TANZANIA – CHINAVice-President’s Visit

The joint business forum provides freshinvestment opportunities.

The vice-president of China, Li Yuan-chao opened Tanzania-China businessforum in Dar es Salaam on June 23rd aspart of a six-day official visit.

The forum involved representatives ofover 100 Chinese and 120 Tanzaniacompanies, with Tanzania showcasinginvestment opportunities in areas ofinfrastructure, agriculture, gas and oilexploration, mining and business amongothers.

The Guardian (22/6) noted that so farthe Tanzania Investment Centre (TIC)had registered 522 investment projectsfrom China with a value of US$2.4bnwhich would create some 77,335 jobs forTanzanians. (The Guardian website, Dar esSalaam 22/6)

China is now the largest trade partnerand second largest investor in Tanzania.In 2013, the bilateral trade volumereached $3.7bn, ranking Tanzania thefourth among 25 Southern Africancountries.

By the end of 2013, China’s totalinvestment volume in Tanzania hadreached $2.5bn with nearly 500 Chinesecompanies in the East African countrycreating 150,000 local jobs. (Xinhua newsagency, Beijing 17/6)

In Zanzibar, Li Yuanchao reiterated hiscountry’s commitment to supportingsocial and economic development pro-jects in Tanzania.

Mr Yuanchao said that African coun-tries, including Tanzania Mainland andZanzibar, should expect continued sup-port in improving infrastructure, train-ing and capacity building of staff, andtechnological matters which are vital ineconomic development.

He said his government has allocatedabout Yuan2.2bn for Tanzania’s infra-structure and trade improvement pro-grammes.

Acting on behalf of Zanzibar PresidentAli Mohamed Shein, Ambassador Iddithanked China for its continued supportfor Zanzibar and Tanzania Mainland’sdevelopment. “Our relations remainimportant and beneficial to the people.

China’s admirable support has helpedZanzibar and Tanzania Mainland’ssteady social and economic develop-ment,” said Mr Iddi. He added that:“Tanzanians are proud of the friendshipwith China and value the support fromthe government and people of Chinasince 1964.

The valuable support covers health,water, infrastructure, agriculture, andICT.

Currently, China’s support in the islandsincluded the expansion and improve-ment of Zanzibar International Airportand the reconstruction of Abdalla MzeeHospital in Pemba. (Daily News website,Dar es Salaam 2/7)

UK Grant: A grant of €18m will comefrom the UK over five years to theTanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) towiden the tax base and boost revenuecollection.

The UK Minister for Africa, Mark Sim-mondswhowas visiting the country, said:

“We will help to address business con-cerns including streamlining an auto-mated customs system, setting anindependent complaints commissionand improving audit and investigationprocess,” he explained.

He further said that the UK govern-ment was working with the Ministry ofLands, Housing and Human SettlementDevelopment to improve governance,transparency and efficiency in landadministration. (The Guardian website,Dar es Salaam 10/7)

ZAMBIA – CHINAEasing Tensions

Li Yuanchao’s visit is aimed at improv-ing understanding in the workplace.

Chinese Vice President Li Yuanchaokicked off a three-day visit to Zambiaon June 18th by signing developmentloan and grant agreements worth US$64m.

Li and his Zambian counterpart GuyScott signed a $32m interest-free loanand a grant of similar value for eco-nomic and technical aid.

Zambia will use the funds to improve itswater reticulation system in rural areas,upgrade the country’s only internationalairport in Lusaka and improve educa-tion facilities, among a raft of otherprojects.

Local media reported that eight agree-ments would be penned during Li’s visit.

China is Zambia’s top foreign investor,but relations have occasionally beentense because of China’s preponderantpresence in Africa’s copper giant.

A Chinese manager was killed during a2012 riot over wages at a coal mine.

Besides their involvement in copper andcoal mining, Chinese companies arebuilding roads and revamping Zambia’sinternational airport and stadiums.

Nigeria

Trade With China: Speaking at theEnergy Environment and InvestmentForum in the southern Nigerian oil cityof Port Harcourt on the theme, Sustain-able Energy – Key to Africa’s worldintegration, the Consul-General of Peo-ples Republic of China in Nigeria, LiuKhan said that trade between China andNigeria had amounted to US$13.6bn in2013.

