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Three years on, how Samia’s economic diplomacy agenda is paying off
President Samia Suluhu Hassan in a tête-à-tête with her Indonesian counterpart, Joko Widodo, at the State House in Dar es Salaam in August 2023 during his three-day state visit. In January 2024, President Hassan reciprocated the visit by traveling to Jakarta. PHOTO | FILE
What you need to know:
- Upon ascending to power on March 21, 2021, President Hassan swiftly embarked on efforts to mend relations and bolster investor confidence
Arusha. Tanzania’s relations with peers and, indeed, with the international community have significantly improved during the past three years of President Samia Suluhu Hassan’s presidency.
Before she became President, Tanzania's international reputation was unfavorable. Upon ascending to power on March 21, 2021, President Hassan swiftly embarked on efforts to mend relations and bolster investor confidence.
That was precisely why, during her very early days in office, she met and held talks with the IMF Director General, Kristalina Georvieva, at the Chamwino State House in Dodoma and with the immediate past World Bank Group President, David Malpass, in New York.
A few months later, the Executive Board of the IMF approved a total of $567.25 million in interest-free loans for post Covid-19 pandemic recovery.
The relations between Tanzania and the Bretton Woods Institutions are now cordial, yielding numerous benefits and sending a positive image to international investors.
She also conducted state visits to Kenya, Uganda, and Rwanda, among other neighbouring countries, where significant progress was made regarding issues such as the maize export ban and the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP).
The list of her engagements with her foreign peers and the benefits of the same in her resolve to open Tanzania to investments could go on and on.
Meanwhile, some critics have voiced concerns regarding her recent state visit to Norway.
However, it's important to note that Norway has been one of Tanzania's most significant development partners for decades.
Indeed, Tanzania has been one of the largest recipients of Norwegian development aid since the early 1960s.
The bilateral relations between the two countries initially began as solidarity ties against colonialism and imperialism during the Cold War era.
This relationship was primarily fostered by founding President Julius Nyerere and the long-serving King Olav of Norway.
The partnership evolved not only through government cooperation but also through the efforts of individuals, civil society organisations (CSOs), trade unions, and universities.
Today, however, the cooperation between Tanzania and Norway is concentrated on energy, climate change, and agriculture.
The February 12–13 visit by President Hassan was the first by a Tanzanian Head of State to the Scandinavian country in years.
The first Tanzanian state visit to Norway was in 1976, when Mwalimu Nyerere was received by King Olav.
In 2007, then President Jakaya Kikwete had an audience with Norwegian leaders at the Royal Palace in Oslo during an official visit there.
President Hassan made economic cooperation her focus during her two-day visit to Norway last month.
She was categorical, saying that Norwegian investors should take Tanzania as their investment destination of choice.
Speaking at a business forum, she told Norwegian investors that Tanzania was ready for business and that they should come to invest.
According to the IMF projections, Tanzania’s will be among the 20 fastest-growing economies in the world this year.
"This presents a remarkable opportunity for Norwegian investors to partake in our country's economic journey," she pointed out.
Although trade and investment statistics between the two countries are not available, Tanzania remains one of Norway's 10 partner states for long-term development.
Norway's priority sectors for Tanzania include private sector development in large projects such as renewable energy and petroleum development.
Great expectations are linked to the production of liquified natural gas (LNG), where Equinor, Shell, and their partners are negotiating a major project with Tanzania.
The multimillion-dollar project may also have positive ripple effects on other Norwegian companies.
“There is great potential for increased business cooperation between Tanzania and Norway, including in renewable energy and green transition.
"I hope that the state visit will further strengthen this cooperation," Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre told President Hassan during the Tanzania-Norway Business Forum.
The latter emphasised that the two countries have much to gain from cooperation in business, investment and trade.
The forum, organised by the Norwegian African Business Association (NABA), presented inspiring discussions on boosting investment and business.
Besides trade and investments, the two countries entered into three new cooperation agreements in the areas of food security, climate adaptation and research.
