Her Majesty Queen Margrethe II of Denmark and her husband, His Royal Highness The Prince Consort, start their official four-day visit to Tanzania today.
The monarch and her delegation arrived in Dar es Salaam on Saturday night. President Jakaya Kikwete will host bthe royal couple at an official function at Karimjee Hall today.
They will later attend an open-air concert at Police Officers Mess, where famous Danish singer Caroline Henderson will perform alongside Tanzanians artistes Nakaaya and Banana Zorro.
The royal couple is tomorrow scheduled to visit Dakawa Village and Sokoine University of Agriculture in Morogoro.
Queen Margrethe II and her husband will visit Zanzibar on Wednesday to see how Danish support has helped the health sector in the isles. They will also experience the cultural heritage of Stone Town.
The final leg of the state visit will be in Arusha Region where the royal couple will visit Mellemfolkeligt Samvirkes Training Centre for Development Cooperation (MS-TCDC) before proceeding to Ngorongoro District where they are scheduled to visit Oloirobi Village.
The Queen said in a recent interview that she would be bringing a message of hope from the Danish people.
This is the second time that a Danish monarch is visiting Tanzania. Queen Margrethe's father, the late King Fredrik IX, visited the country in January 1970 and held talks with the late Mwalimu Julius Nyerere.
Later in the same year, King Frederik returned to Tanzania on a private visit with his entire family to visit Serengeti National Park.
The Queen said their first impression of Tanzania was still lingering in their memories.
Denmark has been the one of Tanzania's biggest bilateral supporters for many years.
"I'm delighted to know that we have strong relations. The Danish people are becoming increasingly engaged in various fields. I know that things have developed greatly over those many years, so we are looking forward to seeing a more developed Tanzania," the Queen said.
Accompanying the royal couple is a business delegation from more than 40 companies, mainly in the agriculture and food, Information Technology (IT), communications, industry and infrastructure sectors. The companies will explore new business opportunities with their Tanzanian counterparts.
The Royal Danish ambassador in Tanzania, Mr Bjarne Sorensen, said in Dar es Salaam: "It is my sincere hope that the state visit will cater for many new business relations, investment opportunities and job creation."
The Danish monarchy is one of the oldest in the world and one of the most firmly established and popular institutions in Denmark.
