Kikwete tells Indians to come over
NEW DELHI, India – Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete was recently in New Delhi at the invitation of Indian investors and to drum up more foreign investment for his country
The interactive session was attended by several hundred businesspeople and organised by the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII).
Kikwete said although economic relations between the two countries was good, there is a scope for more business. “India is number six in the top 10 investors in Tanzania, but can easily become number one,” he said.
According to a statement, Kikwete said Tanzania offers sound economic policies, political stability, friendly business environment, a good fiscal regime and an excellent geographical location as it shared international border with eight counties.
He said the African economic communities – Common Market for East and Southern Africa (COMESA), East African Community (EAC) and South African Development Community (SADC) have recently signed an agreement to form a large Free Trade Area (FTA) from Alexandria to Cape Town, which will help open up a market of 600 million people with a combined GDP of $1 trillion to investors.
Kikwete advised Indian companies to explore, expand and invest in sectors like agriculture, manufacturing, infrastructure, healthcare, tourism, ICT, mining and oil and gas.
Kikwete also spoke about opportunities to invest in African logistics hubs like the Dar es-Salaam port.
India and Tanzania have preferential arrangements in place such as the Double Taxation Avoidance agreement.
Shri. Mohanbhai Kalyanjibhai Kundariya, the India Minister of State for Agriculture, said that in 2014-15 India exported $62.72 million agricultural products to Tanzania, which mainly consisted of sugarcane, sugar, rice and ethanol and Tanzania is home to thousands of persons of Indian origin, which further shows the vibrant relation that the two countries share.
