Good morning! The Chanzo is here with a rundown of major news stories reported in Tanzania over the weekend.
African coffee producers demand greater role in global decision-making
The 3rd G25 African Coffee Summit concluded on Friday in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, on February 21, 2025, with member states calling for stronger African representation in global decisions affecting the coffee industry.
In the summit’s declaration, Tanzania’s Minister for Agriculture, Hussein Bashe, emphasized that the African Union through the Inter-African Coffee Organisation (IACO) should be actively involved in negotiations on regulatory changes impacting the continent.
Bashe pointed out that Africa should have been part of discussions with the European Union regarding changes to its regulatory framework, such as the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR).
“The EU and other global organizations should not make decisions on coffee without involving the African Union and the African continent,” he said.
The two-day summit focused on transforming Africa’s coffee sector by promoting youth employment, enhancing value addition, and addressing key industry challenges.
In 2022, Africa’s coffee exports were valued at over $3.6 billion, with 90% consisting of raw coffee and only 10% processed and roasted coffee. To boost local value addition, the summit set an ambitious target: by 2035, at least 50% of African coffee should be roasted and traded within the continent.
Coffee has been recognized as a strategic commodity in the African Union’s Agenda 2063. This decision was officially adopted at the AU’s 37th Heads of State Assembly in Addis Ababa in February 2024.
US and Tanzania army representatives call for more joint exercises following the conclusion of Cutlass Express
Representatives of the Tanzanian and US armies have called for increased joint training following the conclusion of the Cutlass Express maritime exercises. The closing ceremony took place at Lugalo Golf Club in Dar es Salaam on February 21, 2025.
The Cutlass Express maritime exercises began on February 10, 2025, and included participants from Comoros, Djibouti, France, Georgia, Kenya, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Madagascar, Seychelles, Somalia, Tanzania, Tunisia, Morocco, and the United States.
The exercises featured classroom training and the exchange of tactics, techniques, and procedures on maritime safety and security. They also tested communication capabilities between maritime operations centers across participating nations.
“We really see you [Tanzania] as an anchor of security and stability in East Africa. And there’s no shortage of challenges in East Africa,” said Lieutenant General John Brennan, the Deputy Commander of U.S. Africa Command.
“You have piracy, counterterrorism issues, illicit fishing. But it takes a network to defeat a network. And Cutlass Express is a key node in that network. With all the maritime operations centers functioning all the time, the exercise is a great vehicle to test that. But we need to push it to the limit and do it more often,” he emphasized.
The Chief of Operations and Training of the Tanzania People’s Defence Force, Major General Ibrahim Mhona, also emphasized the importance of the exercises in fostering coordination between different countries, particularly in addressing common security threats such as piracy and terrorism.
“Tanzania is ready to continue hosting these exercises because, as the host and since the exercise takes place in Tanzania, we have a large number of officers and soldiers participating. Therefore, we are the biggest beneficiaries in terms of training,” Mhona said.
The training exercises were conducted alongside the land-based drills of Justified Accord 2025, which took place in both Tanzania and Kenya.
Police say the viral video showing plainclothes armed men forcefully taking a biker was an arrest
The Tanzania Police Force has issued a statement regarding a video circulating online, which has drawn various public reactions. The incident sparked public concern as the video shows plainclothes individuals, one of them armed, using force to arrest a man clinging to a motorcycle before shoving him into a black vehicle.
In some instances the armed men could be seen pointing out their guns to onlookers who were reaching out to see what was going on. Police say the video captures an arrest operation conducted by police officers on January 20, 2024, in the Maili Moja area of Kibaha, Pwani region.
According to the police statement, the arrested individual, Rajabu Hassan, was suspected of committing robberies using unregistered motorcycles, commonly referred to as ‘Vishandu.’
“During the arrest, he resisted and caused a commotion despite officers identifying themselves. However, the officers successfully detained him and took him to Kibaha Police Station,” the police statement read.
Rajabu Hassan was later released after his wife and relatives arrived at the station. He later claimed that he was beaten and tortured by the officers who arrested him before his family intervened, leaving him with injuries.
Rajabu explained that police accused him of riding an unregistered motorcycle. He explained to them that his motorcycle was brand new and that, nowadays, motorcycles are sold without registration papers.
“I told them it takes one week to register,” said Rajabu, “They didn’t care about my explanation and continued beating me,”
The video of Rajabu’s arrest went viral as people linked it to a recent incident involving Deogratius Tarimo, a businessman and resident of Kiluvya, Dar es Salaam. Tarimo survived an abduction on November 11, 2024, in broad daylight by individuals in a small car while bystanders watched.
Many social media users have urged the police to use marked vehicles and uniformed officers for arrests to avoid causing panic and confusion, which could be mistaken for kidnappings.
Following the video’s release, the President of the Tanganyika Law Society (TLS), Boniface Mwabukusi, questioned the police’s method of arrest via his X (formerly Twitter) account. He raised concerns about whether this approach indicated impunity or a failure to curb such actions.
Samia unveils reasons behind commitment to health sector investment: “Health is the foundation of everything”
President of the United Republic of Tanzania, Samia Suluhu Hassan, speaking to residents of Mkata in Handeni District yesterday (Sunday), stated that the government’s emphasis on investing in the health sector is based on the recognition that health is the foundation of a productive and skilled workforce in a nation.
President Samia, who has embarked on a week-long working tour in the Tanga region, inaugurated the Handeni District Hospital before addressing a public gathering. The hospital, which offers all essential services, is expected to serve about 21 wards.
“Health is the foundation of everything,” said Samia. “We want to ensure children study well, the youth build the nation, the elderly share their wisdom, and expectant mothers deliver safely.”
She also directed that Handeni Hospital be designated as a specialized orthopedic hospital due to its proximity to the northern regional highway. To facilitate this, she instructed the Minister of State in the President’s Office for Regional Administration and Local Government (PO-RALG), Mohamed Mchengerwa, to allocate 240 million Tanzanian shillings for the construction of an orthopedic building.
“This hospital meets regional standards rather than just district-level standards, as it provides all major essential services,” President Samia stated.
This marks President Samia’s first visit to the Tanga region since becoming President of the United Republic of Tanzania in 2021. Her last visit to Tanga was in March 2021, when she was Vice President. During that visit, on March 17, 2021, she announced the passing of the Fifth Phase President, the late John Pombe Magufuli.
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