India and Tanzania Elevate Ties to Strategic Partnership
From 8 to 10 October 2023, Tanzanian President Samia Hassan was on state visit to India. During her visit, several MoU were signed between Tanzania and India with a focus on #digitalization and defense.
“Our nations have decided to work together to form a five-year roadmap in the defence sector. This will be beneficial for military training, maritime cooperation, capacity building and the defence industry.”
Indian PM Narendra Modi
India and Tanzania took the opportunity to review the ‘full-range of India-Tanzania relations’ and elevated their diplomatic ties to Strategic Partnership. As members of the IORA, both nations have a stake to ensure #MaritimeSecurity in the Indian Ocean. Since ancient times, trade and exchanges between the two nations were made possible via the Monsoon trade winds.
The bilateral trade volume amounted to USD 6.4 billion in 2022 and India is the 3rd largest trade partner of Tanzania. Both sides agreed to facilitate trade using each other’s local currency via the use of the Special Rupee #Vostro Accounts. Indian EAM Jaishankar noted with satisfaction that the trade is progressively getting balanced with a trend towards reduction in the trade deficit.
Some recent cooperation projects include enhancement in water supply and the setting up of the first IIT campus outside India in the island of Zanzibar. India overall trade with Africa reached USD 98 billion in 2022, so the bilateral trade with Tanzania is quite significant as it represents nearly 7% of the total.
During 2022, it is estimated that more than 700 Indian businessmen visited Tanzania to explore or enhance trade and investment opportunities. India is the 5th largest investor in Tanzania with investments in several sectors, including pharma, mining, agribusiness and education. India plans to set up an industrial park in Tanzania to contribute to Local Value Addition (#LVA).
Hassan commended Modi for getting the AU on board the G20 and his advocacy for debt relief and reforms of multilateral institutions to reflect the ‘new world dynamics;. Tanzania confirmed its interest in the upcoming 4th India-Africa Forum Summit (IAFS) which is expected to be held in Addis Ababa in December 2023.