Why Obama is coming to Tanzania
President Barack Obama meets his Tanzanian counterpart Jakaya Kikwete in
the Oval office at the Whie House. In his second tour of Africa next
month Mr Obama will visit three African countries, which include
Tanzania, Senegal and South Africa. PHOTO | FILE
In Summary
- President Barack Obama will come with a
delegation of more than 1200 people, including 500 businessmen and
investors. He becomes the third US President to, consecutively, visit
Tanzania after Bill Clinton in 2000, and George Bush in 2008. The US
President’s tour of Africa will start on June 26 and end on July 3. In
addition to Tanzania he will also visit Senegal and South Africa
Dar es Salaam. Tanzania’s
strategic position in the continent, its abundant natural resources and
countering China’s advances to Africa have been cited as one of the
reasons why President Barack Obama chose to visit Tanzania in his tour
of Africa next month.
Mr Obama, who is the first African American US
President, comes just about three months after the Chinese President Mr
Xi Jinping visited the country.
Experts who spoke to The Citizen shortly after the
tour was confirmed by both the US and Tanzanian governments yesterday
argued that Mr Obama’s visit, coming hot on the heels of his Chinese
counterpart, is not coincidental.
The visit, they add, is the continuation of scramble for resources between the two major economic superpowers.
The US President’s tour of Africa will start on
June 26 and end on July 3. In addition to Tanzania he will also visit
Senegal and South Africa.
Professor Issa Shivji, Mwl Nyerere Professorial
Chair at the University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM) told The Citizen that
the shifting centres of global economic and political power, the growing
economic muscles of the most of Asia and Tanzania’s strategic position
and its natural resources abundance are some of the reasons why Mr Obama
is visiting Tanzania, in particular, and the continent in general.
Prof Shivji noted that after Somalia, which has been destroyed, Tanzania has the longest shoreline on the Indian Ocean.
“Zanzibar is also a strategic island in the Indian
Ocean and the mainland is the only land mass which connects the Indian
Ocean with Central Africa, one of the richest regions in the world.
Tanzania itself is rich in natural resources, including oil, uranium,
gas and so forth,” Prof Shivji noted. Mr Obama becomes the third
consecutive US President to visit to Tanzania after Bill Clinton in
2000, and George Bush in 2008.
Dr Amon Mbele from university of Dar es Salaam
from the Economics Department of the UDSM noted that the visit of Mr
Obama shows the huge potentiality of the country to the global political
and economic spheres.
“The country could have that strategic important
to global affairs beyond that we might not be aware of as citizen of the
country,” Dr Mbelle noted.
The minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Bernard Membe said the purpose of Mr Obama’s visit is economic.
“He is coming here with a group of 500 businessmen
and investors. All these are looking for investment opportunities in
the country because it is stable and peaceful,” Mr Membe noted. Mr Obama
will come with a delegation of more than 1200 people, according to Mr
Membe.
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