the way for the used spare parts to dominate the market.
According to dealers of the materials, it’s evident that used spare parts from other countries unlike Japan like India, China, Singapore, Taiwan and any other far East countries where they are manufactured under license are readily available and affordable.
Auto-parts dealers could be said to have successfully played the balancing game of offering cost-effective rates to would be their customers while selling the already used motor spare-parts. Unlike before, the service sector lacked the necessary parts for the running vehicles.

Old spare parts tyres on sale at a shop in Magomeni, in Dar es Salaam city. Second hand spare parts have become a great choice for many fleet owners.

But now it has become under such close and intense scrutiny, time is rapidly changing and the situation where providers have to set standards while consumers accept whatever is offered to public users. Dar es Salaam now is a source of a variety of second hand Auto-parts in the region since the liberalization of the sector with extra advantage of being the region’s main port where most of the parts are first landed. Dealers stock their spares for different models of Japanese vehicles ranging from 3 tones to heavy commercial vehicles. Many of these dealers can be found around Kariakoo areas and within the city’s central business district. They import and sells their accessories in retail prices of different types. With these spare parts, they are sure that their clients gets proper after sales services For any individual or firm in the transport business, the purchase of a new heavy truck is a big investment. This is so not only because the initial capital outlay is enormous, but because repairs and maintenance costs could be a major item on one’s recurrent budget. Indeed one of the major factors an individual or firm purchasing a heavy truck should always consider is the availability of spares and maintenance facilities, says Abdalah Nassor a transporter who owns a commuter bus in the city of Dar es Salaam.
In a situation such as is found in Tanzania and even in the whole of East Africa, where roads are poor and breakdowns are common, the availability of these motor spare parts and maintenance facilities cannot be overemphasized. This is because despite the bad operating conditions, a truck which is basically a commercial vehicle has to traverse long distances in such away as to retain a profit for its owner and preserve the integrity of the cargo for the client. Motor vehicle spare parts needs regular check-ups especially those on the part of an engine area. These are the most important ones because it’s where the highest danger of damages lies. Other than the engine, another spare part which should receive regular attention as far as lubrication is concerned is the gearbox. Other than the mechanical parts other motor spare parts which are old that need regular servicing and maintenance include the electrical and the breaking system, says James Maneno, a famous mechanical engineer in the city. Since most importers are also involved in the business of packing, shipment, clearing and forwarding transportation, they have at their disposal a large variety of skilled manpower leading to quick shipment and clearing of goods from Dar es Salaam port. According to one shopkeeper who spoke of strict condition of anonymity, the business is overshadowed following the mushrooming of many shops in the city. He says they have to order their spare parts for sale directly from Japan and Dubai Oman.

