September 15th Tanzania celebrated International Day of Democracy for the second time. The event organized by the Tanzania Center for Democracy kicked off with a public rally from Karume Stadium to Mnazi Mmoja grounds in Dar es Salaam. Present were political parties, civil societies and the general public.

Msondo Ngoma band and brass band entertained the guests under the theme political tolerance and women participation in politics.

“Promoting the participation of women in the political process should be at the center of attention as Tanzania enters this new electoral period. Women in general face real institutional barriers in the political and election field that is anything but level,” stated the UNDP Country Director Alain Noudehou, in his speech.

UNDP works through the Election Support Project with its implementation partners to help address challenges facing women in politics.

“It is also our hope that political parties and others will put into place mechanisms and resources that help level the playing field for women in politics,” Noudehou continued.

In his statement UNDP Country Director Alain Noudehou also commended Tanzania for its commitment to and achievements in democracy and actions to address challenges related to accountability, representation, and equity.

“This is an important finding and one that we need to take special note of as we enter an election year in 2010. Through this research, the citizens of Tanzania have demonstrated a clear understanding of what is important to them, and what they expect of others, including political parties. It is therefore critical for the continued consolidation of democratic changes in Tanzania, that this aspiration for peace and tolerance is respected and embraced by all stakeholders as we approach the elections in 2010,” Noudehou said.

At the end Mr. Noudehou called upon all stakeholders in the democratization process in Tanzania to actively promote political tolerance and respect for diversity.

UNDP’s project provides substantial technical assistance to support next year’s presidential and parliamentary elections in Tanzania. The support is a complementary initiative to the on-going national efforts to plan and implement these elections. The project will start now to assist the two Electoral Commissions and will continue until after the elections, expected in October 2010. The project will help the Commissions plan for and manage some technical needs of the elections process including voter registration, voter education, coordinating election observers, and communications.

A number of project partners are expected to help with education, communication and election observation tasks.  The project will include international technical advisors and national experts who will provide technical assistance to NEC and ZEC in the areas such as voter registration, voter education, outreach to women and young people, training and communications.  Small grants to community groups may be used to help with voter education.

The project will be managed directly by the United Nations Development Programme, UNDP.  Funding for the project is provided by the UNDP and other donor partners. To date they are: Denmark, Finland, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom, Canada and the European Commission.

The project builds on earlier UNDP support to NEC and ZEC (the Deepening Democracy Project) and on the experience of the 2005 UNDP Election Support Project.