SIDO's industrial estate programmeparformance: the experience of the Songea Industrial Estate

The study is aimed at the evaluation of the performance of the industrial estate program as it refers to the Songea Industrial Estate. As SIDO is the Organization concened with the promotion and development of small scale industries in Tanzania, one has to consider this programme as a means of providing support for the small scale industries. The study is based on the hypothesis that the current trend of the Songea industrial estate programme will not fully meet its specified objectives which are the exploitation of the regions local resources, the dispersion of small scale industries to other parts of the region, increase in output to meet the demands of the immediate, local market and fostering of backward and forward linkages with other sectors such as agriculture, medium and large scale industries and services. There will be a general survey will amount to an expansion of literature on the industrial estate programme, on a theoretical basis with reference to Tanzania and other countries especially India. The specific survey will focus on the Songea industrial estate operating units. Structured questionnaires would be used in getting the required information in respect to employment size, items produced or services rendered, inputs used, marketing capital investment, nature of ownership and problems faced. There will also be a brief mention of the socioeconomic background of Ruvuma Region which is necessary for planning purposes and for understanding the factors concerning any type of economic activity to be under taken in that region. In carrying out the study, the first part which consists of Chapters 1-111 will concentrate on getting data pertaining to the functional aspects of the industrial estate in general and the Songea estate in particular. The second part which is Chapter IV is intended to draw up on the basis of the information thus acquired concrete recommendations on the policies required to improve the performance of the Songea estate in particular and other estates to be established especially in the backward regions in general. The policies will cover both log term measures and sort term measures.