Construction of Kigamboni Bridge set for next year

PLANS to construct a multi billion worth of a 0.5 kilometer bridge across the Magogoni creek in Dar es Salaam which was signed four years ago between the government and National Social Security Fund (NSSF), is yet to start as the government is currently finalizing some technical procedures. In view of this fact, residents of Kigamboni suburb off the city of Dar es Salaam who had been anxiously waiting for the execution of the project, will have to draw a patience for a while despite of the promise by the government that it would construct a bridge linking them with the city center as the preparations on the construction are still under discussions.
The long-awaited and much-talked about the proposed bridge has stalled in the wake of transport crisis currently facing residents in the areas as NSSF the financier was waiting for the modalities about the project to be finalized by the government, an official from NSSF said last week in Dar es Salaam. NSSF’s Director of Planning investment and projects Mr. Yacoub .M. Kidula told in an exclusive interview that the project planned to be implemented under Public Private Partnership (PPP) arrangements is still in the planning stage. However, he added that once the process is concluded, his organization would organize to get a strategic partner to execute the job, and already the firm has received over thirty applicants who would be scrutinized afterwards to get one fit for the job.
”The Fund was in the process of getting a strategic investor to partner with it in executing the project”, he said echoing a pledge made several times in recent years. However, he refuted the allegations published in one of the daily newspapers in the country that NSSF has pulled out of this project. He said, the project is still at its infancy stage of preparations that is too early to talk about, he cautioned that, it’s the government who have to speak on its behalf at this time for it’s their property. He stressed a point that NSSF are coordinators. When contacted for further clarification, an unanonymous government official from the Ministry of Infrastructure Development said, “the government has already commissioned experts to conduct feasibility study on the project, after which the contractor would be appointed to start construction works probably by May next year. He said the process is cumbersome and needs more time to accomplish that task which together with other things requires care and techniques which has to be applied from the engineering point of view. The bridge, to be built across the Kurasini creek, will link metropolitan Dar es Salaam to the Kigamboni suburb, whose residents have endured serious transport problems for decades since independence.
Most currently the transport in between depend on the off and on services of two dilapidated pontoons - MV Alina and MV Kigamboni in order to cross the creek. Smaller vessels usually chip in when the pontoons are grounded, with safety far from guaranteed. A cross section of Dar es Salaam businessmen trading at Magogoni fish market had something to say about the project when contacted for comments, with most of them putting on criticism saying that the government was to blame for shelving the project for years, calling for a time-frame to guide the implementation. Some of them recalled the signing event as meaningless when NSSF signed an agreement with the Ministry of Works in Dar es Salaam since 2004 to undertake a feasibility study for the construction of the bridge. The ceremony was also attended by the then Minister for Works, Hon. John Pombe Magufuli.
According to the agreement signed by the NSSF Managing Director, Dr. Ramadhan Dau, and the Permanent Secretary of the then Ministry of Works, Engineer John Kijazi, NSSF would have six months to complete the study and forward their recommendations to the government prior to the start of the work. But to the great dismay, speaking in a pensive mood most residents of Kigamboni suburb and its environs are astonished by the way the government is handling the issue which it seems to have repudiated it. Rashidi Ntomoko, a famous businessman in the city who resides at Mji Mwema within Kigamboni suburb said “Kigamboni is the only place with good open space for business”. He is appealing to the government to hurry up with the project so as to get an easy movements with the business activities in the area. Apart from business activities, he added that investing on the bridge was also aimed at improving environment for settlement in the area. Way back in mid 1970s, the government conducted a feasibility study and detailed engineering design for the bridge in 1977 under the financial support of the African Development Bank. The construction cost was estimated at 28.6m US dollars at that time and the bridge was to be 560m long with 14 span of 40m each. The bridge would have 14.5 wide deck and two-lane carriageway of 3.75m. According to a recent parliamentary debate sessions, the government said that it had already paid a total of 2.5bn/- in compensation to people who will have to give way to the construction of the Kigamboni Bridge in Dar es Salaam.

Real Estate development on the outskirts of Dar city takes a new turn

TANZANIA is now catching up with the development of real estate. The housing development schemes have to a greater extent contributed to the development of the country’s economy with the city of Dar es Salaam taking the lead in the sector. This follows the provision of plots which were recently distributed and sold to the people in planned areas which covers about 20,000 hectares of land set apart on the outskirts of the city.

THE City of Dar es Salaam is growing with high rise buildings being constructed in a more magnificent scale, like this one here at the junction of Morogoro Road and Bibi Titi Mohammed. This shows that Real Estate industry is growing up rapidly in the country. With its escalating number of both commercial and residential flats, the sector has shown up a boom.

Unlike before, the sector in the country was not picking up. According to real estate agents, the national policy of land annexation is a great impediment to the development of this industry to some parts in the country. Stakeholders have been asking the government to make the availability of land with ease without tough conditions so as to develop the sector even in rural areas.

Dar es Salaam city is rapidly changing with the newly built structures coming up in a more magnificent scale. This shows that, the real estate industry in the country is booming. With its escalating number of both commercial and residential flats, the sector has shown up a boom.

Among the major key players in the on-going real estate boom in the city and even in up-country regions is turning out to be none other than the Tanzania Building Agency (TBA) which is currently constructing houses for government staff in the country. Above is one of the blocks owned by the agency in Kinondoni district, in Dar es Salaam region.

A modern house built at Bunju village about 32 kilometers away from the city of Dar es Salaam. The recent provision of land space to the people by the Ministry of Lands and Human Settlements in reserve areas is a one step forward that ensures the development of human settlements which is gaining a momentum with the construction of new residential modern buildings like this one here in the above photo.

Salasala is one of the newly developed areas on the outskirts of the Dar es Salaam city, the area is booming in real estate development following the construction of a tarmac road across the hilly areas which is now being inhabited by people. To get a plot, one has to pay between USD 50,000 and 80,000 depending on the size of the plot itself.

