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Expertise

Natural Sciences

The Natural Sciences sector contributes to UNESCO’s mission by using science to: Build Peace, Eradicate Poverty and Promote Sustainable Development. Aiming at forging a culture of peace by fostering the generation and exchange of scientific knowledge, through Cooperation, Capacity Building and Technical Assistance to its stakeholders’.

Science Sector Objectives

Strengthening science, technology and innovation (STI) systems and policies for sustainable development, poverty eradication and a culture of peace and non-violence.

Mobilising science for the sustainable use of natural resources, renewable energy and energy efficiency, and for natural disaster reduction and mitigation.

Leveraging scientific knowledge for the benefit of the environment and the management of natural resources

Fostering policies and capacity-building in science, technology and innovation. 

Using scientific knowledge and application in contributing to disaster preparedness and mitigation   

Sector Activities

Promoting STI policies and access to knowledge through building capacities in the basic sciences and mobilizing broad-based participation in STI

Strengthening, improving governance and fostering cooperation to manage and protect oceans and coastal zones for the benefit of Tanzanians and its neighbours

Freshwater systems under stress and societal responses, incorporating the work of the International Hydrological Programme (IHP)

Biodiversity, natural disaster reduction, engineering, science education, climate change, renewable energy and sustainable development

Enabling the application of ecological and earth science for sustainability, including through the Man and the Biosphere Programme (MAB)

Collaboration with stakeholders of different aspect of application of natural science in sustainable livelihood

Culture

UNESCO works closely with the national authorities and local stakeholders to promote cultural diversity, intercultural dialogue and a culture of peace through programmes that aim to strengthen the contribution of culture to sustainable development as well as to sustainably protect and enhance cultural heritage.

The Culture Programme focuses primarily on supporting the United Republic of Tanzania with the implementation of five international Conventions in the field of culture, which Tanzania has ratified:

  • 2005 – Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions
  • 2003 – Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage
  • 1972 – Convention for the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage
  • 1970 – Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property
  • 1954 – Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict

The Culture Sector interventions are in line with the National Strategic Plan, which aims to have a sustainably well-informed, culturally enriched nation by 2025 as well as with the African Union Vision 2063 and the United Nations 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. Through the Culture Sector, partnerships and networks across the country, Africa and internationally, UNESCO continues to support Tanzania in achieving its national development vision, working with the government and local stakeholders to safeguard heritage, strengthen creative industries and encourage cultural pluralism.

Ongoing Projects

Following requests from the United Republic of Tanzania, the World Heritage Fund has granted a total of USD 59,836 in International Financial Assistance for two new projects to address conservation and management needs at two World Heritage sites: the Ruins of Kilwa Kisiwani and Ruins of Songo Mnara and Kondoa Rock-Art Sites. Project implementation started in October 2020.

Kondoa Rock-Art World Heritage Site

Project Title: The Review and the Update of the Management Plan Framework for Kondoa Rock Art World Heritage Site in Tanzania

 

The project will focus on updating the conservation and management plan for the site through capacity building workshops, and raising awareness among the local communities through education and outreach on the conservation and management needs of the site as well as its potential for the development of sustainable cultural tourism.

Ruins of Kilwa Kisiwani and Ruins of Songo Mnara World Heritage Site

Project Title: Elimination of waves and tides scouring action, restoration of stairs at Husuni Palace and Community awareness educational programme.

The project is focusing on countering the impacts of climate change and promoting awareness raising of conservation needs. Activities for this project will include: planting of mangrove trees to reduce scouring tidal currents that also increase wave impacts on the Malindi beach, Gereza, Makutani mosque and Songo Mnara; restoration of eroded stairs at the Husuni Palace; and educational programmes for the local community on cultural heritage.

The UNESCO Office in Dar es Salaam is pleased to support the State Party of Tanzania with the implementation of these important projects, which will help to improve the conservation and management of iconic World Heritage sites in Tanzania. We are confident that Tanzania’s World Heritage sites can help the country to rebuild its tourism sector after the COVID-19 pandemic, and contribute to sustainable development in Tanzania

Mr. Tirso Dos Santos, Head of the UNESCO Office in Dar es Salaam

Strengthening the East African Contemporary Dance Scene

A Tanzanian NGO, Muda Africa, has received 72,989 USD in funding from the UNESCO International Fund for Cultural Diversity (IFCD), for the project “Strengthening the East African contemporary dance scene.” The project aims to strengthening the East African contemporary dance scene in Rwanda, Uganda and United Republic of Tanzania by creating a web portal that promotes young professional East African dance artists and connects them to global dance markets, as well as empowering women dance artists through choreographic capacity building and new regional policies.

