Dar es Salaam. Good morning! The Chanzo is here with a rundown of major news stories reported in Tanzania over the weekend.
India, Tanzania finalise five-year roadmap to expand defence collaboration
India and Tanzania have finalised a five-year roadmap to expand bilateral defence cooperation, including infrastructure building and collaboration in military equipment and technology, India’s The Economic Times reported Sunday.
The finalisation of the roadmap precedes the anticipated trip to Tanzania by India’s Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar next week.
Tanzania and India have agreed on the roadmap at the second edition of the India-Tanzania Joint Defence Cooperation Committee (JDCC) meeting held in Arusha on June 28 and 29, the paper reported.
“During the meeting, the two sides discussed a wide range of opportunities for collaboration to enhance security in the Indian Ocean Region,” The Economic Times reported, quoting a statement by Tanzania’s Ministry of Defence and National Service.
It said the Indian delegation highlighted the growing prowess of Indian defence manufacturing to export to friendly countries.
“A five-year roadmap for defence cooperation was also agreed to between the two sides, which covers initiatives ranging from customised training and capacity building to maritime cooperation, infrastructure building and collaboration in defence equipment and technology,” the statement added.
Besides Egypt, Tanzania is emerging as a key defence industrial partner for India in the continent, according to an analysis by The Economic Times.
Last year, India sought to expand its defence partnership with Tanzania through a defence expo held in Dar es Salaam. 16 Indian companies, seven from the government sector and nine from the private sector participated in that event.
India and Tanzania have long-standing defence cooperation in trading, capacity building and equipment supply. India and Tanzania signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on defence cooperation in 2003.
The MoU provides an over-arching framework for progressing various defence cooperation initiatives between the two countries. In recent years, India and Tanzania have cooperated in defence training in Indian institutions.
About 400 Tanzanian defence personnel have been trained in India. At the request of the late President John Magufuli, an Indian Military Training Team (IMTT) has been deployed at Command and Staff College, Arusha, since December 2017.
OPEC Fund, partners finance new power transmission line in Tanzania
A new US$60 million loan by the OPEC Fund for International Development (the OPEC Fund) and partners is expected to strengthen energy security in northwest Tanzania.
According to a statement released over the weekend, the project will include constructing a 166km overhead transmission line connecting the Kagera region to the national grid, replacing the current energy supply from Uganda with local hydropower resources.
The two new hydropower plants are expected to be operational in 2024 and 2030 with a nominal capacity of 80 MW and 87 MW, respectively.
The financing of the project will be shared among several partners: The OPEC Fund with a US$30 million loan, as a first tranche of a US$60 million facility, will be joined by the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (US$30 million), the Saudi Fund for Development (US$12.8 million) and the government of Tanzania with US$2.6 million.
Other backers are set to finance a downstream distribution network connecting many unserved communities to the grid.
The construction of the new transmission line is expected to allow Tanzania to reduce its dependence on energy imports, enhancing energy security and saving costs by eliminating the need to pay for imports in foreign currency.
Furthermore, expanding hydropower generation will allow the country to shut down expensive and polluting backup thermal power plants, leading to a cleaner and cheaper energy sector in Tanzania.
The OPEC Fund signed its first engagement in Tanzania in 1977 and has approved more than US$400 million for investment in all major sectors of the economy.
China’s Confucius Institute celebrates 10th anniversary in Tanzania
The Confucius Institute at the University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM) celebrated its 10th anniversary on Saturday, with authorities commending the Chinese public educational and cultural promotion programs for “promoting mutual understanding of friendly cooperation between China and Tanzania.”
The Confucius Institute was established at UDSM ten years ago, and it has organised 244 students to participate in Chinese summer camps for college and secondary school students, according to reports presented during the commemoration.
The Confucius Institute at the University of Dar es Salaam was established in 2013 under an agreement between the University of Dar es Salaam, the Chinese International Education Foundation and Zhejiang Normal University.
The vision of the Confucius Institute is to be one of the leading Chinese language training and testing centres and one of the best Chinese cultural and academic exchange centres in Africa.
Speaking during the anniversary, Kenneth Hosea, Director of Higher Education in the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, said the institute has been instrumental in offering cultural exchanges and Chinese language learning as an effective approach to further developing China-Tanzania ties.
“The directors of the Confucius Institutes are working hard to ensure that Tanzanian youth learn the Chinese language to improve their competitiveness in future career development and self-development,” Hosea said.
The Chinese ambassador to Tanzania, Chen Mingjian, said the Confucius Institute had trained nearly 50,000 Chinese learners in Tanzania, providing opportunities for students who want to learn Chinese.
Chen said the Confucius Institute at the University of Dar es Salaam has also helped nearly 100 students apply for scholarships, allowing them to study in China.
African women leaders gather in Arusha for regional leadership conference
Leading African women will gather in Arusha later this month for the African Women in Leadership Organisation (AWLO) conference themed ‘Promoting Gender Equity for Socio-Economic Development in Africa.’
The conference, to take place from July 5 to July 8, 2023, will see participants deliberating on issues such as women in politics and lawmaking; the role of leadership in building equitable institutions; HeforShe-led conversations; women in business networking; and socio-economic development for gender equality.
Dr Elisha Attai, the founder of AWLO, told Vanguard that the gathering was inspired by a need to spur progress in the continent.
“Africa is a continent blessed with diverse resources and opportunities but growth and development have been stunted due to gender inequality.
“African women are held back from fulfilling their potential by many constraints, whether as leaders in public life, in the boardroom, or in growing their businesses. This, in turn, holds back the potential of the continent’s economy,” he said.
Attai added that a panel tagged “Women in Leadership Show and Tell: Where are the Leading Women?” will showcase women in leadership — role models and changemakers, who will be sharing valuable experience, expertise, and inspiration to bolster representation and confidence in women’s leadership.
This, he added, will be followed by intergenerational dialogues.
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