Road travel in Tanzania: for better or for worse?

The announcement by the Tanzania National Roads Agency (TANROAD) Chief Executive Eng. Patrick Mfugale last Friday, that the national road agency has plans to tarmac all highways across the country by 2019 at the latest, has immediately triggered the alarm bells among conservationists, who see the declaration of intent as a clear signal that their fears of the Serengeti Highway eventually being tarmacked regardless of present government assurances, are entirely justified.

While the decision by the East African Court of Justice on a permanent injunction to build any sort of road or highway, paved or unpaved, across the migration routes of the great herds, is still pending, work outside the national park towards the park boundaries is going on unabated and has raised suspicion levels once again that no matter what the government has said or what the court will rule, this road will eventually become reality, even if it will irreparably damage the Serengeti.

Sources in Dar es Salaam tried to get TANROAD to comment with specific reference to the planned Serengeti Highway and if that one too was covered by the announcement but bad weather and the weekend break made it impossible to get a feedback by the time this article was uploaded.