Correspondent, Damas Makangale
Tanzania and Sudan restored friendly relations after a period of closure, which lasted for more than 30 years since 2000. The new bilateral ties have multiple benefits to the two countries. Correspondent had an opportunity to interview H.E Sudanese Ambassador to Tanzania DR MOHAMMED ABDALLA ABD ELHAMMED on these new developments. Excerpts…
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What are your tasks and priorities after you assumed office?
To set the priorities of my work as Ambassador of the Republic of Sudan to the United Republic of Tanzania, and following my credentials to President Dr Samia Suluhu Hassan, it is essential to reflect on the history of Sudan-Tanzania relations and assess the current state of ties to determine the future of relations between the two countries.
It is important to highlight a special nature of the historical relations that bind Sudan with the United Republic of Tanzania, and its founding leader, Julius Nyerere. The most telling evidence of this is that the Sudanese Embassy in Tanzania was one of the very first embassies to be opened in Dar es Salaam in March 1962, just three months after the independence of Tanganyika. Sudanese people also proudly recall the historic visit of President Julius Nyerere to Sudan in November 1974 during which a grand reception held for him in Abu Deleig, East of Khartoum, remains one of the largest gatherings in Sudanese history to date, an event that Nyerere himself described as “the greatest celebration he had ever witnessed in his life.”
Building on this historical background, there are shared values between the two brotherly and sisterly people. From this standpoint, Sudan reaffirms its readiness to fully cooperate in elevating bilateral ties to the highest level across political, economic and cultural domains. Tanzania today pursues a reformist policy of opening up to the regional and international community, with a strong emphasis on economic diplomacy, while upholding the principles of African unity as espoused by Mwalimu Nyerere. Tanzania demonstrates the readiness to share its successful experiences with African states. This approach resonates with Sudan’s own vision towards Africa, anchored in a comprehensive perspective on cooperation at bilateral, regional, continental and international levels.
Sudan attaches importance to collective African action, to balanced development partnership with African States, and to contributing to Africa’s renaissance through advancing the African Union’s Agenda 2063: The African We Want, with its goals of transforming Africa into a global powerhouse, achieving inclusive and sustainable development, and strengthening African Union.
What are the plans to boost investment and trade between the two countries?
There are many plans and programmes to develop and promote investment and increase trade exchange between the two countries, and here it is necessary to praise the great and unprecedented development that Tanzania is currently witnessing in the political and economic fields, and praise the great success in completing major development projects such as Julius Nyerere Dam, and Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) Project, which will elevate Tanzania to new heights in high-speed electric railways – both of which lead to economic development. There are significant developments taking place in relations especially following the recent reopening of the Tanzania Embassy in Khartoum after a period of closure that lasted more than 30 years. Priority will be economic cooperation in various aspects, such as investment and increasing trade exchange between the two countries. The areas of cooperation between the two countries are promising and conducive in the economic field, but the cessation of the work of the Joint Economic Committee between the two countries for a long time negatively affected trade exchange between the two countries, especially Tanzania, which lost one of its largest markets of Tanzanian tea and coffee trade after the withdrawal from COMESA in 2000, as about 80 per cent of Sudanese tea imports came from Tanzania until the end of the 1990s. As soon as I arrived in Tanzania, I held several meetings with the Tea Board of Tanzania (TBT) to discuss ways to facilitate the export of Tanzanian tea to Sudan. We will also work on the revival of the Joint Economic Committee as soon as possible after the cessation of the war, and the return of political stability in Sudan.
What are the main areas of interest between the Republic of Sudan and Tanzania?
There are many aspects of cooperation between Sudan and Tanzania, we will work to continue good cultural and scientific cooperation between the two countries and Sudan’s commitment to the return of all Tanzanian students who were evacuated due to the war to continue their studies (about 200 students), especially since many of them are in their final stages of undergraduate and graduate studies. Commitment to work on the continuation of scholarship programmes for Tanzanian students in Sudan and raise it to the previous level, considering that Sudan was previously honoured to host the largest Tanzanian student community with full scholarships as about 500 Tanzanian students were studying in Sudan. This commitment seeks to provide more distinguished scholarships from private and government universities. There is also good cooperation and coordination between the two countries in the field of security and counter-terrorism and there are promising opportunities for cooperation and taking advantage of Tanzania’s potential in the field of teaching Kiswahili language.
Sudan is also looking forward to benefiting from Tanzania’s qualitative experience in the field of mining policies (especially gold), tourism, the development of natural reserves and electric railways, and the need to complete the signing of a memorandum of cooperation between the two countries in these areas as soon as possible.
Are there any Sudanese companies that operate in Tanzania?
There has been a clear emergence of economic activity in the private sector between the two countries since President Samia Suluhu Hassan took office in 2021, and her adoption of a policy of economic openness and improvement of the business and investment environment. A number of Sudanese businesspersons have begun to do business in Tanzania. There are many Sudanese companies operating in mining, pharmaceuticals, medical preparations, spices, agricultural products and exports.
Does your country have a chamber of commerce or does your mission have a trade attaché?
Yes, there is a chamber of commerce in Sudan, one of the most prestigious African chambers of commerce, and it has many relations with International Chambers of Commerce and actively participate in international economic conferences and exhibitions. The Sudanese Embassy in Dar es Salaam also has a dedicated diplomat responsible for a trade portfolio.
Is this your first appointment as Head of Mission? If no, in which capacities did you serve before?
This is not my first time leading diplomatic missions. I previously served as Sudanese Ambassador to the Kingdom of Spain and as Permanent Representative to the United Nations World Tourism Organisation.
African Minerals and Geosciences Centre (AMGC), with his capital in Dar es Salaam, has been led by a distinguished Sudanese national. What is your views on him and the AMGC in general?
Since 1977, Tanzania has been hosting the headquarters of the African Centre for Minerals and Earth Sciences, affiliated to the United Nations and the African Union. Sudan is represented by Dr Ibrahim Shaddad, a prominent figure in geology worldwide, renowned for his administrative competence and scientific and practical experience. He has worked at the Ministry of Mining in Sudan and National Geological Research Centre, as well as a university professor in Sudan, and as an international consultant in his field.
What is the role Sudan has played since joining AMGC in 2010?
Since joining the AMGC in 2010, Sudan has played an important role through its commitment to paying its annual contribution on a regular basis. Through its Director, Dr Shaddad, it has also played a role in developing human capital by training the workforce, building the capacity of technical experts to formulate effective programmes and projects, and participating in building integrated African national economies to achieve high levels of economic development.
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