Through the project, a network to promote contemporary dance in East Africa to be created, including an online database featuring 120 East African dancers from the Afrika Mashariki Dance (AMDA) network in United Republic of Tanzania, Uganda and Rwanda. The project activities also include carrying-out a survey on dance markets in the region as well as development of a manual and training on art marketing for 180 dancers. The empowerment of East African women dance artists will be ensured through three training workshops on contemporary dance targeting 45 women artists, and organization of a 2-day conference with the members of AMDA network to develop policies promoting East African women artists. Project implementation started in May 2021.

See also: Culture Programme

Communication and Information

UNESCO is the United Nations agency with a specific mandate to promote freedom of expression, access to information and media development, online and offline, as crucial foundations of democracy, development and dialogue, our support aims to build enabling environments and capacities of duty and rights bearers, as preconditions for the protection and promotion of all other human rights.

In the field of communication and information, UNESCO defends and promotes freedom of expression, media independence and pluralism, and the building of inclusive knowledge societies underpinned by universal access to information and the innovative use of digital technologies.

Through capacity-building, policy advice, international cooperation, monitoring and foresight in the fields of freedom of expression, access to information, and digital transformation, UNESCO empowers key actors with a view to ensuring that fundamental freedoms are guaranteed online and offline, in line with international standards.

Accelerating the 2030 Agenda for Peace, Justice and Inclusion

As Tanzania enters middle-income status, the need to uphold peaceful, just and inclusive knowledge societies is more urgent than ever before. The delivery of SDG16 targets in Tanzania requires the mobilization of effective and sustainable financing; quality data, produced and shared, is imperative to demonstrate measurable progress; and capacity building, which is essential to enhance and strengthen institutional capacities of the country to deliver on the implementation of the 2030 Agenda. 

Our programmes directly contribute to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals  set out in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, with specific attention to the social, political and economic transformations of the digital age.

Fostering Freedom of Expression

POLICY & REGULATIONS

UNESCO works with government, key actors and partners to ensure that legislations and policies are in line with international standards in order to ensure a free, independent, and pluralistic media can flourish. , the Sector combats online hate speech, as well as disinformation and misinformation through awareness raising initiatives, steady monitoring, capacity-building activities, and technical support to Member States.

ADVOCACY, PARTICIPATION AND DIALOGUE

UNESCO supports regular platforms for multi-stakeholder advocacy and dialogue on sector development - on World Radio Day (13 Feb), World Press Freedom Day (WPFD) (03 May), 28 Sep International Day for Universal Access to Information (IDUAI) (28 Sept) and 2 Nov International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists (02 Nov).

SAFETY OF JOURNALISTS

UNESCO actively works to ensure the safety of journalists and media workers, online and offline. UNESCO is the global facilitator for the UN Plan of Action on the Safety of Journalists and the Issue of Impunity, advancing a multi-stakeholder approach to promote better legislation and protection mechanisms, engaging the judiciary system and security forces on these issues and curriculum review for quality journalism education.

Media Independence and Pluralism

MEDIA & INFORMATION LITERACY

Media and Information Literacy (MIL) empowers citizens to understand the functions of media and other information providers, to critically evaluate their content, and to make informed decisions as users and producers of information and media content. UNESCO focuses on strengthening the capacities of educators and providing quality pedagogical methods, curricula and resources for the integration of MIL in teaching.

UNESCO furthers gender equality in media operations and content, and encourages pertinent media coverage of crisis and emergency situations. Through its holistic approach, UNESCO contributes to media diversity and pluralism by fostering diversity of content, audience, sources, and systems.

INTERNATIONAL PROGRAMME FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF COMMUNICATION (IPDC)

The UNESCO led Programme is the only multilateral forum in the UN system designed to mobilise the international community to discuss and promote media development in developing countries. The Programme provides financial support for media projects and seeks an accord to secure a healthy environment for the growth of free and pluralistic media.

Building Knowledge Societies

ACCESS TO INFORMATION

Access to knowledge is a fundamental human right and a key instrument to development.  If efforts to ensure that information as a public good are effective, commitments to leaving no one behind will be achieved. This accelerator recognizes the changing information ecosystem affecting our health, human rights, democracy and sustainable development, often and previously overlooked in the UN development framework for Tanzania.  UNESCO supported community media network reaches an estimated 22million, mostly in rural and marginalized areas.

