Envoy: My priority is to take Tanzania-Israel ties to greater levels

Israel has in the last four years made remarkable diplomatic comeback into Africa and pursued initiatives to widen and deepen diplomatic and economic relations on the continent a number of aspects ranging from political, trade, security, military to economic ones. In this interview, the newly appointed Israel ambassador to Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Malawi and The Seychelles, Oded Joseph, shares with The Citizen Reporter about his priorities in Tanzania and what business opportunities are available in Israel for Tanzanians to grab.

Question: What is your immediate tasks and priorities as you take this new job?

Answer: My immediate task is to do my utmost to work with partners here in Tanzania, the government and people of Tanzania to take our relationship to a greater level. Both countries enjoy a very good relationship.

From the very beginning of the establishment of Tanzania as an independent state, there have been very good contacts and engagements between Israelis and Tanzanians.

We feel attached to Tanzanian people because we share many similarities in our histories. These two nations had to find their way out for their independence. Both countries have good respect for the Bible and the values of the bible. So my immediate task is to make sure that we deepen and advance our relations in all spheres.

Q: Israeli has in the last few years seen to reestablish relationship with Tanzania and penetrate the East Africa region with a new impetus. What are the plans to boost investment and trade between the two countries?

A: The plan is to boost relations in all spheres. One of the areas where our cooperation is going on very well, and we want to deepen it, is the area of agriculture. Because of our unique environment, weather and climate, we were challenged to find and develop technologies that allow us to grow our own food in the desert, and we managed to do so.

And this experience forms one major area of our cooperation with Tanzania because we share with Tanzania this experience and technologies on how to develop in the field of agriculture.

There is a program that is designated for agriculture students from Tanzania who come to Israel for eleven months to learn agriculture techniques. This is one of the better programs we have in terms of our cooperation. In fact, we have doubled the number of Tanzanian students who come to Israel for that program.

One of my immediate task is to work very closely with the government of Tanzania and relevant institutions in Tanzania to make sure when these students come back home after the eleven months program they also becomes entrepreneurs who are able to address challenges of food security in this country.

I would want to see them become entrepreneurs not only for their own gain but also become source of employment to others young Tanzanians.

I think the focus should be to work together to ensure we increase the number of agriculture students who come to Israel and become good entrepreneurs back in Tanzania. This is one important task that has to be done.

Israel has been investing a lot in these youngsters while in Israel. We are very confident that they will increase the chances of economic growth and give answers to the challenges of food security. Of course, we do also hope they will continue to use Israel’s technology in farms here in Tanzania which is the only natural way to continue cooperation with Israel.

Another area to put more effort and energy is the area of tourism.

This is one of the key areas of enhancing cooperation between our two countries. I think the start of direct flights from Tel Aviv to Kia works very well to enhance tourism and our cooperation in general.

But this work well not only in boosting tourism, but also in having more business people coming here in Tanzania and more political engagements. More and more Israelis are discovering Tanzania and its beautiful tourist sites; whether along the shores, or unique safari destinations or the Ngorongoro Crater.

We are very well known for our historical sites but beyond them there are other good things to view in Israel—to enjoy the seashells, to enjoy the friendly people and find their ancestors. So, this is one thing we are going to encourage. We have seen the number of tourists growing in both sides and we want to see much more.

Healthcare is also one important field of our cooperation. We already have cooperation with hospitals in Dodoma and here in Dar es Salaam.

In Dodoma, for example, we were involved in the establishment of an emergency care unit at Benjamin Mkapa Hospital. We are also happy to cooperate with local doctors and nurses in capacity building.

This is one thing we are going to do. Here in Dar es Salaam we have cooperation with heart surgeons. Heart surgeons from Israel come to Dar es Salaam to work with their Tanzanian counterparts. There is a great work that is being done by an NGO called Save the Child Heart that has been organizing the coming of Israel doctors to conduct heart surgeries here in Tanzania.

There are much more areas but I think the bottom line is that we have enjoyed a very good relationship but the potential is still there to do more. So, I am here to work very hard with the government of Tanzania, with the people of Tanzania to take our relationship to the next level.

Q: So, what business opportunities are there in Israel for Tanzanians to grab?

A: All the areas of business opportunities that I have mentioned are open opportunities for Tanzanians to do in Israel too.

