Tanzania welcomes Chinese businesses to invest in its
potential infrastructure and other sectors, the country's president John
Magufuli told a Chinese industry association official in May, according to
Tanzanian official newspaper report.
Zhang Xin, vice-chairman of the China National Machinery
Industry Federation, visited Tanzania in late May.
When meeting with Zhang in Dar es Salaam - the nation's
capital - Magufuli said that his government will support investors from China
in the country's power, manufacturing and agricultural sectors, Daily News
reported.
The president said that Tanzania and China have maintained
close relations since the two countries established diplomatic ties in 1964,
the newspaper reported.
In recent years, Tanzania has become a hot investment
destination for Chinese businesses.
According to the statistic of TanzaniaInvest, the country's
official investment promotional organization, China's investment in Tanzania
totaled $6.62 billion by the end of 2015, becoming the second-largest
investment source country for Tanzania.
Magufuli said the country has set out plans to boost power
generation from the current 1,500 megawatts to 10,000 mW by 2025. He added that
investors are warmly welcome to invest in various power sources like gas, coal
and solar to enable the nation to attain its goal.
"We invite the Chinese investors to come to Tanzania.
They are our relatives and long-time friends," Daily News quoted Magufuli
as saying. "It will be good for them to join our efforts in building an
industrial economy by generating sufficient power and participating in other
projects like construction of railways and roads," he added.
As the second-largest economy in East Africa, Tanzania is
one of the fastest-growing countries in the region.
According to Daily News, the country has maintained an
average annual growth rate of 7 percent since 2005, and such a high rate is
expected to continue for several years.
In recent years, Chinese companies have been investing in
Tanzania in various sectors.
There are currently more than 500 Chinese-invested
enterprises in Tanzania, offering jobs to about 600,000 local people.
Tanzania attracts investors because of its political
stability and rich resources. Since Magufuli became the president of the
country in November 2015, his government has given high priority to economic
growth through industrialization. The government also highlights the rule of
law to create a good legislative environment for investors.
According to Daily News reports, the government has
implemented a series of preferential policies for investment, including
incentives in taxation and land use.
The country has rich land, fisheries and mineral resources.
About 70 percent of the population are people aged below 35, which means rich
labor resources and strong market demand for consumer goods.
The country witnessed an investment boom in the past year.
According to Tanzania-Invest, 242 new investment projects were registered in
Tanzania, involving total funding of $2 billion.
China, the United Kingdom, the United States and the United
Arab Emirates are the major investment source countries for Tanzania.
Article Source: China Daily
Picture: Power transmission project built by TBEA, a leading
transformer producer from China