Tanzania in the 1980's

Tanzania in the 1980’s

President J. Nyerere, forerunner and staunch supporter of ” African socialism ”, was unable to prevent the progressive worsening of the economic and social conditions of the country and the gradual abandonment of the principles and methods of cooperativism which inspired the doctrine of ujamaa. The International Monetary Fund, on which Tanzania depended for credits essential for its reorganization, and Nyerere, who in the past had also opposed the conditions imposed by the international financial organizations, he could no longer support his political project. Nyerere’s decision, announced in 1984, not to ask for the renewal of his presidential term at the end of 1985 was therefore motivated by age, but also ended up having a political significance.

The succession of one of the most prestigious and respected African presidents took place in an orderly fashion. The ” dolphin ” was perhaps E. Sokoine, who however died in an accident before Nyerere’s retirement. Another possible heir, R. Kawawa, prime minister from 1972 to 1977 and very close collaborator of Nyerere, was considered too “radical”. The choice fell on the vice-president and president of Zanzibar, AH Mwinyi, who, designated by the organs of the single party, the Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM, Revolutionary Party of Tanzania), was elected with 96% of the votes.

According to topschoolsintheusa, Mwinyi took office on November 5, 1985, while the president of Zanzibar became IA Wakil (who was succeeded in 1990 by S. Amour). If the handover also served to consolidate the union between the two components of the state, mainland Tanganyika and the Zanzibar archipelago, the contradiction between the socialist and the liberalizing options remained open. While the party as a whole defended the socialist approach, both because there were some convinced socialists in the leadership group, and because of the advantages that the bureaucracy derived from the management of the economic apparatus, Mwinyi and the government pressed for profound economic reforms. The fact that Nyerere had retained the presidency of the CCM, even after the 1987 congress, with Kawawa at the general secretariat, he transformed the party into a kind of counterpart to the government, introducing a dialectic that was not foreseen in these forms. The CCM continued to be the leading force in the country, confirmed by the parliamentary elections of 1980 and 1985, which took place with the traditional ballot between several single party candidates. In 1989, a ministerial reshuffle brought three ministers of the Islamic fundamentalist tendency to the government; Salim A. Salim, on the other hand, became general secretary of the OAU (Organization of African Unity). In 1989, a ministerial reshuffle brought three ministers of the Islamic fundamentalist tendency to the government; Salim A. Salim, on the other hand, became general secretary of the OAU (Organization of African Unity). In 1989, a ministerial reshuffle brought three ministers of the Islamic fundamentalist tendency to the government; Salim A. Salim, on the other hand, became general secretary of the OAU (Organization of African Unity).

On the regional level, the East African Community (T., Kenya and Uganda), which had been indicated as a promising model of aggregation and integration in the spirit of African unity, failed due to internal conflicts and the different degree of development of the states. members and de facto disbanded since 1977; in 1983 an agreement was reached for the distribution of goods and services; in 1987 a tripartite commission was formed to study the possibility of new forms of cooperation. The growing conflict with Uganda also contributed to this crisis, which resulted in the Tanzanian military intervention in Uganda in 1979, in support of the liberation force against the regime of I. Amin. Tanzania’s interference, which Nyerere justified with a previous attack on Uganda, was condemned by the OAU leadership; South Africa Development Coordination Conference). At the request of the government of Maputo, Tanzania held a contingent of armed forces in Mozambique from 1976 to 1988 to protect it first from attacks by Rhodesia and then from the guerrilla actions of Renamo. Tanzania’s relations with Zambia were consolidated thanks also to the construction of the Tazara railway inaugurated in 1975.

Nyerere left the party presidency in 1990 and since then has no longer held official positions, distancing himself from government activity and, once the socialist option waned, from CCM itself, which has in fact embraced a liberal policy. The 1990 elections, which saw the re-election of Mwinyi, were the last single-party, because since 1992 multi-partyism has been legalized. Since Mwinyi is no longer eligible for re-election, the race for succession has begun in view of the October 1995 elections. it does not speak in favor of the unity of the country.

Tanzania in the 1980's