 |
| Mr Nyalandu |
The government is exploring ways to profitably exploit trade and
investment opportunities in the newly formed South Sudan and in other countries
in the region to expand market shares and boost earnings.
Deputy Minister for Industry, Trade and Marketing Lazaro Nyalandu said
in Dar es Salaam over the weekend that Tanzania for instance is gradually
becoming food producing giant in the East African region, the opportunity that
can be commercially used to supply in food deficient countries.
"We need to penetrate the market more systematically and follow
all procedures to ensure that businesses and investments by Tanzanian investors
are legally protected and payoff," Mr Nyalandu told the 'Daily News' in an
interview, noting that value addition to agricultural produce is one of the
strategies to exploit the market potentials maximally.
A ten-man task force was scheduled to travel to South Sudan and Comoro
in November last year to identify various investment opportunities which
Tanzanians can grab.
But, according to Tanzania Private Sector Foundation
(TPSF) Chairperson Esther Mkwizu, the trip has been delayed over the mounting
tension between Juba and Khartoum over oil.
 |
| Ms Mkwizu |
Ms Mkwizu said TPSF was looking for any investment opportunity beyond
the borders especially in East Africa. The business delegation is expected to
enter South Sudan and conduct both diplomatic and business meetings with local
counterparts, coming up with a special report that will provide a clear picture
on the business opportunities and challenges.
Ms Mkwizu said that Tanzania's exports to the rest of the East African
Community (EAC) countries was making an outstanding performances but said that
South Sudan and Comoro offer new market and investment opportunities for the
business community.
Tanzania's exports to the EAC nearly doubled to 450 US dollars (about
750bn/-) in 2010 from 263 dollars (about 450bn/-) recorded in 2009.
The exports were mainly mosquito nets, domestic utensils and
transformers. Others are mattresses, rice, cement, plastic products, paper
products and machinery. Ms Mkwizu appealed for commercial banks to extend their
services to South Sudan and Comoro to attract more businesses.
The EAC region currently provides a sizeable market of a combined
population of 130 million and an area of 1.85 million square kilometres.
It has
been reported that traders from Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda had already flocked
South Sudan searching for investment opportunities with Tanzania presence being
almost negligible.
Source: The Daily News,www.dailynews.co.tz, reported by Sebastian Mrindoko
0 comments :
Post a Comment