Tasaf clients set to receive money via mobile phones

MARC NKWAME in Arusha

Deputy Minister of State in the President’s Office (Public Service Management and Good Governance) Ms Angella Kairuki

 

TANZANIA Social Action Fund (TASAF) beneficiaries will start to receive the money right onto their mobile phones, instead of the current arrangement in which they are compelled to queue up at their respective ward or village offices for physical cash.

The Minister of State, President’s Office, Public Service Management and Good Governance, Ms Angellah Kairuki, revealed here over the weekend that, electronic cash transfer from the Tanzania Social Action Fund to the poor households was going to be the way forward as far as TASAF’s Productive Social Safety Nets (PSSN) poverty alleviating strategies was concerned.

Ms Kairuki pointed out that was among the recommendations raised by the more than 100 delegates from around the continent and beyond, who had attended the just ended ‘Face-to-Face,’ meeting of African Community in practising ‘Conditional Cash Transfers,’ held in Arusha, which she was invited to close.

The five-day meeting was organised by the World Bank and the United Nations Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) under the coordination of the TASAF.

Delegates of the meeting also got the opportunity to witness how Tanzania has managed to implement the initiative through series of field visits to beneficiary households in elected communities of Longido, Monduli, Meru, Mwanga and Babati districts.

These five districts mapped within Arusha, Manyara and Kilimanjaro Regions of Northern Tanzania, have been implementing Productive Social Safety Net Programme.

The World Bank’s country Director for Tanzania, Burundi, Malawi and Somalia, Ms Bella Bird, lauded TASAF Productive Social Safety Nets, saying while it started with just 6,000 household beneficiaries in 2012, the programme has grown to reach out to nearly 1.2m households, making it the most successful project on the continent -- at least, so far.

But the delegates have also seen the need to increase the amount of money issued to the households because from their field visits the cash disbursements were being disbursed fairly and put into proper use.

They also advised that TASAF should create a special conditional cash transfer programme for the disabled persons and make special consideration to households that have more children or being led by single mothers, including widows. They also called for education programmes that will cover issues of health and nutrition.