resource values and generate employment and tax revenues. Currently, local populations in the regions only appear to be involved in identifying development projects that meet their daily needs. The majority of them do not comprehend the intricacies of long-term planning and delayed benefits. Therefore, in consultation with the people, the government needs to promote development projects that are clearly understood by the people in the various regions.101 614. The CRM confirms the dire shortage of human and technical capacities to plan, execute, monitor and evaluate public financing for development projects. The lack of coordination and low levels of participation by the population in public finance management initiatives are also noted. Interaction with stakeholders in all visited regions showed that ordinary people do not have the capacity to supervise budget expenditures. For their part, development partners informed the CRM that the Local Government Reform agenda is faced with serious capacity challenges and lacks clear champions in many aspects. However, there is a definite positive commitment by the authorities to expand the space for stakeholder participation and to continue building requisite capacity. 615. The CRM observed that while planned and on-going reforms in Local Government Authorities - in terms of implementing the Local Government Development Grant System, the Capacity Building Grant and other initiatives aimed at strengthening management systems - are a necessary condition for the success of decentralisation, development partners are currently the major financial champions for these activities. This raises sustainability issues. 616. In close interaction with Permanent Secretaries, Heads of Department and Heads of Executing Agencies, it was confirmed that Government is fully committed to ensuring that Tanzanians get value for public financial resources. Government has put in place several institutions to perform oversight functions to this end. These include the Public Procurement Authority, the Inter-ministerial Committee to monitor expenditures, PCCB, the Parliamentary PAC, and the Independent Internal Audit Directorates. However, there are serious capacity deficiencies that inhibit performance. For example, the 10-15 year freeze on public sector recruitments in the past contributed to the paucity of human capacity. 617. Interactions with PCCB and PAC indicated that they were functional despite technical capacity limitations. Government is committed to enhancing capacity development to implement the various programmes. The CRM was informed of an ongoing national manpower development strategy, which would ultimately contribute to reducing human capacity constraints faced by most of these bodies. 618. The CRM further found a disconnect between the initiators/implementers of decentralisation efforts and the people. Fiscal decentralisation architecture is founded on the assumption that popular participation is effective, especially when it comes to providing oversight over government spending to ensure value for money. The lack of popular empowerment to effectively question expenditure was found to be a serious constraint to the success of the decentralisation reform agenda. 619. The CRM concluded that Government designed decent public finance policies aimed at enhancing access to financial intermediation, improving budgeting and expenditure processes, strengthening fiscal decentralisation to Local Government Authorities, and enhancing public finance management and accountability. While efforts are being expended to implement most of these policies, activities are not sufficiently synchronised/coordinated or strategically sequenced and public ownership/participation is not sufficient. Further, obvious systemic capacity constraints are likely to inhibit the realisation of the desired objectives. 620. The CRM observed that ongoing initiatives in Zanzibar are not substantially different from those on the Mainland. Similar challenges are being encountered. However, an interaction with state stakeholders confirmed their commitment to continue implementing public finance reforms in Zanzibar. 621. The Mission also confirmed with the stakeholders in Zanzibar that the fiscal decentralisation policy framework, though based on a legal framework, has encountered a lot of implementation challenges. Non-state stakeholders were unanimous: the people feel no ownership of the framework and are not sufficiently sensitized of how it works. They participate only marginally in planning and oversight. 622. The CRM further noted a simmering unease between the Union Government and the Government of Zanzibar. For example, Zanzibar is more culturally close-knit and may wish to adopt a decentralisation model that accommodates their cultural norms. There is also a feeling that their financial sector landscape should be more 101 It is noted that the Five Year National Development Plan stipulates a Road Map which emphasises the use of development corridors and/or Special Economic Zones and goes on to identify specific projects. However, stakeholders in the regions have not been adequately informed and empowered to appreciate and participate in these development initiatives. 129