PRESERVATION OF DOCUMENTARY HERITAGE

UNESCO aims to raise awareness of the growing dangers impacting the preservation of documentary heritage in various parts of the world. Through the Memory of the World Programme (MoW), UNESCO closely cooperates with Member States to identify, preserve and promote access to the world’s documentary heritage, to make it available to present and future generations. The programme includes the MoW Register that lists documentary heritage based on its world significance and outstanding universal value.

INFORMATION FOR ALL PROGRAMME (IFAP)

IFAP is an intergovernmental programme through harnesses new opportunities of the information age to create equitable societies through better access to information.

Innovative Use of Digital Technologies

DIGITAL SKILLS

UNESCO YouthMobile and Africa Code Week partnership supports digital skills development interventions, particularly for women and girls, to narrow the digital gap in access to technology and for the creation and promotion of quality skills to enable productivity and growth.

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

The Sector also coordinates UNESCO’s inter-sectoral work on Artificial Intelligence (AI), with a view to addressing the impact of AI on the fields of competence of UNESCO, promoting the use of AI and its potential to achieve the SDGs; and fostering a human-centred development and application of AI respectful of human rights and ethical principles.

Education

Overview

The Education Sector focuses its work across all levels of education from pre-primary to tertiary and non-formal education in Tanzania Mainland and Zanzibar. Development initiatives and interventions are anchored on the UN Delivering as One platform, within the United Nations Development Assistance Plan (UNDAP II) framework, and the newly in formation United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF).

Key Activities

  1. Enhancing education planning and monitoring systems to support the domestication of SDG4 into the education system in Tanzania.
  2. Advocating for Re-Entry Policy of girls that interrupt their leaning due to early pregnancy, including support for development of a second chance education for out-of-school girls model through ODL.
  3. Supporting the Government in conducting an education sector analysis (ESA) and the development and implementation of the ESDP, based on the ESA results.
  4. Supporting the development and institutionalization of ESMIS.
  1. Leading on the country-specific adaptation and institutionalization of the SDG4 (alignment of the SDG 4 and ESDP and ZESDP); (with SHS, CI, CLT).
  2. Providing leadership and technical support to a number of National agendas, including the Education Outcome Group of UNDAP II, UN/Government Education Programme Management Committee and the development of the Country’s Adolescent and Young Adult Stakeholders Group (with SHS, CI).
  3. Supporting the Ministry of Education and its institutions in the adoption of curriculum content in the following areas;
    • Teacher Education Diplomas in Science & Mathematics; (with SC)
    • Development of ICT Standards on teacher education
    • Sexual and reproductive health, human rights and environment education using the CSE, GCED, ESD and Inclusive Learning Friendly Environment Tools; (with SHS)
  4. Enhancing Teacher Education for bridging Education Quality Gap in Tanzania through capacity building of Teacher Training Colleges.
  5. Promoting Early Learning through innovative Technologies in Tanzania to enhance literacy and numeracy skills acquisition of out of schoolchildren.
  6. Empowering Adolescent girls and Young Women through learning opportunities in-and-out of school, and in cooperation of education, health and law enforcement systems, as well as supporting basic, life, entrepreneurial and vocational skills development to out of school young adolescents.
  7. Enhancing adolescent girls’ performance and retention at ordinary secondary school level in Tanzania to contribute towards access to, and performance in education.
  8. Improving access to second chance education, including through ICTs, to improve the access and quality to basic education, health education and vocational education.

Ongoing Projects

  1. KOICA-funded UN Joint Project on ‘Empowering Adolescent Girls and Young Women through Education in Tanzania’ (2016-2021).
  2. The Better Education for Africa’s Rise II project (BEAR II) on improving the relevance, quality and perception of their Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) systems in Tanzania (2017–2021).
  3. Our Rights, Our Lives, Our Future(O3) Programme on “Making positive sexual and reproductive health and education outcomes a reality for adolescents and young people in Sub-Saharan Africa”
  4. UN Country Joint Program on HIV and AIDS (UBRAF), project entitled “Integrated model for HIV and AIDS response including GBV Prevention and support Workplace Programs”.
  5. UNPRPD Multi-Country Programme Ending Stigma and Discrimination, Breaking the Cycle of Poverty and Marginalization of Persons with Disabilities.
  6. China Funds-in-Trust Phase III (CFIT III) in Higher Education:  Higher Technical Education in Africa for a Technical and Innovative Workforce.