A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on agriculture and food security will further strengthen the strong partnership between Tanzania and Norway in this key sector.
The partnership will enable Tanzania to achieve more than 10 percent growth in the agriculture sector by 2030 while addressing the impacts of climate change.
Before her trip to the Scandinavian country, President Hassan was in Indonesia for yet another state visit aimed at promoting bilateral economic ties.
This was a reciprocal trip after the visit to Tanzania by the Southeast Asian country's Head of State, President Joko Widodo, in August last year.
If last year's visit by the Indonesian president to Tanzania resulted in the signing of seven key agreements, the trip by President Hassan aimed to secure new economic partnerships within the same framework.
The seven key agreements covered several sectors, namely defence, energy, agriculture, livestock, fisheries, the blue economy, mining, and immigration.
But when she jetted into Jakarta, Indonesia's capital, in late January, the focus of President Hassan's mission was to strengthen ties in the areas of investment, agriculture and education.
Since assuming the role of president in March 2021 following the death of her predecessor, John Pombe Magufuli, President Hassan has taken an investment approach to growing the Tanzanian economy.
Her initiatives to woo investors so far have spanned numerous economic sectors such as manufacturing, technology, energy, agriculture and tourism, among others.
She has also built an impressive portfolio of investors, from regional partners like Uganda in the crude oil project (EACOP) to as far as South Korea.
As a result, Tanzania has become a hotbed for investments, according to business analysts. The country currently stands as one of the top investment destinations in Africa.
"The trip to Indonesia signified an important step forward, not only in our bilateral relations," said the minister for Foreign Affairs and East African Cooperation January Makamba.
"We are grateful that President Hassan's fruitful interactions with Indonesian leaders will unlock fresh avenues for collaboration and benefit our people in both countries," he said.
The visit concluded with the signing of seven strategic agreements between Tanzania and Indonesia, covering various sectors including diplomatic cooperation, trade, and education.
The agreements also included four MoUs and one letter of intent for investment promotion and facilitation.
They aim to strengthen the 60-year diplomatic and economic ties, with a focus on enhancing trade and investment relations.
Key areas of cooperation include the oil and gas sector, with Indonesia’s Pertamina increasing its stake in Mnazi Bay, Mtwara.
Potential areas of investment in agriculture and energy will see Indonesian companies ESSA and Medco Energi fully engaged.
The agreements also cover the blue economy, agriculture, pharmaceuticals, and minerals.
In the pharmaceutical sector, the main focus is on Indonesia selling drugs to Tanzania, initially starting with cancer medications.
Indonesia will also invest in Tanzania through its pharmaceutical companies to boost the country’s health services.
The economic diplomacy pursued by the sixth-phase government also saw Tanzania play host to President Andrzej Duda of Poland early last month.
The state visit aimed to bolster bilateral ties between the two countries and pave the way for enhanced cooperation across various sectors, pundits have forecast.
The visit was hailed by analysts as a new dawn for both nations, cementing a partnership built on mutual respect and benefit, citing similarities between the two countries in natural resource endowment.
The two countries, far apart and on different continents, are endowed with huge resources such as coal, natural gas, copper, lead, and forestry resources, among others.
Technology transfer and value addition to products accrued from the abundant natural resources were discussed during the state visit by the Polish leader to Tanzania.
Among the agreements inked during the visit were those related to cooperation in agriculture, trade, investment and tax solidarity.
The Tanzania Investment Centre (TIC) and the Polish Investment and Trade Agency were tasked with enhancing cooperation in order to facilitate trade between the two nations.
Last month also saw President Hassan visit the Vatican, where she met Pope Francis at the Holy See on February 11 and 12.
The Catholic Church is one of the major stakeholders in Tanzania in the provision of education and health services.
The church runs 240 nursery schools, 147 primary schools, 245 secondary schools, 110 vocational training centres and five universities. It also operates at least 473 health facilities.
Ms Hassan’s visit was the first by the Tanzanian President since October 2007, when former President Kikwete met Pope Benedict XVI at the Vatican.
