Dar es Salaam. Good morning! The Chanzo is here with a rundown of major news stories reported in Tanzania over the weekend.
Samia to make state visit to South Africa
The presidency of South Africa announced on Sunday that President Samia Suluhu Hassan will make a state visit to the country on Thursday, a visit that will coincide with the crowning of the 2nd Session of the South Africa-Tanzania Bi-National Commission (BNC).
The Bi-National Commission is a platform for strengthening cooperation especially in areas such as trade and investment, infrastructure, transport, energy, water, science and innovation, education, defense, agriculture, environment, health, and culture, among others.
The programme of the Heads of State and Government will be preceded by meetings of senior officials on Monday and Tuesday.
On Wednesday, a meeting by the Ministerial Bi-National Commission on the Senior Officials will be held.
These engagements will take place at the Department of International Relations and Cooperation’s OR Tambo headquarters in Pretoria.
On the margins of the State Visit and the BNC, a Business Forum will take place under the theme: “Forging a New Deal between South Africa and Tanzania Towards High Levels of Trade and Investment”.
The forum will focus on agriculture, agro-processing, oil and gas, mining and infrastructure development.
President Ramaphosa and President Hassan are expected to address a plenary session of the Business Forum.
Tanzania is one of South Africa’s foremost trading partners in Africa.
“South Africa wishes to see an increase in trade and investment and broader economic development between the two countries. To this end, total trade between South Africa and Tanzania increased from R6.89 billion in 2021 to R8.71 billion in 2022.
“The strong economic ties are evidenced by the presence of more than 250 South African companies in diverse sectors in Tanzania,” the Presidency said in a statement.
The BNC comprises four committees: Political and Diplomatic; Defence and Security; Economic Affairs, and Social and Cultural Affairs.
South Africa and Tanzania enjoy deep historical relations arising from Tanzania’s solidarity with South Africa’s liberation struggle.
“The ruling party in Tanzania, Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM), supported the African National Congress (ANC) and the Pan Africanist Congress (PAC) in the struggle against apartheid.
“These ties culminated in the establishment of official diplomatic relations when South Africa achieved freedom in 1994 and have since evolved into excellent political, economic, and social relations,” the Presidency said.
Tanzania, Namibia seek improved cooperation on security, energy issues
Tanzania and Namibia on Saturday signed three Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) as the two countries seek to improve their cooperation on security and energy issues, the government-owned Daily News newspaper reported.
The MoUs were signed on Saturday following the deliberations of the three-day third session of the Namibia-Tanzania Joint Commission on Cooperation (JCC) in Windhoek, Namibia.
The JCC meeting took place from 8 to 10 March 2023, with Dr Tax leading the Tanzanian delegation.
Minister for Foreign Affairs and East African Cooperation Stergomena Tax said that the successful implementation of the three agreements would contribute to the socio-economic development of the two countries and have a positive impact on the standard of living of their citizens.
Dr Tax, however, expressed concern on the slow implementation of existing agreements, calling for redoubling of efforts to ensure speedy implementation in order to strengthen historical bonds, increase trade links, and expand economic and political cooperation.
“In order to enhance our relations, we must take our decisions seriously and implement the issues that have been agreed upon,” she was quoted as saying. “Let us also eliminate the bureaucracy that prevents us from reaching our goals, and in the process, save the lives of our people.”
On her part, Namibia’s Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, said it is high time the two countries elevated their economic and political ties in order to realise the African vision of clean water, free education, and quality health care.
“We have agreed that communication from both teams on the implementation process should occur every six months, in addition to the mid-term review, which is required to take place before the 4th JCC next year,” Daily News quoted the minister as saying.
“All of the authorities in attendance, you are the implementers, and we kindly ask that you understand that we need feedback from your ministries when we contact them in order to offer the services our people desire,” she added.
The 4th session of the Namibia-Tanzania Joint Commission of Cooperation will take place in Tanzania in 2025.
Eight artisanal miners killed in Geita
Eight small-scale miners were killed Saturday after their mining pit was filled with rainwater in Tanzania’s northwestern region of Geita.
Safia Jongo, the Geita regional police commander, said the accident occurred at 3: 30 a.m. at Igando village in Magenge ward in the region, reputed for gold mining.
“After the water filled in the mining pit, the miners could not trace their way out,” Jongo was quoted as saying.
She said the miners were mining gold in a mine that has been prohibited by authorities because of poor security.
He named people who died in the tragedy as Juma Pamba (42), Akili Anthony (40), Samwel John (25), Juma Swalele (50), Simon Mabula (40) Kamala Nyambogo (30), Bahati Nyambogo (25) and Juma Sumuni (53).
Minister Mchengerwa launches international tourist centre
Minister for Natural Resources and Tourism Mohamed Mchengerwa on Saturday launched an international tourist center at the Serengeti National Park aimed at promoting the east African nation’s tourist attractions.
The centre will be used for providing visitors with information on the country’s tourist attractions, maps, and other items relevant to tourism, Mr Mchegerwa said during the launch.
The information on all the country’s 22 national parks and 29 game reserves will be available at the centre.
“Every stakeholder from hotel owners to tour operators should not relax with the small number of tourist arrivals. We should reach the whole world in looking for more tourists,” he said.
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