>
Female lawmakers with artificial nails and false eyelashes have been banned from Tanzania’s parliament.
Citizen Tanzania newspaper quoted Job Ndugai, the Speaker of Parliament, who made the announcement on Monday, as saying that both cosmetic trends could cause health problems.
The new regulations also ban female lawmakers from wearing short dresses and jeans. Female visitors to parliament will also be expected to adhere to the dress code.
The announcement came a day after President John Magufuli asked women to stop taking birth control pills, saying the country needs more people.
Magufuli who spoke at a rally on Sunday in the northern Meatu district, said people who use family planning methods were lazy.
“They do not want to work hard to feed a large family. And that is why they opt for birth controls and end up with one or two children only,” he said.
“I have travelled to Europe and elsewhere and have seen the harmful effects of birth control. Some countries are now facing declining population growth.”
On average, a woman in Tanzania has more than five children, among the highest rates in the world.