and its regulations, officials need special training. This is particularly relevant in the context of decentralisation trends in Tanzania. In response to these procurement-related challenges, Government enacted the 2004 Public Procurement Act along with its 2005 regulations, leading to the establishment of the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) and the Public Procurement Appeal Authority (PPAA). PPRA’s functions are adequate and well defined in the legislation. Its regulatory decisions in enforcing good practices in tendering and public contracts award processes are subject to appeal to the PPAA. 561. In 2007, Government amended the Local Government Procurement Regulations to enable LGAs to use PPA, CAP 410. A web-based Procurement Management Information System (PMIS) was also developed. The system enables PEs to submit procurement plans and implementation reports to PPRA. In addition, there was increased transparency, awareness and access to procurement information published through a weekly Tanzania Procurement Journal and the PPRA website (www.ppra.go.tz). Also, a Procurement Policy Unit (PPU) was established under the Ministry of Finance to formulate and oversee procurement policy implementation. The Unit is also mandated to ensure professional public procurement, properly coordination and supervision. The CRM observes that adequate measures, in terms of legislation and institutional arrangements, have been put in place. Effective implementation and enforcement need to follow. This will mean taking the necessary measures to strengthen the capacity of relevant bodies such as the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority. 562. In the area of debt management, in 2004 Government amended the 1974 Loans, Guarantee and Grants Act No. 30 to empower the Minister for Finance to borrow on behalf of government and eliminate irregular borrowing. The Act established the National Debt Management Committee and Technical Debt Management Committee as advisory committees. Government also adopted advanced tools for improved management of both public and publicly-guaranteed external debt, domestic lending, and domestic debt. This has improved the government capacity to manage the debt portfolio in a more consolidated manner. Furthermore, MOF, with the assistance of IMF and WB, developed a Medium-Term Debt Management Strategy, which aims at ensuring an optimal budget financing mix. A robust process of debt sustainability analysis as well as a performance assessment framework was put in place. The CRM notes that these are all steps in the right direction as the country endeavors to improve debt management. Stakeholder consultation and access to information 563. It was observed that government consults extensively on economic policy management and implementation. As mentioned earlier, one major form of consultation is visits by high level officials to various parts of the country to dialogue and consult with stakeholders and citizens. For example, Vision 2025 and the current 5-year Development Plan were formulated through such consultative processes at both sector and regional levels. Special arrangements are in place allowing for consultationwith Zanzibar on all Union matters. Key categories of stakeholders consulted in such processes include sector ministries, former national leaders, the private sector, civil society, and parliament. 564. The CRM confirmed that government policy provides for vigorous consultation processes on all economic policy issues, and by and large, such consultations do take place. However, how effective they are is open to question in some cases. One of the key findings of the CRM is general dissatisfaction with the consultation process in both the Mainland and Zanzibar. It appears that the process is ineffective and unsatisfactory. The CRM has therefore identified the need to evaluate consultation processes to ensure that they are more inclusive, far-reaching, and owned by various stakeholders. 565. On improving public access to fiscal information, Government continues to use a number of channels: websites, local newspapers, the Government Gazette, radio and television. Information provided includes planning and budget guidelines, financial legislation, annual budgets, budget implementation reports, financial statements and audit reports, as well as annual budgetary allocations. Accuracy and reliability of such information is critical to its credibility. Government therefore needs to take the necessary measures to guarantee such credibility. 121