Solar energy power is more expensive-Survey

SOLAR power, an alternative source of energy for dwellers of rural areas where conversional electricity is still a dream, is more expensive and way beyond the reach of the poor. Despite of the emergence of the registered solar energy power supplying companies which operates their businesses in the country, the survey has established that, the acquisition of the services given by these companies to rural people is more expensive. Judging from the price quotations of the solar panels given by some of these companies, the survey can reveal that, only few rural Tanzanians who can afford this precious commodity introduced by these companies including their installation charges. Solar energy power which is largely used by people in rural areas where other power alternatives such as the electricity is rarely available, is less available in rural areas whose large population is still subjected by poverty, and only few people who can manage the sale due to their expensiveness. The survey shows that, the sale of solar panels which differ in terms of bigness, quality and even durability are relatively fetched at a high rate price an aspect that a large population of the people who relies on one US dollar per day, and to whom the energy is specifically targeted cannot afford. Solar panels sold by reliable companies to their clients are much more higher than what an ordinary man in rural area can manage to buy. A recent spot check to a range of price quotations to solar panels varies from the minimal price of Tshs. 350,000/- to the highest Tshs. 1.9 million.

Solar panels are more expensive for trhe rural dwellers to afford.
According to an installation system of solar panels initiated by a Dar es Salaam based Rex Investment Limited, an old solar energy contractor in the country, the systems that allows the use of 3 solar lights which is the minimal in use, is made affordable at Tshs. 323,000/- followed by Tshs. 541,000/- if installed in a residential house and is only able to accommodate 4 solar lights plus a radio set. The mid price charged for the installation of 5 solar lights plus a radio set is affordable at Tshs. 802,600/- while the highest installation system charged for use of 6 solar lights, a 14 inch Television set, plus a radio set is made affordable at Tshs. 1.9 million. “This is too much and unaffordable to people in rural areas” exclaimed one Zephania Nyangweso when he was shown a price quotation form that included the installation charges for Rex Investment company at their pavilion during a National day for solar power energy celebrations held at Mnazi-Mmoja grounds recently in Dar es Salaam. Another solar energy power supplying company whose prices are a little bit higher but can be afforded by few ordinary people is Ensol (T) Ltd. The company has introduced four different price quotations on systems of installation charges for their solar energy power to their clients in residential houses. According to the company’s prices as indicated on their sheet quotation, a copy of which is made available to Business Times, shows that, they have a minimal installation charges of Tshs. 702,000/- used to light 4 solar lights plus a radio set, and the extra power to enable charging a cell phone.

Many people including rural dwellers in Tanzania are preferring more the use of charcoal as the source of fuel than solar energy which is so expensive that most Tanzanians living in rural areas cannot afford it. A charcoal trader taking his sacks on a bicycle to a nearby market.

The highest is a system of lighting 6 solar lights, a Television set, a radio set and still the amount of extra power is remaining for charging a cell phone. This is sold at Tshs. 1.4 million. The middle prices that differs in number of solar lights is fetched at between Tshs. 1.1 million and Tshs. 1.2 million respectively. All the amount are inclusive with installation charges. When required to comment on these highly quoted prices, an official of the company who preferred anonymity said that, the imported solar energy gadgets eg panels which differs in sizes are costly. This is accounted by the cost of their importation that’s inclusive with the government tax charged plus high customs duties charged for entry. Solar panel is a device that converts sunlight energy into electric current. A panel could either be amorphous or crystalline which is a more efficient material, therefore slightly differ in physical size and a higher cost. According to Mr. David .G. Mwangi, Sales Engineer of Phocos Limited one of the largest suppliers of off-grid power supply components in the world with branch offices in Tanzania and East Africa region as a whole, panels are available in different sizes ranging from 4 Watts to 130 Watts.

No problem with mobile phone towers - expert

A World Health Organization expert recently ruled out claims that mobile phone communication towers posed health hazards, ending fear that the towers were endangering people’s health. The debate on the safety of the towers, particularly those erected in residential areas, ensued following assertions that they emitted violent rays, which were posing a major risk to thousands of people, especially in urban areas. “We have evaluated myriad research done all over the world-but so far we are of the view that mobile telephone towers do not pose any health risk” WHO scientist, Dr Emilie Van Deventer, said recently in Arusha during the first East Africa workshop on Electro Magnetic Fields Exposure and Health which was organized by the Tanzania Atomic Energy Commission and Mobile Manufacturers Forum. Dr Deventer is the head of Electro Magnetic Fields (EMF) Project under WHO. Recent surveys, shows that radio frequency (RF) exposures from tower base stations ranged from 0.002 to 2 percent of the levels of international exposures guidelines, depending on a variety of factors such as proximity to the antenna and the surrounding environment. Scientifically, this is lower compared to RF exposures from radio or television broadcast transmitters.

A mobile phone telephone tower in Kijitonyama in Dar es Salaam.

