Sustainable development

This is the situation/process of making sure current process of interaction with environment (economic activities) are pursued with the idea of keeping or protecting environment as pristine as naturally possible.

This emphasizes people to change from old sector centred ways of doing business to new approach that involves gross sectoral coordination and integration of environmental and social concerned all development process in short it deals with balanced economic growth and performance.

This emphasizes integration and interaction between economic activities and environment so as to bring both environmental and economic sustainability in association with creating social equity. Therefore social sustainability is achieved by creating equitable economic growth with arable environmental situation.

Generally sustainable development deal with the methods of economic growth and development that does not adversely affects future growth potential.

Generally sustainable development is measured by looking into four main indicators either in local, regional, national even internationally. These indicators are;

1. Economic performance — Economic performance includes things like increase in GNP, balanced trade and balance of payment, and other economic aspects. Therefore a country with sustainable development experiences high growth of GNP and good position of balance of trade and payment.
2. Social equity/ Justice — This relates with things like level of poverty, literacy rate, life expectancy, availability of social services and income equity in an economy. Country with sustainable development has lowest level of poverty, high literacy rate and life expectancy, there is improved social services and equal income distribution and development.
3. Environmental protection — This indicator includes things like environmental degradation, water pollution, forest reserve and other environmental issues. Country which experiences sustainable development has high level of environmental protection and minimum environmental problems.
4. Institutional capacity — This includes International cooperation and integration, research and development, sustainable development of institutions like financial institutions.

• Sustainable development integrates multidisciplinary capacities and interprets socially, economically and environmentally. It emphasizes that healthy environment is essential to support a growing economy. Therefore economic activities and decisions on use of resources should be done to create continued economic development without affecting the environment negatively.
• Research shows that economic growth may help developing countries to conserve their national resources and environment in general since economic growth is associated with technological advancement that may create a catalyst for large scale production and improvement of social services at minimum environment problem i.e. low pollution.

The following are applications of sustainable development in Tanzania;

1. Sustainable development applied in fishing and water bodies management — This concept is used in creating fishing laws and regulations that prohibit fishing of immature fishes and the use of bad fishing methods such as use of explosives, small nets, gunpowder and other methods that impact resources in water bodies (fish) that will limit availability of resources for the coming generation.
2. It is applied in formation of economic growth and development strategies — When government formulates growth strategies it considers environmental protection and long run benefits as sustainable development needs. Under this government formulate regulatory standards like environmental act i.e. laws of protecting environment and NEMC as a strategy of reducing pollution, social cost and other environmental effects.
3. Sustainable development applied in tourism and wildlife management — Government uses the concept of sustainable development in establishing laws and regulations in tourism activities and wildlife management such as afforestation and restrict deforestation and massive tourism that may cause environmental problems avoiding illegal hunting, so as to protect plants and animals and possibility of experiencing drought, which may bring negative impact for the future generation.
4. It is applied in agricultural activities — The concept of sustainable development is used in conducting agricultural activities which protect soil fertility and other natural resources for future generation. In implementing this, all bad farming methods like cultivation along slope, are avoided and crop rotation, application of fertilizers, terracing are applied also avoiding overgrazing and nomadic pastoralism in order to protect soil and environment for future generation.
5. Although sustainable development has application in developing economies like Tanzania — Research shows that sustainable development is an indicator of developed countries and not suitable for developing countries like Tanzania. Economists believe that developed countries were polluted significantly during their development, so it is suitable for them to emphasize and implement sustainable development because they now maintain high level of development rather than struggling for growth and development.
6. Sustainable development is said to set limits on growth and development strategies in third world countries like Tanzania — Because sustainable development emphasizes on pollution reduction and environmental conservation for future generation. This encourages developing countries like Tanzania to reduce pollution which sometimes reduces growth because environmental protection means low production which is against growth and development strategies which needs developing countries to produce and invest more in order to stimulate economic growth that lead to environmental pollution and unsustainable development.
7. Still other researchers view environmental and social challenges as opportunities for development action — This idea is true because it may create individual enterprise and global opportunities or needs for innovation and entrepreneurial solution.
8. Some economists consider that implementation of sustainable development would mean reversion to pre-modern lifestyles — According to Mary Jo Anderson "the real purpose of sustainable development is to contain and limit economic development in developing countries (like Tanzania) and in so doing control population."