The Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s Office (Regional Administration and Local Government), Riziki Shemdoe, has urged governments to anchor rural economic reforms on the blue economy, livestock development and sustainable forestry to ensure inclusive growth and tangible benefits for citizens.
Speaking on February 26, 2026 at the Second International Conference on Economic Transformation and Rural Development in Cartagena, Colombia, Prof. Shemdoe said rural transformation strategies must move beyond subsistence agriculture and integrate water-based resources, animal husbandry and forest value chains into national development planning.
He was representing President Samia Suluhu Hassan at the high-level meeting, where global leaders and policy experts are reviewing progress made since the inaugural 2006 conference.
Prof. Shemdoe said Tanzania’s reform agenda seeks to commercialise agriculture and livestock keeping, expand the blue economy to unlock income opportunities for coastal communities, and promote sustainable forest management to add value to forest products while safeguarding the environment.
His intervention underscored a broader policy shift aimed at transforming rural production systems into competitive economic sectors capable of driving exports, job creation and climate resilience.
During plenary discussions on conference resolutions, Prof. Shemdoe called for livestock and fisheries to be formally recognised as central pillars of rural development frameworks, arguing that the sectors contribute significantly to employment, food security and household incomes across Africa and other developing regions.
He further proposed the establishment of a time-bound monitoring mechanism to assess implementation of conference resolutions, warning against delays similar to the 20-year gap between the first conference in 2006 and the current 2026 review.
“Implementation must be tracked within clear timelines. Evaluation should not wait for decades,” he said, stressing the need for measurable outcomes and accountability.
On the sidelines of the conference, Prof. Shemdoe led Tanzania’s delegation in bilateral talks with Indonesia, headed by Deputy Minister for Agriculture Dr Ir Sam Herodian.
The two sides discussed reviving cooperation in rice production and expanding scholarship opportunities for Tanzanian students in Indonesia, reviving arrangements that existed in previous years.
“Our discussions have led to the initiation of a draft memorandum of understanding through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Indonesian Embassy in Tanzania,” Prof. Shemdoe said, signalling a renewed push for South–South cooperation in agricultural technology and human capital development.
Separately, he held talks with Amy Regas, representative of Land Facility, an international organisation that has expressed interest in supporting capacity-building for local government authorities in climate change adaptation and carbon trading.
The proposed support would be mobilised through a Donor Roundtable Meeting scheduled for May 2026, focusing on strengthening institutional readiness to participate in emerging carbon markets and climate finance mechanisms.
Tanzania’s emphasis on integrating the blue economy, livestock and forestry reflects a growing recognition that rural transformation requires diversification, value addition and sustainable resource management rather than reliance on crop farming alone.
As global attention shifts toward climate-resilient development models, Tanzania’s proposals position rural communities not merely as beneficiaries of reform, but as active drivers of economic growth anchored in natural resource endowments and regional partnerships.