According to Dr. Deventer the RF exposures from radio and television broadcast transmitters was five times more than the mobile phone towers. Considering the very low exposure levels and research results collected to date, there is no convincing scientific evidence that the weak RF signals from base stations and wireless networks cause adverse health effects. With regard to cellular usage, WHO had undertaken a comprehensive laboratory research on animals, but it didn’t seem to have health effects. On human beings, the expert notes that, WHO has looked back 15 years since mobile phones hit the market in many parts of the world. In the short term, it doesn’t seem to have any health hazards.

A Vodacom tower in a residential area. Their presence has been discovered to have caused no any health hazards to human beings.

In a long-term, she said, the WHO had found no direct link between the usage of cellular phones and brain cancer when it was less than 15 years of using the mobile phone as it had been widely speculated. Beyond that, WHO does not know yet because the mobile technology is not old beyond that time, Dr. Deventer said, stressing that the technology transformation from analog to digital also complicated the issue even further. In a separate interview, the Mobile Manufacturers Forum Director for Europe, Middle East and Africa, Thomas Barmuller said that none of the recent reviews had concluded that exposure to the RF fields from mobile phones or their base stations caused any adverse health consequence.

A local garage that is operating near a mobile telephone tower in mikocheni in Dar es salaam.

However, according to the Director of Science and Technology, Prof. Evelyn Mbede he contradicted the WHO level of RF exposures from mobile phones base stations, saying in Tanzania the maximum RF exposure level stood at 0.05 percent of the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) values. Prof. Mbede quoted the survey conducted by the Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority, the Tanzania Atomic Energy Commission, the University of Dar es Salaam and the Zanzibar broadcasting cooperation on the level of Radio frequency radiation. The preliminary findings showed that people living in the locality of mobile phones base stations were exposed to a maximum radiation dose of 0.05 percent of the ICNIRP values, Professor. Mbede said adding that since these telecommunications towers were installed in the absence of legislation and regulations, these findings call for more confirmatory studies using the state-of-the art frequency analyzer equipment. In Tanzania, the use of mobile phones had increased considerably in recent years and the devices had come to be seen as an essential means of communication in commerce and society. There are now over 9.3 million mobile phones in use in Tanzania supported by over 2000 base stations.

Pre-Test counseling may help reduce stress

DIELLO is a little child of about eight years old who is still under the care of his parents who are living at Kipunguni “B” at Ukonga ward, Ilala district in Dar es Salaam region. The little Diello has not yet started school owing to an illness under which he is suffering from the persistent skin rashes accompanied by long fever. The two diseases have been troubling and have never given him a relief since his child birth. Without knowing the natural cause of the diseases, his parents who are the born again Christians have been praying to the lord God to help them and their son for the spiritual belief they have and rarely have been attending clinics for proper medical treatment. The child’s health has been deteriorating causing him have a stunted growth despite of his parents’ efforts to let him recover. With his stunted growth, the little Diello appear so old than his normal age. If one take a glimpse on his physical appearance, you might think he is suffering from a malnutrition. Wherever he sits around he looks so unhappy among his playmates. Sympathetic neighbours have been trying to give formal advices to find out what was amiss with this child but in vain, this follows his parents’ insistence of help from the God.
One day his father who works in Zanzibar as a security guard in one of the resorts hotels changed his mind and became so scared with his son’s health and sought for more advices from medical practitioners over the plight of his son who for long time had been using various types of medications without successes.
Jacob Msumi, the real name of Diello’s father decided to consult medical professionals over the issue for assistance and held a private conversation with a special trained medical personnel in one of the medical clinics based in the city, thereby he was counseled. A patient normally receives a face-to-face counseling before they undergo the normal body test. This is known as Pre-test counseling and is aimed at ensuring that one make a well informed decision about whether to have the HIV/AIDS test or not. It then encourages one to explore the possible impact that having the test may have on one’s life.
Voluntary Counseling and Testing, or in short VCT is when a person chooses to undergo HIV/AIDS counseling so that they can make an informed decision about whether to be tested for HIV. Through this test, people becomes aware of their health status and thereby reduces long stress within themselves.

