Tanzania has asked for a loan from state-owned Export Credit Bank of Turkey to help finance a stretch of a new railway it hopes will help it open up East Africa’s hinterland and compete with Kenya as a trade hub.
Tanzania wants to build a 2,561km standard gauge railway connecting its main port of Dar es Salaam to land-locked neighbours, including Democratic Republic of the Congo, Zambia, Rwanda and Uganda.
President John Magufuli said he made the funding request to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during talks in Dar es Salaam at the end of his two-day state visit on Monday. Turkish firms are among those that have submitted bids for the standard gauge project.
Magufuli said he sought financing for a more than 400km stretch of track.
“I am confident that we will secure that loan,” the Tanzanian leader told reporters after hosting talks with Erdogan.
Turkey has deepened trade ties with Africa since Erdogan took power in 2002, seeking to bolster its strategic influence on a continent where China and more traditional donors like Britain, France and the European Union have a strong presence.
Tanzania said in July it had secured a $7.6 billion (about Sh790.02 billion) loan from China’s Export-Import Bank to build part of the new railway network.
Magufuli and Erdogan also witnessed the signing of nine agreements covering defence, transport, industry and trade.

Trade between Tanzania and Turkey almost trebled to $190 million (about Sh19.75 billion) last year from $66 million (Sh6.86 billion) five years earlier.
Erdogan said he had briefed his Tanzanian counterpart on the activities of the US-based cleric Fethullah Gulen, who the Turkish leader has said was the architect of the country’s failed coup last year. Erdogan said he asked Magufuli to help him root out what he calls a “terrorist network”.
“We have substantial evidence of the activities of this network in Africa and I hope my friend Magufuli will help us,” Erdogan said.
Gulen has denied any involvement in the abortive putsch.
Ankara officially declared Gulen’s Hizmet organisation a terrorist group last May, stepping up pressure on a movement Erdogan once looked to for help in spreading Turkish cultural influence and commerce overseas.
Tanzanian officials said Turkey pressed for action to be taken against several schools with alleged ties to Gulen.
Erdogan is also scheduled to visit Mozambique and Madagascar as part of his African tour.
Source: The Star

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of TradeMark Africa.