- Tanzania diplomats attending the just ended African Union Summit in Addis Ababa disclosed to The EastAfrican that energy investments will be a key agenda during President Obama’s visit in July, as the US seeks a piece of the oil and gas boom in East Africa, balancing off China’s growing participation in the sector.
What is US President Barack Obama’s interest in Tanzania?
This is the question analysts are asking following
the announcement by Washington that Dar will be part of Obama’s
one-week visit to Africa later this month.
America’s growing interest in Tanzania has not
been lost on observers as it has been a destination for some of Obama’s
senior-most officials.
A delegation of US energy executives travelled to
Tanzania last year on a prospecting tour led by Johnnie Carson, who was
then the top Africa diplomat in the Obama administration. Mr Carson was
effusive in his praise for Tanzania prior to the visit later in 2012 by
then-secretary of state Hillary Clinton.
Tanzania diplomats attending the just ended African Union Summit in Addis Ababa disclosed to The EastAfrican
that energy investments will be a key agenda during President Obama’s
visit in July, as the US seeks a piece of the oil and gas boom in East
Africa, balancing off China’s growing participation in the sector.
In addition to energy, they argued, Tanzania will
showcase the social infrastructure investments made with the first
tranche of the $689.1 million Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC)
fund, seeking to qualify for the second tranche.
Diplomats seeking anonymity because President Jakaya Kikwete in an interview with The EastAfrican
had earlier declined to divulge the agenda of the meeting with Obama,
said the a new tranche from the MCC will come in handy as the country
faces financing shortfalls for infrastructure.
Daniel Yohannes, the director of the MCC, praised
Tanzania’s performance during a visit in April to Zanzibar, Tanga and
Dodoma to view development projects funded through his agency’s
single-largest aid allotment.
“Through the leadership of the Tanzanian
government, we see a steady commitment to reforming policies and
institutions for sustainability,” Mr Yohannes said in Dodoma. “We see a
growing willingness to create enabling conditions for more private
companies and entrepreneurs to be the engines of growth and job
creation.”
MCC is a US initiative that rewards countries that
are committed to and promote democracy and good governance. Tanzania is
facing challenges in financing construction of gas pipelines and
related infrastructure that would enable it to use gas by-products like
fertiliser urea.
The country’s electricity distribution system is
under severe strain because of under-investment, leading to power system
losses and regular blackouts.
Kikwete shrugged off the question on issues that will be on the table with the US delegation, saying only, “I don’t know.”
The visit by Obama will mean Tanzania is emerging
as East Africa’s new battleground for the two most important global
powers, China and the United States.
In March, Chinese President Xi Jinping visited
Tanzania in the course of his first African visit, during which deals
worth $800 million were signed, including construction of a new port at
Bagamoyo.
China is also financing a gas pipeline with a $1.2
billion loan and has also loaned the country $123 million to construct a
300MW wind energy plant in the central region of Singida.he two visits will raise Tanzania’s geopolitical profile in the region as it takes advantage of the travails of its northern neighbour Kenya, which has been engulfed in destructive internal politics that nearly led to a civil war after the 2007 General Election.
ALSO READ: Obama Africa trip to bypass Kenya
Foreign policy analyst Dr Chris Abong’o, formerly
of the University of Nairobi’s Institute of Diplomacy and International
Studies, said political stability has been the key selling point of
Tanzania, coupled with massive land and mineral resources that offer a
foundation for future development.
Analysts said Kenya’s perceived influence is the region is waning, with countries like Tanzania and Ethiopia filling the gap.
Obama will visit Tanzania as part of his
three-nation African tour from June 26 to July 3, taking him also to
Senegal and South Africa. He will be seeking to demonstrate his support
for Tanzania’s smooth political transitions.
Obama will also be seeking to enlist Tanzania more
closely in the fight against terrorism, with analysts predicting an
increase in military assistance. But the 500-strong business delegation
that will accompany Obama indicates that the trip will be heavily tilted
towards opening the market to the US corporate sector.
By Kevin Kelley and Steve Mbogo
Source: The eastafrican news paper
Source: The eastafrican news paper
