UK, Tanzania: A modern partnership
I am delighted to have recently arrived as the United Kingdom’s new High Commissioner to the United Republic of Tanzania. The warm welcome I have experienced has confirmed the well-deserved reputation that Tanzania and its people have for friendliness and hospitality. My family and I are looking forward to becoming part of your community.
If you asked me to describe myself in one word, I would choose “curious”. I enjoy getting to know new people and new places, and can’t wait to get started in Tanzania. I have a background in science, and in the months ahead, I am looking forward to visiting Olduvai Gorge, one of the most important scientific sites in the world. As a former journalist and someone with a strong interest in history, I am looking forward to visiting places such as Butiama and learning about the life of Nyerere; and as a diplomat, I am looking forward to meeting regularly with the Government and visiting Dodoma.
Tanzania and the UK have many common interests and I want to help both our countries thrive and succeed. The UK is the number one source of Foreign Direct Investment in Tanzania. British businesses are creating wealth and jobs for Tanzania, and paying 5% of all tax revenues, which the Government can use to achieve its goals. British businesses want to invest even more, to contribute more and create more jobs. As I said to the President earlier this week, I am here to work with the Tanzanian government to help make that happen.
Our commitment is further seen in our investment of 378bn shillings last year to support Tanzania in achieving its development goals. The UK is one of just 5 countries worldwide that have committed to spend 0.7% of their national income on poverty reduction and supporting development around the world. That is why UK assistance provides millions of women in Tanzania with access to family planning services; and why UK funding helps millions of people in Tanzania to access public health services, clean water and sanitation. A safer and healthier Tanzania is in all our interests.
Curiosity is intrinsically linked to education. Communities across the whole of Tanzania have worked with us on our flagship education programmes, which aim to improve the quality of education for over 11.5 million children in Tanzania, particularly girls. We can and will continue to do all we can to assist the next generation who will inherit the world which we will build together today. We help send a wide range of scholars to the UK every year to learn in our universities and return home with new perspectives and skills, and their own curiosity piqued.
The global impact of the coronavirus is a reminder of how interconnected we are, and the key to emerging from this threat is international collaboration and transparency. That is why the UK has invested 8.45bn shillings in Tanzania to support public health at this time, and globally we have pledged 1711bn shillings to facilitate the equitable distribution of a Covid-19 vaccine around the world. There will be much work to do to manage the wider impacts of Covid-19, and the UK is committed to work with Tanzania through this challenge and beyond.
We are already doing more together in new areas of cooperation, including to keep all our citizens safe. Our police and border forces are working together to prevent illegal and dangerous drugs from getting to global markets. The memorable visit of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge in 2018 furthered our cooperation on combatting the Illegal Wildlife Trade. This work denies funding and influence to dangerous criminals.
Another universal problem that we need to tackle together is the impact of climate change. The 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference will be hosted in the UK, as will a virtual ‘Ambition Summit’ this December, on the fifth anniversary of the Paris Agreement. Through these events, we are determined that the global community can and will be able to demonstrate the resolve required to address climate impacts, including those happening right here in Tanzania.
An election year brings opportunities and prospects. Representative democracy has been a foundation of the UK’s success, and is part of what makes us an attractive place to live, work, invest. We want the same for Tanzania. I am following the election with a close but impartial eye, standing in solidarity with all those who are committed to a free and fair process through which the will of the Tanzanian people can be fully realised.
All British diplomats working today need to be aware of the complex colonial legacy of the UK in Africa, including in Tanzania. I am committed to not forgetting that past but understanding and learning from it, including through the advice and knowledge of our Tanzanian colleagues in the High Commission. We will ensure we have more British diplomats speaking Swahili, as I will try to do.
An important role for close friends is to hold honest conversations, especially when there are concerns of significant importance. I will expect the Government of Tanzania to raise difficult issues with me, and I will do the same.
All of this is to forge a modern, mature and respectful relationship, which brings benefits to both countries and befits the UK and Tanzania of today. I will work hard to make that vision a reality.
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David Concar is the United Kingdom’s High Commissioner to Tanzania
