Rewarding tour

PRESIDENT Samia Suluhu Hassan on Sunday arrived back in the country after a working tour abroad, highlighting achievements recorded including securing a grant of 425 million Euros (about 1.15tri/-) from the European Commission to fund various development projects.

Speaking to some residents who gathered at Terminal I of the Julius Nyerere International Airport (JNIA) to receive her following a weeklong tour in France and Belgium, President Samia said Tanzania will benefit from a number of projects as part of her European working tour.

She mentioned some of the achievements to be expected such as massive rehabilitation of terminal II of JNIA and implementation of phase five of Bus Rapid Transport (BRT) project in the commercial city of Dar es Salaam.

"During the visit, we also engaged our partners who advised us on switching to electric buses from the conventional buses either in Dar es Salaam or Dodoma for the BRT lanes," the president stated.

Ms. Samia noted on the other hand that Tanzania is set to benefit from 150 billion Euros which have been allocated for African countries during the just ended European Union-African Union (EU-AU) Summit held in Brussels, Belgium.

President Samia left the country on February 9, this year, for France in which among others she attended the "One Ocean Summit" which was hosted by the President of France, Mr. Emmanuel Macron.

During the weeklong visit by President Samia, Tanzania managed to secure a grant of 425 million Euros, estimated as 1.15tri/- from the European Commission (EC) to fund various development projects. The funds are expected to be used in various development projects for the next three years in the country.

The President of the Commission, Ursula von der Leyen made the revelation in Belgium, while meeting President Samia. A statement issued by the Directorate of Presidential Communications said Tanzania has identified spending 180 million Euros equivalent to 480bn/-, on three projects including the upgrading of digital systems.

Another area is strengthening the social well-being of Tanzanians based on gender equality where 284bn/- would be spent. The statement further indicated that 197.3bn/- would go for the Green Cities project, whose first phase would include Tanga, Mwanza and Pemba.

Elaborating, the EC President said Tanzania is one of the African countries benefiting from the new EU (Global Gateway Investment Package), which aims at addressing challenges such as employment creation, promoting healthcare and the blue economy.

While in France, Ms. Samia welcomed French investors to Tanzania, saying her government is implementing a raft of reforms aimed at improving the business environment in the country.

Addressing members of the French Business Confederation (MEDEF) in Paris, the President invited French investors to explore world-class opportunities in Tanzania in livestock, agriculture, energy, mining and other sectors.

"The government (of Tanzania) has done major legal, institutional and fiscal reforms in the public sector to ensure there is ease in starting and doing business in the country," Ms. Samia told the investors.

President Samia said measures taken by her administration to improve the business environment have already yielded positive results, with the Tanzania Investment Centre (TIC) recording an upsurge in Foreign Direct Investment (FID) inflows over the past one year.

TIC registered 256 new projects in 2021 worth 3.749 billion US dollars, which are expected to create a total of 53,025 jobs, she said. France is ranked 35th as a source of investments in Tanzania, with 40 existing projects worth 73.4 million US dollars, which have so far generated 1,885 jobs.