He said the Asian nation was vigorouslycommitted to its business partnership withAfrican countries, particularly Nigeria,adding that this relationship over theyears had supported the political terrainand upheld the economic survival of thecountries.

The envoy noted that Nigeria was nowChina’s seventh export market and themost important investment destination forChina in Africa.

He said that China’s financial investmentin Africa amounted to US$20.5bn, cover-ing petroleum, free trade zones, manufac-turing and agriculture, among others.(PANA 2/7)

Promoting Trade With Iran: Nigeria andIran on June 19th signed a Memorandumof Understanding MoU on the promotionof bilateral trade and cooperation aimedat boosting economic relations betweenthe two countries.

The MoU covers areas like visa waiver forholders of diplomatic passports, tourism,industrial cooperation and cooperation inthe fields of geology, mining, mineralprocessing and metallurgy.

A communiqu�e issued at the end of theNigeria – Iran Joint Commission sessionheld in Abuja noted that the two countriesagreed to continue deliberating on agree-ments and MOU on women, youth, healthand energy and to explore the possibilityof collaborating in the areas of commerce,trade, housing, judiciary, water resources,oil and gas and rail transportation.(PANA, Abuja 19/6)

Pakistan Agreements: During a visit toNigeria by Pakistani President MahmoonHussain, talks were held with NigerianPresident Goodluck Jonathan, after whicha number of agreements to boost bilateraltrade were signed.

It is expected that the level of trade willrise from the current US$100m to aroundS41bn over the next few years.

Other areas where the two leaders signedmutual agreements included security,health, trade and investment as well ashuman capacity development.

The bilateral agreements and memorandaof understanding (MoU) were meant todeepen ties between Nigeria and Pakistan,cover agricultural development, industrialcooperation, cultural exchanges andtrade/chambers of commerce, narcotics,anti-terrorism/security, poverty reductionand human capacity development.(PANA, Abuja 10/6)

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20446 – Africa Research Bulletin Continental Alignments

On June 19th Li held talks with PresidentMichael Sata, who as an oppositionleader railed against the growing Chinesepresence in Zambia. Sata has howeversoftened his tone since coming to powerin 2011 after realising the importance ofChinese investment to the Zambianeconomy.

“China’s insatiable demand for Zam-bia’s natural resources along with itswillingness to grow jobs and fund vitalinfrastructure projects have meant thatthe (ruling) PF (Patriotic Front) hasstrengthened economic and diplomaticlinks since coming to office,” said riskanalyst Charles Laurie of London-basedMaplecroft.

Bilateral trade rose to $3.8bn in 2013,from $3.4bn in 2012.

China’s ambassador to Zambia, ZhouYuxiao, said the trip was aimed atfurther boosting “government-to-gov-ernment and party-to-party relationsbetween our two countries.”

Scott announced at the signing cere-mony that Zambia would give China 200hectares of land to be developed into amemorial burial site for 64 Chineseworkers who died during the construc-tion of the Tanzania Zambia Railways(TAZARA) between 1970 and 1975.

The 1,860km railway line – one ofChina’s most ambitious projects inAfrica – runs from Tanzania’s majorseaport of Dar es Salaam to the heart ofZambia’s copper belt.

Speaking at a news conference on June19th, Li Yuanchao said industrial unrestin Chinese-runmines in Zambia had beenreduced because of better understandingof the different working cultures.

Animosity towards Chinese workers ishigh across much of southern Africa,with locals arguing that Chinese-fundedprojects often spell decent employmentonly for Chinese workers and managers.

“This decrease in labour disputes showsthat our relationship are improving. Wenow understand each other’s cultures.Some Zambians now speak a bit ofChinese and I am happy to note thatequally, some Chinese understandbasics about Zambian languages,” hesaid. (© AFP 18,19/6 2014)

He added that Zambia is poised to seeincreased Chinese investment in thecoming years due to the country’sfavourable investment climate

In 2013, Chinese investment stood at US$2.6bn, creating about 50,000 jobs inZambia. (Xinhua news agency, Beijing 19/6)

IN BRIEF

Angola – Cuba: The two countries on June20th signed a memorandum of understanding(MoU) on new contracts in the fields of civilengineering and public works over the period2014–2017, during a visit to Angola by theCuban leader Raul Castro. (PANA, Havana20/6)

