ZANZIBAR Principal Secretary in the President’s Office (Constitution, Legal Affairs, Public Service and Good Governance), Mr Kubingwa Mashaka Simba, said lack of awareness was a challenge in the implementation of human rights in business activities.
He noted this during a meeting held at the Takwimu House, Mazizini area, on ‘validation of Road Map concept notes on the development to the National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights (NAP-BHR) in mainland Tanzania and Zanzibar.’
At the meeting which involved stakeholders from both sides of the union, facilitated by the Tanzania Commission for Human Rights and Good Governance (CHRAGG) and with support from the United Nations Development Plan (UNDP) aimed at discussing the process of preparing a work plan for human rights and business.
Mr Simba explained that the Zanzibar government through its ministry responsible for legal affairs and good governance met with the Human Rights and Good Governance Commission in May last year to discuss the strategy to remove those challenges in investment and business activities where the idea of a national work plan, human rights and trade was discussed.
“The CHRAGG and the Ministry of Constitutional and Legal Affairs in the union government were given consent to initiate and lead the process of preparing a National Action Plan (NAP) for human rights and business,” he said.
Mr Simba said the government has been making various efforts to ensure that human rights are protected, defended and preserved in the implementation of investment and other business activities, which have often been blamed for the violation of human rights.
The CHRAGG chairperson, Retired Judge Mathew Mwaimu, said that in 2011 the United Nations guidelines on human rights were ratified by only nine African countries that have taken steps to start the process of preparing NAP-BHR including Kenya, Morocco, Liberia, Uganda, Ghana, Nigeria, Zambia, Mozambique and South Africa.
Earlier, representative from the United Nations Development Organisation (UNDP), Godfrey Nyamronda, commended the Zanzibar and Union government for continuing with efforts to back plans to promote human and business rights in the country.
