DRAFT Tanzania Environmental Protection Act

Lawyers� Environmental Action Team (LEAT) together with other Tanzanian environmental civil society organizations, famously known as, the Environmental Coalition of Civil Society Organizations (ECO) for the last six years have been campaigning for the enactment of a framework environmental legislation in Tanzania. This is because Tanzania is the only East African country without a framework environmental law despite of its unrivalled natural resources, breathtaking attractions and a population of more than 35 Million people. The lack of this law has led to wanton degradation of the environment, mismanagement of natural resources, inaction, conflicting mandates and institutional rivalries of various government departments and agencies charged with management of different spheres of the environment.

LEAT and ECO�s campaign has borne fruit because the Tanzanian government has at last accepted the need of the enacting of this law. It has hired the Experts to start drafting the environmental law. LEAT and ECO see that they have a big role to play and compliment the government efforts in ensuring that the law, to be promulgated, is enacted in a participatory manner. Not only that, that it comprises international accepted essential environmental management and protection principles, it establishes a strong environmental enforcing agency and guarantee the right live in a clean and healthy environment together with the duty and standing to enforce the law . To this end LEAT and ECO have drafted the Elements of a Bill For Tanzanian Environmental Protection Act for the purposes of stimulating wider public discussion as to how the Tanzanian environmental legislation should look like. LEAT and ECO will be holding a national workshop to discuss this Draft on the 3-5th September 2003 in Arusha. More than 65 participants comprising Members of Parliament, Government officials, Academia, Media, and Environmental Civil Society Organizations are expected to attend.

Readers are encouraged to read this draft and send their views to ECO and LEAT via this email address: leat@mediapost.co.tz or Fax Number: 255-22-2780859. Views and comments should reach us before the 2nd of September 2003.