Tanzania, Vietnam target joint ventures in energy, agriculture

DAR ES SALAAM: TANZANIA has urged Vietnamese investors to move beyond trading raw commodities and establish joint production ventures in Tanzania as the two countries seek to deepen economic ties after 60 years of diplomatic relations.

Speaking at the closing of the Second Tanzania-Vietnam Joint Intergovernmental Commission in Dar es Salaam yesterday, Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs and East African Cooperation, James Ole Millya, said the next phase of the partnership should focus on manufacturing, technology and value addition.

“Tanzania warmly invites investors from Vietnam to move beyond trade in commodities and establish joint production ventures in Tanzania, where their capital and expertise will find a welcoming environment,” he said.

Bilateral trade rose from 248.4 million US dollars in 2020 to 368.2 million dollars in 2025, but Millya said the relationship remained heavily dependent on a single commodity.

According to him, cashew nuts account for about 288 million US dollars, representing nearly 92 per cent of Tanzania’s exports to Vietnam.

“We appreciate Vietnam’s position as the second-largest buyer of Tanzanian cashew nuts, but a partnership built primarily on a single unprocessed commodity is not the relationship envisioned by our sixty years of friendship,” he said.

The Deputy Minister welcomed interest from Vietnam’s national energy and industry group in collaborating on joint exploration in the energy, oil and gas sectors.

The two countries adopted four broad clusters of agreements covering nine key areas, including political, diplomatic and public security cooperation; trade, investment, finance and transport; agriculture, livestock, fisheries and forestry; and scientific and technological cooperation.

The agreements include strengthening diplomatic and security cooperation, promoting trade and investment, advancing negotiations on the Bilateral Investment Protection Agreement (BIPA) and the Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement, and enhancing maritime and air transport cooperation.

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The two sides also agreed to expand collaboration in rice cultivation, irrigation, livestock, fisheries and forestry, while strengthening cooperation in science and technology, scholarships, telecommunications and digital transformation.

He added that the government had continued to improve strategic infrastructure, including railways, ports, electricity, industrial parks and air transport, to create a conducive environment for trade and investment between the two countries.

Leading the Vietnamese delegation, Deputy Minister for Agriculture and Environment, Nguyen Hoang Hiep, expressed Vietnam’s readiness to cooperate with Tanzania beyond the communications sector, including advancing agriculture through modern technology.

Mr Hiep underscored the need for the two countries to develop a strong implementation plan for the agreements reached.

Presenting the agreements, Director of the Department of Asia and Australasia in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and East African Cooperation, Felister Rugambwa, emphasised the need to translate the partnership into concrete cooperation in trade, investment, agriculture, transport and technology.

Among the key areas agreed upon are advancing negotiations on the BIPA and resuming and concluding negotiations on the Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement.

The two sides also agreed to cooperate on rice cultivation and irrigation technologies, with Tanzania expected to prepare a new draft Memorandum of Understanding by October 2026.

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