Multi-stakeholders dialogue in Tanzania: Informal economy on the way to recognition.

One of the main issues linked to Informal Economy is the lack of recognition of workers depending on it and their difficulties to get their interests taken into consideration in the political agenda. It is thereby of crucial importance to manage to create bridges between the informal sector and the public institutions and powers.

Within this framework, Plan International UK and VSO carried out an initiative aiming at empowering marginalized young people dependent on the informal economy in five regions of Tanzania in partnership with Uhamasishaji Hifadhi Kisarawe (UHIKI), Community Development & Relief Trust (CODERT) and Vocational Education and Training Authority (VETA).

The “Partnership to enhance livelihoods and social inclusion of marginalised young people dependent on the informal economy” project aims at reducing poverty and exclusion, improve opportunities for wage and self-employment, through the strengthening of technical and entrepreneurial skills of youth, the access to a set of financial and health insurance services and the improvement of informal workers organization and representation.

Regarding to this last point, the project approach considers the meaningful participation and stronger linkages between youth groups, government and the private sector, as an important point in the improvement of economic empowerment among marginalised young men and women.

For this purpose, the project has supported the creation of youth forums at different level (district, regional, national) acting as a platform through which beneficiary views, ideas, requests, challenges that need third-party interventions are discussed and forwarded to responsible authorities. A National Youth Forum is held once a year to create a point of contact between youth and official representatives of the Tanzanian government.

Last 9^th and 10^th November 2017, twenty national Youth Economic Empowerment (YEE) forum members joined the YEE stakeholders’ delegation that attended the parliamentary session.

During this event, the delegation met the Minister of Labour, Employment, Youth and the Disabled, and the Minister of Local Government, to discuss about the creation of more youth opportunities, project successes as well as issues affecting the youth generally in the country.