Tanzania and the DRC interested in expanding their trade relations.
Posted on : Thursday, 1st December 2022
President Samia Suluhu Hassan and her Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) counterpart, Félix Tshisekedi, have agreed to collaborate during a number of areas to boost bilateral trade.
Consequently, Tanzania and the DRC intend to cooperate in a range of areas, including trade, investment, infrastructure, finance, energy, education, security, and immigration.
This decision was reached following discussions between the 2 leaders at the State House in Dar es Salaam.
"We checked out the trade volume, which has been very low for the last ten years," President Samia said shortly after the 2 leaders' bilateral talks.
The two leaders reaffirmed during their discussions their shared commitment to fostering a sense of brotherhood and solidarity between the two nations and their peoples.
She stated that in terms of trade, following her trip to the DRC in August 2022, the Foreign Ministers of both nations were given the order to call an urgent meeting of the Joint Commission.
"I am happy to report that, as a result of our efforts, the commission met in September this year and adopted 50 resolutions, as well as signing a Memorandum of Understanding on relations and social cooperation between Tanzania and the DRC.
Construction is underway on the Northern Corridor, which will allow access from Tanzania to the Democratic Republic of the Congo through the East African Community. The goal is to extend trade between these countries, which is currently low but will increase if our plans are administered "She made a remark.
Furthermore, President Samia stated that the private sector was able to invest in the DRC's agricultural sector as part of African countries' strategy to deal with the threat of food shortages. She also stated that the Cereal and Other Produce Board of Tanzania (CPB) has established a centre in Lubumbashi.
According to President Samia, they must also agree to fully utilise the COP27 UN climate conference in Egypt in 2022, which Tanzania will chair and can be supported by other nations like the DRC and the EAC.
She also stated that the countries have agreed to get rid of tax and non-tax barriers to promote trade and has directed trade ministers to work on the issue.
For his part, President Tshisekedi claimed that since it is unlikely that all of the projects they had in mind would be feasible in the absence of security and peace, they had concentrated more on security issues during their discussion.
Security is crucial in the DRC, and as president, he said, "I've been focusing on building brotherly relations with our neighbours."
He emphasised the importance of African countries developing sound business plans and making effective use of resources to create their economies rather than relying on Western aid.
"The infrastructure for the road, rail, and communication systems has also been agreed upon. The growth of this communication sector is crucial for our two nations "He declared.
He stated that the communication sector is vital because it generates not only income but also jobs.
He cited the COP27 meeting when he said, "We said at COP27 that we'll talk as SADC about how to deal with the challenges we face, including global climate change."
A Memorandum of Understanding on Information, Communication Technology (ICT), Post, and Telecommunication was signed at the event by Christophe Lutundula, the Foreign Affairs Minister of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Nape Nnauye, Tanzania's Minister of Data, Communication, and Knowledge Technology.
