Rupiah, Kikwete pledge to revamp TAZARA

Rupiah, Kikwete pledge to revamp TAZARA
Written by Florence Mwisa in Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania
Wednesday, February 11, 2009 9:42:20 AM

PRESIDENT Rupiah Banda and his Tanzanian counterpart Jakaya Kikwete have pledged to work together to revamp the Tanzania-Zambia Railways (TAZARA) to enable the joint venture contribute meaningfully to the two countries' economic development.

During the dinner hosted by President Kikwete on Monday night at State House, President Banda said TAZARA had continued to provide a useful link for bilateral trade between Zambia and Tanzania hence the need to revamp it.

He observed that TAZARA was a highly strategic asset that had continued to help improve the lives of the peoples of the two countries.

President Banda said the need to ensure that the management of TAZARA was revamped could not be overemphasized considering the economic importance it played in the development of both countries.

President Banda said Zambia was keen in following Tanzania's developments and its successes scored in the areas such as tourism, agriculture and transportation.

''The future of our countries needs to be set today. We must create opportunities that offer and promote job creation for our people and it is my hope that with this visit, economic cooperation and bilateral relations will be uplifted between our two countries,'' he said.

President Banda also commended Tanzania for the commitment it had shown in finding a lasting solution to the problems in the Great Lakes Region in order to lay a firm foundation for economic development.

Earlier, President Kikwete regretted that the cordial relations between Zambia and Tanzania had not brought about many benefits for the people.

President Kikwete said there was need to seriously look at how TAZARA and Tanzania Zambia Mafuta (TAZAMA), which were important joint ventures between the two countries, could be improved.

He said the two companies currently had serious problems and that there was need to find a way of improving their operations.

President Kikwete further regretted that even if the two countries cooperated closely in confronting issues affecting people, Tanzanians and Zambians had not benefited as much as trade had remained minimal.

He challenged the chambers of commerce of the two countries to engage and establish areas of cooperation that could help improve trade between the two countries.

President Kikwete assured President Banda that problems that were currently obtaining at the Port of Dar-es-Salaam were being seriously looked into and that they would be addressed soon.