Dar  es  Salaam:  The minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooporation, Mr Bernard Membe, is expected to open the national validation seminar on the country's self assessment report on governance issues organised by the Tanzania chapter of the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM).

The event is expected to take place in Dar es Salaam tomorrow attracting more than 70 participants from public and private sectors, media practitioners, academia, non governmental organisations and other people from across the country.

According to a press release issued in Dar es Salaam yesterday by APRM executive secretary, Ms Rehema Twalib, objectives of the seminar is to give the participants an opportunity to exchange views on the findings contained in the report released last July.

Ms Twalib said in a statement that the report was drawn after  research conducted by local experts on four thematic governance areas, namely democracy and political governance, economic governance and management, corporate governance and socio-economic governance

APRM process is a voluntary mechanism put in place by the African Union (AU) heads of state and governments during their meeting in 2003 as a self monitoring tool. It was a way of implementing objectives of the by then New Economic Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD).

Ms Twalib said it was envisaged that Africa should now assess itself through its internal experts so as to strengthen good governance and the rule of law.  She said national validation seminar is an important step for APRM Tanzania since they expect to receive experts from outside as a country who will also prepare a report to be tabled at the APR Forum for discussion and guidance on how Tanzania will implement the National Plan of Action meant to address governance issues that have been identified.

Ms Twalib explained that Tanzania joined the mechanism in July 2004 and later Parliament ratified the APRM instruments in early 2005, to allow the process to take off.  The peer review mechanism in the country under APRM Tanzania, took off in mid 2007 after President Jakaya Kikwete had appointed members of the National Governing Council which was followed by setting up a secretariat.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooporation was appointed as a focal point ministry for the APRM process.