Japan signs road and agriculture grant for Tanzania

The governments of Japan and Tanzania signed an Exchange of Notes that will bring in 1.55 billion yen (US$17 million) into the East African country. The grant will be used to fund projects to expand and improve key roads as well as to support food security efforts.

Tanzanian Finance Minister William Mgimwa thanked Japan for having been for decades a steadfast partner in Tanzania’s Social Economic Development. He said that 20 billion Tanzanian shillings (US$12.5 million) will be used for expanding Kiwa Road and Harbour Road intersection while 6.92 billion Tanzanian shillings (US$4.3 million) will be spent on the expansion of the TAZARA intersection road. Japanese Ambassador to Tanzania Masaki Okada said that the grant will improve traveling speeds from 0.7 kph to 40 kph during peak hours when people commute to and from work or school. Okada also said that there will be construction of flyovers and construction roads to cut travel time between Dar es Salaam city and the Julius Nyerere International Airport 11 kilometers away.

Also included in the grant is 6.8 billion Tanzanian shillings (US$4.2 million) for agriculture. Called “2KR”, the food security project to be implemented by Tanzania’s Ministry of Agriculture, Food Security and Cooperatives will target underprivileged farmers and will attempt to improve the country’s agricultural conditions. Okada said that while Tanzania has been enjoying a relatively high level of food self-sufficiency in recent years, it has not yet fully attained food security due to irregular rainfalls and insufficient transportation infrastructure.

[ via All Africa ]