We want to see more businesspeople from Tanzania arrive in Israel. Looking at potential investment in Israel, the area of infrastructure and food processing are potentials that businesspeople from both countries can grab and cooperate.

Q: Your predecessor was quoted by this paper as saying that business relationship between Israel and Tanzania is very much limited Israel has no much it can export to Tanzania and vice versa. What’s your take on this?

Q: Well, I can’t talk on behalf of the Tanzanian government or what Tanzania should expect from Israel but I am sure there are areas of business we need to discover.

When we talk about business, it is not all about the physical goods or services. We can do much more business in the area of culture and tourism. On the other side, what Israel could export from here is really continued cooperation in technology in the manner that we create solutions and environment that benefits both sides.

Q: Tanzania and the East African region have increasingly faced threats and terrorism threats in recent years. What Tanzania and the region learn from your country in addressing these problems?

A: Unfortunately, Israel, from its very first days of its establishment, had to encounter military threats from its immediate neighbours who at that time did not want to accept us as an independent state.

Terrorism is a problem Israel had to face even before independence. It is an ongoing threat. And also attempts by terrorist organisations here in Africa to try and neutralize countries so that they penetrate easily in order to achieve their own goals.

What are the lesson? First, do not disregard the threats. Be aware. Secondly, address them as soon as possible whatever small they are.

Don’t let them go and thirdly make sure you build your own capabilities to address those threats. As much as I cherish it, international cooperation is crucial in fighting terrorism. I think at the end of the day every country has to build its own capacity to address these types of challenges on its own.

Q: But there is a feeling that Israeli’s support for African countries in fighting terrorism has on the other side won more enemies of those countries, particularly those who hate Israel. How far Is this true?

A: On the contrary, I think there is only one way to fight terrorism; that is to show a united front.

Those who do so will always find an excuse; they could say because you are related to Israel, they could say because you are a Christian, they could say because you are a Muslim! Good excuses are always there for terrorists to act. We should ignore the voices that try to convince us not to cooperate because of the fear of our own security.

I think the only way to fight terrorism is to face challenges by showing solidarity and confronting it.

Terrorists do not respect the sovereignties of other countries, they do not shy from finding those excuses. We should not accept that and we should continue to fight for our own peace and security.

Q: US President Donald Trump has released his Middle East peace plan that lay out the foundation for a solution to end the Israel-Palestinian conflict. Palestinians have rejected the plan for being heavily weighted in favour of Israel. As things turn out now, what options do you think Israel has in ensuring a lasting solution to the conflict?

A: First and foremost it is in the interest of Israelis and Palestinians to reach an agreement. It is our interest, they are our immediate neighbours.

I think terrorist organisations within the Palestinian community are hijacking the agenda. They are not ashamed of taking their own people as a shield when they fight against Israel rather than investing resources in improving their lives.

As long as they continue to threaten Israel by terrorist actions, and as long as they do not have control over their territories, they wouldn’t be able to reach a peace agreement.

What is also important is to find partners who understand that in order to reach an agreement with Israel, compromise is necessary and the culture of hate is no longer there, and that terrorism is no longer a tool in reaching a peace solution. We attach weight and importance in negotiations to the United States. We have always been supportive of the course of finding peace in this region.

We also welcome the efforts being made by the United States President, but at the end of the day we will have to reach an agreement together with the Palestinians, and they will have to, as I said earlier, to refrain from the culture of hate, terrorism and to understand that only by reaching a compromise with Israel was necessary and the culture of hate and terrorism is no longer a tool to secure peace with Israel.

We have been through a very long way. Today you see more and more Israel and Arab countries cooperating, sometimes it is upfront and known and sometimes it’s behind the scenes.

And the reason to see more cooperation is because there is recognition that the stability of Middle East is not all about the Israel versus Arab affair.

That’s not the issue. Between those countries that are moderate, that seek peace against those countries that continue to use terrorism as a tool and undermine the stability of other states in order to advance their own interests, creating extreme religious regimes in the region. If you analyse Middle East, you will find that in the past we used to divide Israel versus Arab countries. This is no longer the case.

The case today is truly between those governments that seek peace and stability in the Middle East and those which do not care about utilizing other countries to disrespect other countries’ sovereignty just to advance their own interests.