Sweden keen to promote trade with TZ

Songwe. Sweden is seeking to foster its ties with Tanzania through promotion of trade and investment, the country’s representative has said.

The Swedish Ambassador to Tanzania, Ms Katarina Rangnitt, believes that promoting investment and free trade offers the fastest way of creating wealth and growing the economy.

“Sweden and Tanzania and long time friends and now we want to increase trade and investment. Through free trade, Sweden has built its wealth so we want to see the same in Tanzania,” she said yesterday. Ms Rangnitt was speaking at the end of a Swedish delegation in Songwe on Monday.

Led by the director general of Trade in the Swedish Foreign Affairs Ministry, Ms Karin Olofsdotter, and the her International Development Cooperation counterpart, Johannes Oljelund, the ten-people delegation visited the Tunduma One-Stop Border Post (OSBP) at the Tanzania-Zambia border. The project is still under construction.

The Swedish Embassy in Tanzania organised the visit in cooperation with TradeMark East Africa (TMEA).

TMEA is providing funding to the Tanzania Revenue Authority - for the construction of the Tunduma OSBP and is working with border agencies in Tanzania and Zambia to set up mechanisms for integrated border management and harmonization of customs procedures. The aim is to reduce waiting times at the border post by 30 per cent within 18 months.

The TMEA country director for Tanzania, Mr John Ulanga, thanked the Sweden for its development assistance to Tanzania. “The support being provided by Sweden in supporting trade facilitation in areas of standards harmonization and support to cross-border women traders is vital in promoting cross-border trade and reducing poverty in Tanzania,” he said.

Mr Ulanga said congestion at Tunduma makes the Dar es Salaam Port unattractive to importers in East and Central African countries.