By ABDULWAKIL SAIBOKO
New Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in Dar es Salaam on Sunday to start a historic two-day visit in the country as part of a three African nations tour which will take him to South Africa and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
President Jakaya Kikwete welcomes President Xi Jinping and his wife to Dar es Salaam
President Xi who flew into the country from Moscow, Russia, was received by the country’s top leadership led by President Jakaya Kikwete at the Julius Nyerere International Airport (JNIA).
Other leaders at the airport included Vice-President Dr Mohamed Gharib Bilal and Prime Minister Mizengo Pinda, among others. Dar es Salaam residents turned out by their numbers at the airport to get a glimpse of the Chinese leader whose country enjoys longstanding relations with Tanzania.
Tanzania becomes the first African country to be visited by President Jinping since he assumed the presidency of China on March 14, this year. He was accompanied by his wife, Peng Liyua and various dignitaries from his country and he is due to sign 17 agreements and give a keynote speech on relations with Africa, before heading to Durban today to join an emerging economies summit.
The Minister for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Mr Bernard Membe who was also present at the reception yesterday told journalists earlier that many of the contracts that will be signed will focus on economic and industrial issues.
“For the time being, China will enable millions of Tanzanian tobacco growers to get ready markets by buying straight from them,” he said. Mr Membe said that the coming of Mr Jinping to Tanzania just a few days after he was anointed president of the world’s second biggest economy is a privilege.
He said that during the visit, Mr Jinping will give a keynote address after he inaugurates the ultramodern Julius Nyerere International Conference Centre where he will talk about Chinese foreign policy on Africa. Mr Membe said that China and Tanzania shared historical relations dating back to the construction of the Tanzania Zambia Railway which later helped in the liberation of many Southern African countries.
He also said Tanzania supported China’s bid to become a member of the United Nations when between 1971 and 1972 the then United Nations General Assembly president, Mr Salim Ahmed Salim, helped China get included into the UN Security Council.
Mr Jinping is also expected to lay the foundation stone for the construction of the Bagamoyo port which is expected to be bigger and more modern than the Dar es Salaam port which will be accessed by a railway, better roads, bigger container depots and will create employment for millions of people.
The Julius Nyerere International Conference Centre was a promise that President Jakaya Kikwete made when he was the African Union chairman in 2008 and that the first ever AU summit would be held in 2017. “The smart partnership meeting is scheduled for June 26 to July 2, 2017 and so we are very thankful to the people of China for the much needed investment,” he said.
President Kikwete is expected to be handed over the keys of the building that cost over 24bn/- and has the capacity to accommodate 1,800 people in one sitting. On the day of the inauguration, 1,000 guests have already been invited including ministers, their deputies, members of parliament, political leaders and prominent Tanzanians.
Source: Tanzania Daily News
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