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BY JOSEPH ADERO NGALA
ARUSHA-TANZANIA

Former South Africa President Nelson Mandela acknowledges that even after former President of the Republic of Tanzania and founder Julius Kambarage Nyerere had stepped down from public office in his own country, we still benefit from his leadership and wise counsel, in pursuit of development, peace and justice not only in our countries, our region and our continent, but throughout the world.

As the Africa wise men say, when elders sit under a tree there must be a new good thing coming on the way. This happened recently in Arusha, Tanzania when a team of experts gathered for a workshop that brought a number of renowned writers, professors, lecturers and human right activists from Rwanda, Kenya Burundi, Uganda and Tanzania.

The deliberation took three days from May 6 -8 at Kibo hotel place. The workshop was convened pursuant to the East Africa Calendar of Activities covering January-June 2010. The purpose of the workshop was to develop a research Agenda for the Centre through a consultative and collaborative approach.

The think tank discussed and generated consensus amongst the participants on the general direction of the policy-oriented research; determine research topic /focal areas under three thematic areas; and determine a set of research questions for the different research topics.

The Deputy Secretary General Political Federation Hon Beatrice Kiraso in her opening remarks welcomed the participants drowned from the East African countries. In her maiden speech she informed the workshops participants that the vision of East Africa Community is to have a peaceful, secure and politically united East Africa.

She noted further that the Treaty underscores peace and security as pre-requisites to social and economic development within East Africa community and vital to the achievement of the objective of the community.

She underlined the importance and relevance of peace and stability to all the four stages of integration and emphasized that without peace and stability, all the remarkable achievements of regional integration cannot be sustained.

Kiraso informed the workshop that the overall objective of Nyerere centre for Peace Research (NCPR) is to provide the East African Community with relevant and timely research, training and information that contribute to deepening and widening of integration in areas of Peace and security, good Governance and foreign policy coordination.

She made it very clear that the centre will carry out its mandate through empirical and policy-oriented research and capacity building in key areas that will enhance deepening and widening of the East Africa Community integration in general and peace and security, good governance and common foreign policy pursuits in particular.

The author was one of the experts attending the workshops. During the discussion there were a number of debates that generated issues raised from cattle’s rustling, transport, child soldiers, prostitution, war lords, constitution reviews.

Present were among eminent professor Makumi Mwagiru, the guru of peace and security from the University of Nairobi, Professor Beregu from St Augustine University, and a well known Kenyan Professor Gilbert Khadiagala who chaired the meeting.

The Nyerere Centre for Peace Research started as a joint effort of the East African Community (EAC) and Arcadia University that provides an academic resource to the member states of EAC. Engaging in policy research and analysis, data collection and training, the centre supports decision makers, civil society organizations and the community whose aim is to build capacity and promote the peaceful settlement of conflict in the region.

The Nyerere Centre for Peace Research is located at the site of the EAC Headquarters in Arusha. Housed in the Princes Margaret of the former State House Compound (barara ya afrika Masharitiki) the centre will preserve and celebrate the heritage of this site and draw on the distinct cultures of Eastern Africa as a means to promote peace.

Julius Kabarage Nyerere was born on April 13, 1922 in Butiama, Tanganyika, to local Zanaki Chief. Nyerere Burito. At age of 12 he began his education at the Government Primary School in Musoma, walking 26 miles each day to attend classes.

He completed his schooling in a year early. He was then transferred to the Tabora Boys government Secondary School in 1943 he moved on to Makerere university for certificate in education, and then returned to Tabora to teach at St Mary’s Mission school. In 1949 he became the first Tanganyika to study in Britain when he obtained a Masters of Arts in history and economics at the University of Edinburgh.

On his return to Tanganyika, he took a teaching position at St Francis College in Dar-es-salaam, where in 1954 he developed the Tanganyika Africa national union (TANU) which grouped together nationalist factions towards an agenda of independence and self-reliance for the country.

Nyerere then entered the colonial legislative council in 1958 and in 1961.Tanganyika was granted self-governance and Nyerere was elected its Prime minister. When Tanganyika received full independence in 1962, Nyerere was elected president, a post he held until his retirement in 1985.

During his political career, Nyerere grew to become one of the most respected and beloved African leaders through his messages of peace, Unity and liberation for the Africa people. He was instrumental in the creation of the organization of Africa unity (OAU) and acted as the keystone of several liberation moments across the continent as well as the union between Zanzibar and Tanganyika to form the united republic of Tanzania. His work continued beyond his retirement, acting as the chair of the intergovernmental south centre and a mediator in Burundi. He died on October 14, 1999, in London.

The workshop was organized by Pamela Atakunda and Ethel Sirengo. At the end of the workshop the way forward was reached -that East Africa community to strengthen the human resource capacity of NCPR in order to be able to undertake the proposed research activities; resource mobilization to effectively implement the research activities; have a timeframe for the research activities and updates the existing database of research institutions and individual researchers.

People for Peace in Africa (PPA)
P O Box 14877
Nairobi
00800, Westlands
Kenya

E-Mail news@ppa.or.ke
Tel 254-20-4441372
Website : www.peopleforpeaceafrica.org