Dar es Salaam — TANZANIA and Saudi Arabia have discussed investment projects worth more than 500 million US dollars (about 1.32tri/-), as Tanzania seeks to attract Saudi capital to expand production and narrow a trade gap in which it imports about 25 times more from the Kingdom than it exports.

Speaking at the Tanzania-Saudi Arabia Business Forum in Dar es Salaam yesterday, Saudi-Tanzania Business Council Co-Chairman, Engineer Abdulrahman Al-Thubaiti, said discussions over the past two days had covered major projects in education and other sectors.

He urged businesses from both countries to turn the discussions into concrete investments.

"We want this to mark the beginning of lasting relationships-- relationships that continue through meetings, develop into projects and investments, and ultimately create tangible business opportunities," he said.

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The forum brought together 47 business principals from 44 Saudi companies and institutions, 66 representatives registered by the Tanzania Private Sector Federation (TPSF) and 19 representatives from ministries, regulators and public institutions to explore investment, trade, industrialisation and value chain opportunities.

The Minister of State in the President's Office (Planning and Investment), Prof Kitila Mkumbo, said Tanzania wanted Saudi investment to expand its productive capacity and increase exports to the Kingdom.

Tanzania currently exports goods worth roughly 36 million US dollars to Saudi Arabia, while imports from the Kingdom are estimated at between 900 million US dollars and 1.44 billion US dollars.

"Investment is the best way of balancing the trade imbalance," he said.

Using the lower import estimate, Tanzania imports about 25 times more from Saudi Arabia than it exports to the Kingdom, despite Tanzanian exports growing at an average annual rate of 15.2 per cent over the past five years, compared with 9.4 per cent for Saudi exports to Tanzania.

Prof Mkumbo said Tanzania was therefore seeking Saudi investment in productive sectors that would enable it to manufacture goods locally for the domestic, regional and Saudi markets.

He said the country was particularly interested in critical minerals, commercial agriculture, manufacturing and renewable energy, with the aim of transforming the economy from dependence on raw material exports to value-added production.

"We do not want to mine minerals simply to export. We want to use minerals to industrialise Tanzania," Prof Mkumbo said.

He said Tanzania wanted Saudi investors to establish mineral-processing and manufacturing facilities locally, particularly for critical minerals such as graphite, nickel, cobalt, lithium and rare earth elements.

The government, he said, wanted Tanzania to move beyond exporting minerals in raw form and instead produce higher-value products such as batteries, allowing the country to capture more value through technology transfer, skills development, employment and industrial growth.

On agriculture, Prof Mkumbo said Saudi Arabia's food-security needs presented an opportunity for Tanzania, which has about 44 million hectares of arable land, only a fraction of which is currently utilised.

He said Saudi investors could participate in commercial farming, irrigation, agro-processing and cold-chain infrastructure, with processed agricultural products ultimately exported to the Saudi market.

"We have a very good opportunity to provide food security for Saudi Arabia by inviting them to invest in large-scale commercial agriculture," he said.

Prof Mkumbo also invited Saudi investors to establish manufacturing plants, including agro-processing industries, mineral-based industries, machinery and pharmaceutical production. He said Tanzania also needed investment in renewable energy as electricity demand was expected to rise substantially towards 2030 and 2050.

Prof Mkumbo said Tanzania's Vision 2050 had drawn significant inspiration from Saudi Vision 2030, particularly in economic diversification, productivity, value addition and reducing reliance on traditional sources of revenue.

"Having been closely involved in drafting Tanzania's Vision 2050, I can tell you that we drew a lot of inspiration from Saudi Vision 2030," he said.

Eng Al-Thubaiti said Saudi Arabia and Tanzania were well positioned to complement each other economically, with Saudi Arabia bringing capital, expertise and technology, while Tanzania offered resources, strategic location and access to a growing market.

"Tanzania and Saudi Arabia are not distant partners but they complement each other. The Kingdom brings capital, expertise and technology, while Tanzania offers resources, strategic location and a growing market," he said.

He identified renewable energy, sustainable agriculture, manufacturing, supply chains and livestock as areas with significant investment potential. Eng Al-Thubaiti said the forum should not end with introductions and exchanges of business cards, but should lead to lasting partnerships and actual projects.

"We do not want this meeting to be merely an opportunity for introductions and exchanges of business cards. We want it to mark the beginning of lasting relationships," he said.

Prof Mkumbo similarly challenged investors to translate expressions of interest into bankable projects, saying the forum's success should ultimately be measured by factories and commercial farms established, minerals processed locally, Tanzanian products reaching Saudi markets and jobs created.