Why BRN in Tanzania failed?
BRN stands for Big Results Now, a program initiated by the Tanzanian government in 2013 to boost economic growth and improve public service delivery. BRN adopted a Malaysian model called "Big Fast Results" but faced significant challenges when implemented in Tanzania. Several reasons contributed to the failure of BRN in Tanzania:
1. Lack of political commitment: Although the government initiated the program, it reportedly did not invest sufficient political capital and resources to drive the reforms. Government officials and bureaucrats who were supposed to implement the changes had inadequate commitment, leading to slow progress.
2. Weak institutional capacity: The public sector in Tanzania faced capacity constraints, including a lack of skills, knowledge, and resources to implement the ambitious reforms suggested by the BRN initiative. This hindered the achievement of targets and milestones set by the program.
3. Bureaucratic resistance: The BRN program faced resistance from entrenched interests within the government and bureaucracy, slowing down its progress. The changes proposed by BRN threatened the power structures and systems that had existed for years, leading to active and passive resistance from various stakeholders.
4. Implementation challenges: The ambitious nature of the program and its short timeframe created unrealistic expectations, leading to failures and disappointments. The Tanzanian government faced difficulties in mobilizing resources and streamlining its systems to achieve the expected outcomes.
5. Corruption: Tanzania has long struggled with pervasive corruption at various levels, and BRN was no exception. Reports suggest that corruption hindered progress, with resources being diverted and misused by individuals and institutions involved in the program.
6. Poor monitoring and evaluation: Like many government programs, BRN suffered from weak monitoring and evaluation mechanisms. This made it difficult to track progress, learn from failures, and adjust the program as needed to achieve better results.
7. Lack of sustained momentum: The BRN program was launched with significant fanfare but lacked the continuous push and leadership needed to sustain it over time. With the change of government in 2015, the program's focus shifted, and it eventually faded out of prioritization.
Overall, the failure of the BRN program in Tanzania can be attributed to a combination of factors: insufficient political commitment, weak institutional capacity, bureaucratic resistance, implementation challenges, corruption, poor monitoring and evaluation, and a lack of sustained momentum.