Tanzania’s government is encouraging all of us to come forward to be tested for HIV. The government believes that if many of us get tested, even though we may not be sick, this will help to lessen the amount of stigma associated with the HIV test. Also, if we find out as an earlier stage, that we are infected with HIV.
HIV/AIDS counseling provided at most VCT centers in the country is free and confidential. This means that the counselor cannot tell anyone about the results of an infected person without his or her permission. When the little Diello was tested and later found to have been affected by HIV/AIDS virus, fear reigned within his father and contemplated for a while knowing that such infection must have had been transferred from his mother when she was pregnant. The fact that we're able to prevent mother-to-child transmission, these expectant mothers or new mothers, and even other parents with small children, who may be positive and whose children are not positive, they are going to live longer with the use of anti-retroviral drugs. As HIV virus are always dominant over blood cells found in human bodies, their reaction kills the cells, a result of which the body is no longer in a position to defend itself against any disease attack, thus this is the reason why the little Diello was not getting a cure. On-going counseling helps one to live positively with HIV and provides one with support and guidance in regard to any problem that one may face. However, this kind of counseling that happens after one has received a test result, its aim is to manage the impact that HIV has on one’s life. Other factors are to explore the advantages and disadvantages of telling other people about their status, provide emotional and psychological support and explore issues around death and dying. Getting information on how to live positively with the virus is the same as learning to accept the fact that we are HIV-infected. The infected people have to seek for emotional support, eating a health diet as well as learning how to control the amount of stress in their life and plan for the future. According to Dr. Wilfred Machibya based in Dar es Salaam city voluntary testing can work, particularly now that anti-retroviral drugs are becoming affordable in more developing nations. These life-extending drugs have long been available in rich countries like UK and in the U.S.A

For the infected patients like Anna Ditaro, who's been on ARV drugs for a year, say HIV infection is no longer a death sentence. And she says as priests and political leaders set the example by taking the test, AIDS is beginning to carry far less stigma. The U.S. based Agency for International Development (USAID) supports HIV negative and HIV positive persons to create personalized plans to reduce their risky behavior through its long-standing VCT programs in sub-Saharan Africa Tanzania included. In USAID activities have established testing sites, trained and supported counselors, and promoted community outreach around VCT to enhance community acceptance of HIV/AIDS activities. Currently, USAID supports VCT programs in more than 25 countries. USAID is committed to preventing the transmission of HIV from a mother to her baby. HIV testing and counseling for pregnant women and their families is a critical step in this process. As part of President Bush’s International Mother and Child HIV Prevention initiative, USAID will continue to expand programs to prevent transmission from a mother to her baby.

Lack of finance hinders the progress of a national agency

THE National agency that is primarily engaged in conducting and researching on appropriate building materials for low cost housing development schemes in the country is faced with insufficient money to enable it to consolidate on its basic activities. This is the National Housing and Building Research Agency (NHBRA) which was formed in 2001. The agency is among the national agencies established in the country under the Executive Act of Agency No: 30 passed by the National parliament in 1997. Due to the persisting situation, the agency’s core business activities that includes together with others, to develop simple production techniques and technologies for low cost building materials has been slowing down an aspect that it fails to meet its targeted goals. Because of this, the agency is staggering to effectively execute the normal duties it’s charged with in light of development of the construction industry in the country, the firm’s Chief Executive Dr. G.M. Kawishe said in an interview recently in Dar es Salaam. Dr. Kawishe who is an engineer by profession said, apart from lack of enough fund to run with the activities, the Agency has been facing some of the challenges from making her services known to the public, citing lack of seriousness despite of stressing awareness on the part of customers about the products and various services the agency offers.
He said, his agency is seriously faced with the shortage of skilled personnel mostly civil and building engineers adding that the few available are not enough to carry out the impending duties assigned such like, testing of building materials and structures including quality control in the laboratory and site investigations. Another thing he said, the agency is still using an outdated laboratory which it had inherited from the then Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development for which the agency before its formation was known as a Building Research Unit. The laboratory had been there since 1975 and needs replacement in order to match parallel with the currently emerging technologies. However, he noted that the status of the laboratory does not match with the modern technology. Price fluctuation of building materials eg cement is another factor which has hindered the development of the agency. When contacted for comment, an official from the Ministry of Finance and Economic planning who spoke on strict condition of anonymity said that, the government allocates funds for its agencies each year depending on the nature of the work in pipeline. However, he said these projects are given priority in terms of their urgency that is determined by the requirement of the people in the country, but declined to say anything when asked to comment on NHBRA’s issue. Apart from ensuring low-cost housing materials, NHBRA provides advice and promotes appropriate building materials, techniques and technologies in order to achieve the durability, the standards of hygiene, the comfort and conveniences of the houses. The current functions of NHBRA are in line with the National Human Settlement Development Policy of 2000 and Habitat Agenda of 1997. The agency targets Tanzania’s development set ups and cope with various initiatives of the poverty alleviation strategies for 2025 vision. In doing this, NHBRA has set strategies for business options and plans which will improve provision of services to customers in order to be effective, efficient and timely.