New city plan called for Arusha

A committee has been formed to implement a new master plan for the city of Arusha, according to the chairman of the Tanzania Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture (TCCIA), Adolf Olomi.

Addressing local industry representatives at the Nelson Mandela African Institute of Science and Technology (NM-AIST) on 7 January, Olomi called for Arusha to become a "modern city" and said that the plan would involve public and private sectors.

Comprising officials from the city council and representatives from the private sector, the committee believes that if the city is to become competitive in East Africa it must improve its infrastructure by constructing industrial parks and special areas for business and social services, and making provision for low- and high-density housing.

In 2010 the government tripled the size of the city from 93 to 270 sq km. According to the committee, the last development master plan for Arusha was prepared in 1978 but was largely unimplemented.

Arusha is the headquarters of regional institutions such as the East African Community. Also based there since 1995 is the International Criminal Court for Rwanda, the largest organisation in Arusha, although this will close once it finishes its work, possibly in 2012.

The city also hosts the Eastern and Southern Africa Management Institute, and scientific and technological organisations such as the Tanzania Wildlife Research Institute, the Tanzania Atomic Energy Commission and the Tropical Pesticides Research Institute.

Arusha