By Nasser Kigwangallah
THE vice
president Dr. MohaMmed Gharib Bilal has urged potential investors to come
forward and invest serious in Tabora so as to increase the rapid growth of the
region and Tanzania as a whole.
Dr Bilal was said
this at an official opening of Tabora Investment Forum in Dar es Salaam yesterday.
“On behalf of the
Government of the United Republic of Tanzania , Tabora Region and Municipality
of Tabora, I would like to extend our deepest thanks to the Government of
Finland for the financial support provided to Tabora under the Regional
Partnership to Promote Trade and Investment in Sub- Saharan Africa, and our
appreciation to the Millennium Cities Initiative (MCI) for providing the expertise
to implement this project in Tabora,” he said.
He said Tabora has a
rich history as the railway hub and centre of commerce, with well-developed
agriculture and light industry.
He added that Tabora,
being the centre of education in Tanzania, it has a large number of schools providing
good-quality education in many areas, such as agriculture, commerce,
administration, and so on.
He said the
Beekeeping College is an example of one of the specialized institutions that is
directly intended to support a sector with high potential for further
development, i.e., honey production and processing as well as related products,
such as beeswax, propolis and royal jelly.
He
remarked: “Infrastructure deficits in Tabora have led to its full potential for
manufacturing and trading not being fully achieved; however, steps have been
taken to improve the situation. Roads are being built and improved.”
Speaking
on the occasion, Fatma Mwasa, the Tabora regional commissioner said Tabora, in
cooperation with the Earth Institute (under which the Millennium Cities
Initiative also falls), also is proud to have access to the Millennium Villages Program, which has been
very successful, improving the livelihoods of many people in the Mbola Village
and providing an example to others.
“Indeed,
the farm to market linkages between the village and Tabora Municipality is also a key element in
developing the local value chain for the agricultural product and agribusiness,”
she said.
According to her, under
the Regional Partnership project, the following initiatives were undertaken; specific
investment opportunities were identifie.
Mwasa said: “So I
warmly welcome you and your business to Tabora.
There are unlimited investment and business opportunities which you are
invited to explore. I know some of you are
interested to invest in agriculture and agro-processing.”
She added that Tabora
has a conduncive weather for the growth of a variety crops such as sunflowers,
groundnuts, maize and rice, fruit and vegetables, cotton and tobacco.
In Tabora we have huge
potential for edible oil production, fruit and vegetable canning, cereal
storing and processing, meat processing, leather production.
Most of the farmers
already work in strict adherence to Good Agricultural Practices and with high human
rights standards.
Kaisa
Alapartanen Programme Officer, Embassy of Finland said she was pleased as her
government was a key partner in development of Tabora and would continue to
help the programme to its success.She said Tabora Region and Tanzania Investment Centre in cooperation with the Millennium Cities Initiative, a programme of the Earth Institute of Columbia University in New York jointly organized an investment forum to promote awareness of investment opportunities in and around Tabora.
Tabora is a natural centre of western Tanzania as it is located on a major crossing of railway lines connecting the coast with the interior of Africa.
It is therefore a centre of business and commerce, not only for Tanzania but also for adjacent countries, with an estimated market exceeding 20 million consumers.
Tabora also offers a skilled and educated labor as it is home to several educational institutions.
The region is endowed with abundance of natural resources and farming land, and growing population in the city and attracts new companies from Tanzania and abroad to study investment and business opportunities it can offer.
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