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Tanzania welcomes more Indian investment: PM

Xinhua, July 11, 2016 Adjust font size:

Tanzania has called on Indian investors to invest in large-scale farming and other potential sectors for the east African nation to realize its ambition of becoming a middle-income country before 2025.

Tanzanian Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa made the call on Sunday when addressing a one-day forum involving Indian business community and Tanzanian counterparts.

"Our dream is to become a middle-income nation in the near future, and we can only realize this by working close with investors. And I am using this forum to welcome the Indian business community, to think of Tanzania when they want to invest in Africa," he told the Indian businessmen.

The Indian business community was represented by 50 businessmen, who are among of the delegation of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who landed in the east African nation Saturday.

Majaliwa informed the Indian business community that Tanzania has a wide-range of investment opportunities, from infrastructures, agriculture, tourism, industries, and mining.

"As the government, we're intending to lure as many investors as possible. We also want more investors in fisheries and tourism sectors which are not well developed," the Tanzania premier stressed.

According to him, Tanzania has a Territorial Sea of 64,000 sq. km, an Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) covering an area of about 223,000 sq. km. and a stretch of a coastline of about 1,424 km long all in the Indian Ocean, and other inland water bodies (major and minor lakes, rivers, dams, ponds, and wetlands), covering about 5,000 sq. km.

"That's why I am encouraging our colleagues from India to come and invest in Tanzania for the benefit of our people," the Tanzanian leader said, citing livestock as an area that needs more investors for the country to produce more dairy products and meat to meet local and regional markets.

Majaliwa said trade imbalance between the nations, will only be addressed by Indian investors to invest in Tanzania.

Currently, India sells more to Tanzania than what Tanzania export to India.

Minister for Industry, Trade and Investment Charles Mwijage said the two countries are depending on each other when it comes to trade.

"It is true that India sells more in Tanzania, but on the other hand, India is one of the top ten countries which buys products from Tanzania."

Harshavardhan Neotia, President of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industries (FICCI), said trade between the two nations continues to grow.

"We need to tap the current business opportunities as soon as possible, for the well-being of our people," said Neotia. Endit