ACROSS fiscal 2023/24 the Ministry of Works (Vote 98) and the Tanzania National Roads Agency (TanRoads) paid 55.55bn/- in interest penalties due to delayed payments, the National Audit Office has indicated.

Charles Kichere, the Controller and Auditor General (CAG), noted when delivering the annual audit report to the legislature that in total, 136 projects valued at 1.34trn/- experienced delays ranging from 1 percent to 92 percent because of weak contract oversight.

Further, 41 projects valued at 558.63bn/- were abandoned altogether due to inadequate planning, insufficient funding and contractor liquidity issues, with advance payments pegged at 141.09bn/- similarly delayed, exacerbating the situation and increasing compensation claims.

The report profiles widespread financial mismanagement, contract oversight failures and delayed infrastructure projects in the government’s procurement and contract performance during the financial year.

As of June 30, 2024, public institutions had accumulated unpaid claims amounting to 4.56trn/-, with 3.53trn/- remaining unpaid for over a year. These delays have severely impacted project execution and triggered legal disputes, the CAG stated.

A total of 27.81bn/- in delayed compensation payments to project-affected persons (PAPs) stalled infrastructure development and exposed the government to legal and financial risks, the report noted.

In a striking example, TanRoads terminated a 38.36bn/- contract for the Ibanda–Kiwira trunk road after discovering fraudulent documents submitted by the contractor, causing an estimated 13.72bn/- loss.

The Nachingwea–Ruangwa–Nanganga road project billing showed a 1.79bn/- loss due to delayed government disbursements and frequent contract changes, it affirmed, pointing at contract enforcement failures at weighbridges, where 26,300 vehicles bypassed inspection due to power outages and equipment failures.

Moreover, poor permit management resulted in 792 duplicated special load permits at 41 weighbridges, costing the government 41.18m/- in lost revenue, it further detailed, focusing on acute funding shortfalls in TanRoads and TARURA.

There was a 1.43 trn/- deficit in road maintenance funding, leading to suspension of projects priced at 495.24bn/-, while in the housing sector, the Tanzania Building Agency (TBA) struggled to recover 3.98bn/- from the Bunju Housing Project.

Pricing disputes delayed sales of 471 units in the Magomeni Housing Project, it said

The government mechanical works agency (TEMESA) had 32 vessels operating without seaworthiness certificates, while the 9.5bn/- Nyamisati Ferry project faced a 14-month delay due to contractor inefficiencies and design approval issues.

In the water sector, the long-awaited National Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) plan has been delayed for 15 years, hampering water governance and increasing environmental risks, it said.

Nearly 3,000 water sources remain unprotected while 36 unlicensed drilling companies operate due to poor coordination between the Ministry of Water and the licensing agency, BRELA, it said, pointing at revenue losses amounting to 2.01bn/- due to 1,795 expired water permits.

Despite urban water supply improving to 90 percent in June 2024, a 26.29 billion-litre supply gap persists across 16 Water Supply and Sanitation Authorities (WSSAs), the report indicates, even as 8.75 billion litres of water was lost to leakages from ageing infrastructure. A total of 2,203 customers remain unmetered, it stated.

In rural areas, water coverage reached 79.6 percent, with 642 of the planned 900 boreholes operational as infrastructure remained incomplete due to budget constraints, it said.

A total of 8.32bn/- was disbursed without signed performance agreements, raising serious accountability and transparency concerns, it added.