Twenty-one youth groups in Rukwa Region have secured road maintenance contracts worth TZS285 million under a government programme aimed at creating employment and expanding young people’s participation in public procurement.
The contracts, awarded through the Community-Based Routine Maintenance (CBRM) programme, are part of TZS516 million set aside by the Tanzania Rural and Urban Roads Agency (TARURA) for special groups in the 2026/27 financial year.
The programme offers young people opportunities to earn income from maintaining local roads while gaining experience in executing public contracts.
Rukwa TARURA Regional Manager Chacha Moseti said the youth groups accounted for 55 percent of the 38 groups participating in the programme.
“For the 2026/27 financial year, we have allocated a total of TZS516 million for special groups. Of the 38 groups currently involved, 21 are youth groups, representing 55 percent, and they have already secured maintenance contracts worth TZS285 million,” he said.
Mr Moseti announced the figures during the National Youth Week exhibitions at Ndua Primary School grounds in Sumbawanga Municipality.
He said the programme was designed to enable young people and other special groups to benefit economically from road maintenance activities while encouraging communities to take greater responsibility for infrastructure in their areas.
“The government is creating an enabling environment for young people to benefit from road maintenance activities undertaken through TARURA,” he added.
Beyond the immediate employment opportunities, the initiative gives youth groups a chance to build experience in public contracting, potentially positioning them to compete for larger assignments in the future.
Assistant CBRM Supervisor in Rukwa, Engineer Abdulrazak Mshana, said the programme was also helping participating groups enter the formal procurement system.
He explained that the groups were registered and required to follow established tendering procedures through the National e-Procurement System of Tanzania (NeST), under the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA).
Under the arrangement, groups undertake maintenance work in the communities where the roads are located, linking local employment opportunities with the upkeep of public infrastructure.
Among the beneficiaries are Youth Vision Fighters, chaired by Florence Clonele, which secured a contract to maintain the five-kilometre Pito–Maragano road, and Wafugaji Kuku, chaired by Justina Malosko, which is responsible for the five-kilometre Kisiwani–Kichangani road in Sumbawanga Municipality.
The two leaders said the contracts had increased their members’ income, helping them meet household expenses and support their families.
For the beneficiaries, the programme provides a direct source of income while allowing them to participate in maintaining roads used by residents and businesses.
However, the programme’s broader impact will depend on whether the groups can deliver quality maintenance, receive payments on time and secure further contracts to sustain the employment opportunities created.
For TARURA, the initiative also provides a way to combine routine road maintenance with local economic participation, giving young people a stake in the infrastructure development taking place in their communities.