Tanzania approves anti-foreigner law

Tanzania's parliament has approved strict laws to prevent the employment of foreigners.

The bill requires businesses & organizations to first prove that no Tanzanian is qualified to do the job before employing a foreigner.

It reflects growing resentment toward foreign workers in Tanzania.

Kenyans and Zambians will be the biggest demographic impacted.

Many are employed by private firms in managerial posts because of skill shortages within the Tanzanian workforce.

In addition, the ‘Non-Citizens Employment Regulation Bill’ states that firms employing foreigners would have to draw up a "succession plan" to pave the way for locals to eventually take the jobs.

The government hopes the bill, still to be signed into law by President Jakaya Kikwete, will come into effect on 1 July.

The bill also raises questions about whether efforts to promote greater regional integration are proving effective.

Tanzania and Kenya have been involved in a dispute over whether their tour operators could pick up tourists from each other's airports, often to take them to game parks popular with Europeans.

And Kenya’s largest airline has just responded by significantly cutting its flights to Dar es Salaam, Tanzania’s biggest city.