Dar es Salaam. Good morning! The Chanzo is here with a rundown of major news stories reported in Tanzania on Tuesday, June 7, 2022.
7.2 Trillion Used to Service Government Debt
The Ministry of Finance and Planning has informed parliament that TZS 7.27 Trillion was used to service government debt up to April 2022. This include domestic debt of TZS 4.21 Trillion, TZS 1.72 Trillion interest and TZS 2.49 Trillion principal. External debt was TZS 2.6 Trillion, interest 0.572 and principal 2.02.
This year amount settled has increased by 6 percent compared to last year where by April 2021, 6.84 Trillion was used to service government debt. As of March 2022, Government debt stood at TZS 69.26 Trillion, 47.4 Trillion external debt (68.6%) and TZS 21.7 Trillion domestic debt.
Comparing domestic collection with the debt burden, as of March 2022, Tanzania has collected 18.1 Trillion domestically meaning in every 10 shillings collected at least 3 shilling is used to service the debt burden.
Mwinyi thanks China for support in health sector
Zanzibar President Hussein Ali Mwinyi on Tuesday thanked China for its enormous support in the health sector.
A statement by Zanzibar State House said Dr Mwinyi expressed his gratitude to the Chinese government in a meeting with a team of Chinese medical doctors from east China’s Jiangsu province who are providing medical services in hospitals in Zanzibar.
China has for a long time supported Zanzibar in strengthening the health sector through the provision of medicines, medical facilities and medical doctors in various specialities, according to the statement.
Mwinyi said the Chinese medical doctors currently working in Zanzibar have helped to fill a shortage of specialist medical doctors facing the Zanzibar archipelago.
He also thanked the Chinese medical doctors for imparting their medical know-how to local doctors in Zanzibar’s twin Islands of Unguja and Pemba.
Dr Mwinyi said his administration has embarked on a mission to build hospitals in all districts with a view to improving the delivery of medical services to people across the islands.
Tanzania, Egypt discuss strengthening joint relations
Egypt’s Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry held a video call on Sunday with his Tanzanian counterpart Liberata Mulamula to discuss various aspects of bilateral relations and topics of mutual interest, Egyptian media reported Tuesday.
Ambassador Ahmed Hafez, the spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, was quoted as saying that during the call, Shoukry referred to the historical relations between Egypt and Tanzania, highlighting the steady development it has witnessed in recent years, in light of President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi’s visit to Dar es Salaam in August and the visit of President Samia Hassan to Cairo last November.
In this regard, the two ministers agreed to continue the meetings of the Joint Committee between the two countries to enhance bilateral cooperation in all fields.
The foreign minister stressed Egypt’s keenness to continue to provide support to Tanzania in various fields, as well as its support for various development efforts in Tanzania.
Shoukry noted that Egypt hosted and chaired the session of the conference of the parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP27) in Sharm El-Sheikh in November, explaining that the upcoming Egyptian presidency of the conference of the parties is keen to address African concerns related to the phenomenon of climate change.
TRX Gold’s third-quarter output rises as plant capacity expands in Tanzania
The Canada-based TRX Gold Corp.’s third-quarter gold production rose sequentially thanks to its processing plant operating at full capacity for its first whole quarter in Tanzania.
According to the business website MarketWatch, the company, formerly Tanzanian Gold Corp., said that on production, preliminary third-quarter 2022 gold production was higher than the second quarter of 2022 reflecting the first full quarter of the 360-metric-ton-per-day processing plant operating at full design capacity along with a solid grade profile.
“Preliminary third-quarter production of 2,733 ounces of gold, exceeding previous production guidance of 750-800 ounces of gold per month, as well as preliminary third-quarter sales of 3,033 ounces of gold, both new records for the company,” the website quoted the company’s Chief Executive Officer Stephen Mullowney as saying.
On plant expansion, Mr Mullowney explained that the company had promised that it would start small and grow the business from there.
“The 360-ton-per-day processing plant has been ‘dialled in’ and we are very excited for the 1,000-ton-per-day expansion coming online later this year, with the possibility of further production expansions thereafter,” he said.
Along with its joint venture partner, the State Mining Corporation of Tanzania (STAMICO), TRX Gold Corp. is engaged in building a gold project at Buckreef in Tanzania.
The company’s Buckreef Project is located in the Geita district of the Geita region south of Lake Victoria, approximately 110 kilometres southwest of the city of Mwanza, Tanzania.
The Buckreef Project comprises over five prospects, namely Buckreef, Bingwa, Tembo, Eastern Porphyry and Buziba.
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