OVER 300 Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) and stakeholders have shown interest to take part in the commemoration of Human Rights Defenders Day on Friday in Dar Salaam, occasion to be graced by Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa.
THRDC Coordinator Onesmo Ole Ngurumwa said recently that, the event was aimed at raising public awareness on the contribution of CSOs to national development.
“CSOs, being among the key stakeholders in national development have demonstrated unwavering resolve and contribute to national development… with improved friendly relations with the government, they support the National Development Plan (2021/22-2025/26) and other development strategies, including voluntary tax compliance,” he explained.
This year’s theme will be “Chatting Out the Role of Human Rights Defenders/CSOs in the Implementation of the Five-Year National Development Plan (2021/22-2025/26)”. Other key areas of concern to be addressed will be advocacy, the rule of law and good governance, livestock keeping and information and communications technology (ICT).
Participants will include human rights defenders, representatives of CSOs, government leaders and judicial officers, development partners, UN agencies, the media and various human rights activists.
The CSOs, which are mainly human rights defenders in the country, are always coordinated by Tanzania Human Rights Defenders Coalition (THRDC).
In the course, the THRDC’s national development implementation plan will be handed over to the Prime Minister during the 7th anniversary of Human Rights Defenders Day.
The plan highlights cooperation areas, which include education, health, natural resources, the environment, human rights, access to justice, gender equality, monitoring and evaluation, climate change, women’s rights and gender-based violence, water, environmental protection, legal aid, food security, employment and agriculture.
This year THRDC will also recognise and award human rights defenders and members of CSOs, who have contributed to national development in areas of employment, education sector, the health sector, human and human rights.
The 7th commemoration of Human Rights Defenders Day in Tanzania is geared towards important areas through which THRDC/CSOs, human rights organisations and the government will work together as part of the implementation of the national development strategic plan.
THRDC has prepared various training workshops that will be held before Human Rights Defenders Day to share experiences and enhance cooperation. The workshops will focus on how to comply with tax laws. In doing this, THRDC will partner with AcT2 and WAJIBU Institute of Public Accountability, other CSOs and Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA).
THRDC has also prepared a blueprint which will enable CSOs to comply with tax laws, regulations and policies governing tax payment across Tanzania.
“The Prime Minister will launch our action plan on the implementation of the five-year national development plan. We have also invited numerous government officials from various ministries and departments,” Mr Ole Ngurumwa said.
According to him, various local and international development partners are also invited as it has always been the case before. THRDC appeals to CSOs and THRDC members to prepare themselves to effectively participate in this forthcoming event, which includes showcasing their work through a human rights exhibition.
CSOs/human rights defenders are also invited to continue cooperating with the government and other development partners to effectively contribute to national development and raise their awareness of various laws guiding them.
“Let us continue imparting knowledge and understanding to various stakeholders and people on various activities human rights defenders are involved in. The government and its departments should continue cooperating with CSOs/ human rights defenders to facilitate national development.