Poverty and Human Development Report 2009 - UNDP in Tanzania

Infrastructure
Roads
the condition of the primary road network (trunk and regional roads) has been gradually improving.
the percentage of trunk and regional roads in good and fair condition has increased from 51%
(good 14%; fair 37%) in 2000 to 85% in 2007 (good 48%; fair 37%). these are roads under the
jurisdiction of tanroads.
available data from 2007 on district, feeder and improved unclassified roads – which are
under the jurisdiction of local government authorities – indicate that 55.2% of this network is
in good and fair condition. no trend data is available for analysis but the current results show
that almost half (44.8%) of this network remains in poor condition (Mofea, 2008b). given that
investment in upgrading rural transport is strongly linked to economic growth – and poverty
reduction – increased resource allocations are required to ensure that local roads are improved
and maintained.
Ports
the Phdr 2007 argued that tanzania’s geographical position on the coast represents a strong
comparative advantage – and potential growth driver – if transport infrastructure and services
can be expanded for landlocked neighbouring countries. tanzania’s current port facilities
include coastal ports in dar es salaam, tanga and Mtwara, and smaller facilities in Kilwa, lindi,
Mafia, Pangani and bagamoyo. in addition, 6 lake ports are operational – three on lake victoria
(Mwanza, bukoba and Musoma), two on lake nyasa (itungi and Mbamba) and one on lake
tanganyika (Kigoma).
the port of dar es salaam is by far the largest in the country, handling more than three-quarters
of tanzania’s external trade. the port serves as a major logistics gateway to eastern, central and
southern africa, with rail and road links to more than six landlocked countries. 12 a large number
of shipping lines use ports in the region, which puts pressure on freight rates generally, and on
the efficiency of operations of dar es salaam port in particular.
there have been concerns about congestion at the dar es salaam port, mostly directed at the
tanzania international container terminal (tics). however, responsibility for easing congestion
at dar es salaam port cannot be apportioned to a single entity. other key players include the
port operator (tanzania Port authority), shipping agents, freight forwarders and clearing agents,
tanzania revenue authority, goods inspection services (tiscan), and road and rail transporters
who remove containers from the port. Positively, the contract for tics has been amended
recently to increase competition and enhance port performance.
12 tanzania is an important provider of transit traffic for neighbouring countries, including burundi, the democratic
republic of congo, Malawi, rwanda, Uganda and Zambia.
Chapter I CLUSter 1 GOaL 2
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