TANZANIA, TURKEY TO CONSOLIDATE BUSINESS TIES

March 18, 2015. A memorandum of understanding has been signed between Tanzania Private Sector Foundation (TPSF) and Turkish Foreign Economic Relations Board (DEIK) aimed at consolidating business relations between the two countries.

In a statement, the two institutions said the main purpose is to bring Turkish and Tanzanian business people together more often and contribute to creation of solid partnerships through new business opportunities.

“We are also, willing to sign the business council agreement which is necessary to officially establish the business council, in the occasion of a large scale activity to be organized in a very short time,” a joint statement said.

In 2014, trade volume between the two countries peaked 184 million US dollars (341.9bn/- ), according to the official statistics. Turkey’s foreign direct investment in Africa is estimated at 5 billion US dollars.

The statement further noted that DEIK’s aim is to increase the share of Tanzanian products exported to Ankara while boosting its country’s share in the local market.

“Similarly, we target to increase the share of Turkish products in East Africa’s import markets through Tanzania which we consider as a gateway to East Africa,” the statement noted.

It noted that with the rapid increase in world population, the agricultural sector and arable land in African countries are gaining important.

“In this context, we believe that the implementation of advanced agricultural techniques of Turkey in Tanzania would highly contribute to the food security,” it added.

The joint initiatives by Turkish and Tanzanian companies in this field could increase the agricultural production of Tanzania. After China, as being the second in global contracting market, Turkey’s contracting firms have accomplished 7,371 projects in 103 different countries amounting to 274.1 billion dollars so far.

“Turkish contracting firms are ready to successfully complete new infrastructure and construction projects required for Tanzania’s economic development.

We perceive Tanzania as a solid partner in East Africa by its stabilized economy due to the well-developed economic reforms and its sectors such as agriculture, energy, mining, tourism and banking which have growth potential,” the statement concluded.

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