Dar es Salaam. Good morning! The Chanzo is here with a rundown of major news stories reported in Tanzania on Thursday, October 27, 2022.
Samia to visit China with focus on cooperation in agriculture, infrastructure
President Samia Suluhu Hassan is expected to visit China from November 2 to November 4, 2022, becoming the first head of state from Africa to visit the East Asian powerhouse after the conclusion of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China.
Spokesperson of the Chinese Foreign Ministry Mao Ning was quoted by China’s Global Times as saying that President Xi Xi Jinping will hold a welcome ceremony for the Tanzanian leader, hold bilateral talks and jointly attend a signing ceremony of cooperation documents.
Samia’s visit was announced as China welcomes other foreign leaders, including Vietnam’s Communist Party chief and the Pakistani prime minister following the conclusion of the 20th CPC National Congress, Global Times reported.
According to Mr Ning, Samia’s visit to China will inject new impetus into the comprehensive and profound development of China-Tanzania relations and make new progress in bilateral friendship and cooperation.
“In 2013, during his visit to Tanzania, President Xi put forth the guiding principles of China’s policy toward Africa, namely sincerity, real results, affinity and good faith, which have then become China’s basic policy on pursuing solidarity and cooperation with other developing countries,” Ning told a press conference.
“In recent years, [China and Tanzania] have witnessed deepening political mutual trust and fruitful practical cooperation and have maintained sound cooperation in international and regional affairs,” added the senior Chinese government official.
Tanzania and China have enjoyed a very special relationship that dates back from the days of the generation of leadership of the founding fathers of these nations, namely the late Mwalimu Julius K. Nyerere and Abeid A. Karume on the part of Tanzania; Chairman Mao Zedong, Premier Zhou Enlai and later Supreme Leader Deng Xiaoping on the part of China.
Tanzania and China have been seeing their trade and business exchanges growing over the past decades. For example, China has set up some agricultural demonstration centres in Tanzania, investing in many sectors such as cotton and leather, according to an analysis by Global Times.
Most recently, the Chinese Embassy in Tanzania held an online training course on Juncao technology from October 11 to 24, 2024.
Korea Eximbank to provide $135 million in loans to Tanzania
The Export-Import Bank of Korea will provide $135 million in loans to Tanzania via the Economic Development Cooperation Fund (EDCF) to develop the country’s land information infrastructure and expand its resident registration system, Korea JoongAng Daily reported Thursday.
Korea Eximbank Chairman Yoon Hee-sung signed the loan agreement on October 27, 2022, with Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Finance and Planning Emmanuel Tutuba at the government complex in Seoul, reports suggest.
Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa, who is visiting Korea to celebrate 30 years of cooperation between the two countries, and Korean Prime Minister Han Duck-soo were present at the signing ceremony.
“We will consolidate the foundations for business expansion to Africa by supporting Tanzania, which has been making large investments in infrastructure for economic development recently, with the EDCF,” Korea JoongAng Daily quoted Chairman Yoon as saying.
The state-run EDCF was established by the Korean government in 1987 and is controlled by Eximbank to support industrial development and economic stability in developing countries.
“The EDCF will serve as a bridge for small- and mid-sized firms in Korea that are producing and developing digital technologies to enter the African market,” Mr Yoon added.
Of the loan, $65 million will go toward the digital development of Tanzania’s land information system including map data, while $70 million will be allocated for the expansion of the resident registration system.
Tanzania has set a target for 88 per cent of its citizens to register for resident permits with the support of the funding.
Meanwhile, South Korean Prime Minister Han Duck-soo held talks with his Tanzanian counterpart Majaliwa in which they discussed measures to deepen bilateral economic relations, according to a report by Yonhap News Agency.
According to the report, Han told Majaliwa that Tanzania’s growth potential is huge, with abundant natural resources, stable political conditions, and its government’s effective development policies.
DAWASA starts rationing water due to drought
The Dar es Salaam Water and Sanitation Authority (DAWASA) began rationing water in the commercial capital Dar es Salaam following a drought-induced drop in water levels from its main source, the Ruvu river.
The 7.2 million inhabitants of the Indian Ocean city will go without piped water for 24 hours on alternating days, DAWASA said in a statement.
“The timetable will be updated every week according to how the change of weather increases or decreases the water levels,” the agency announced.
Water supply from the Ruvu has dropped from 466 to about 300 million litres a day, according to water officials, whereas the city consumes an estimated 500 million litres a day.
This is the second water rationing to be announced in less than a year as Tanzania is battling little rainfall, with meteorologists warning that the prolonged dry spell will continue.
On November 8, 2021, DAWASA announced the decision of water-rationing, saying they reached the decision as a result of climate change effects reducing water content from their source.
DAWASA Chief Executive Officer Cyprian Luhemeja was quoted then as saying that while the authority used to collect 520 million litres of water per day in the past, the amount has dropped to only 460 litres, necessitating the water ratio.
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