Republic of Congo – China: Congolese Pres-ident Denis Sassou Nguesso visited China inJune, during which China pledged strongersupport for Congo’s infrastructure buildingand development, in particular the railwaynetwork and economic zones. (Xinhua newsagency, Beijing 13/6)

Guinea Bissau – Portugal: Portugal plans tosupport projects in Guinea Bissau includinga furniture factory, recovery of fishinglicenses and processing agricultural produce,according to Portuguese secretary of stateLu�ıs Campos Ferreira. Druing a visit toBissau, Ferreira said that around 20 compa-nies from northern Portugal, together withthe Paredes Municipal Council, wereinvolved in a project to build a furniturefactory in Guinea Bissau, making sustainableuse of one of the country’s main naturalresources. (Macauhub 19/6)

Morocco – Qatar: The Mohammed V Foun-dation for Solidarity has received a donationof Dirhams 33.54m from the emir of Qatar,HH Shaykh Tamim Bin-Hamad Al Thani.

The financial grant will be used to fundvarious projects for young people and thedisabled. (MAP news agency website, Rabat4/7)

Mozambique – Finland: Finland will donate€8m to help 14,00 small-scale farmers toincrease production in Sofala and Zamb�eziaprovinces, the Finnish embassy announced inMaputo. The aid would be provided throughMozambican non-governmental organisationAjuda de Povo para Povo (ADPP) to providemembers of associations, particularly women,with the tools they need to increase theproduction and yields of the small-scale farmsand, thus improve their food safety as well asproviding income. The funding will createover 300 small-scale associations, which willprovide training to over 14,000 members inthe districts of Namacurra and Nicoadala,Zamb�ezia province, and in the districts ofMaringue and Caia, in Sofala province.(Macauhub 1/7)

President Armando Guebuza visited Portugalon July 1st accompanied by 30 Mozambicanbusinesspeople. Portugal is the largest foreignemployer in Mozambique, providing jobs toaround 34,000 nationals, and the third biggestinvestor over the last three years after SouthAfrica and China.

The main focus of investments is the energy,construction and tourism industries. At arecent summit between the two countries, 19fresh agreements were signed and €133mworth of investments agreed. (Macauhub 1/7)

Senegal: Morocco and Senegal signed on June12th in Dakar, a cooperation agreement in thefield of renewable energy and energy effi-ciency. According to the agreement, Moroccowill provide technical support to Senegal forthe establishment of equipment test platformsand mapping of wind resources. (MAP newsagency website, Rabat 12/6)

Somalia: The European Union (EU) andOxfam “have launched a project that willpromote production of fisheries in Somalia”,in particular Puntland and Somaliland regio-nal authorities. This is part of a three-yearfisheries programme worth €5m in the northand north-eastern part of the country, as partof efforts to eliminate piracy in coastal towns.(Raxanreeb website 23/6)

ECONOMIC TRENDS

ALGERIAOil Revenues Down

The sector has suffered from a lack offoreign investment.

Algerian oil and gas earnings, whichaccount for nearly all of the country’sexports, fell by 2.26% on year in the firstfive months of 2014.

Hydrocarbons exports generated$27.36bn in January–May, comparedwith $28bn for 2013, and represented96.91% of total exports, according tothe national centre for customs statistics.

Main customers were Spain, which spentthe equivalent of $659m, followed byBritain, Italy, France and the UnitedStates.

Algeria is the third largest supplier ofnatural gas to Europe, but its hydrocar-bons sector has suffered in the pastdecade from a lack of foreign investment.

A new bid round launched in Januaryand due to be awarded in August aims toattract a fresh influx of investment,reports AFP (23/6).

President Bouteflika has pledged to diver-sify the country’s economy, making it lessreliant on hydrocarbons, although thereis little evidence that any significant stepshave been taken to achieve this.

Foreign workers are returning to workat the In Amenas gas complex in south-east Algeria nearly a year and a halfafter a militant group attacked thefacility, killing 40 people, Al-Jazeerareported (28/7). A source at state energyfirm Sonatrach said 12 foreign workerswere at the facility and more wereexpected to return gradually. The com-

Policy and Practice

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© 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

June 16th–July 15th 2014 Africa Research Bulletin – 20447