JK defends Chinese investors
6th October 2012
Says Serengeti shall not be disturbed
At a joint press conference with his host, Canadian Premier Stephen Harper, the President said: “Despite the noises from ‘the Western media and other critics’, Tanzania will not reject investments from China.”
The President reiterated that mere trade deals with the Chinese did not mean that his government was looking up to the Chinese political situation as one of the conditions for trade deals to take place.
The President made these remarks when fielding questions from Canadian journalists who wanted to know why Tanzania was attracting investment from China—a country whose good governance, democracy and human rights record—is questionable and tainted with repression.
“Our investment conditions don’t include democracy standards or values of the investors’ country of origin.
“Even then … this is a baseless question because when I visited China’s investment town of Tianjin, I went to the Japanese Toyota factory, which manufactures 600,000 vehicles a year … and I was told there are three major Toyota factories in China and this is a Japanese company.
“This is just an example … the truth is that all big investors in China come from the Western countries, and in return China also invests heavily in those country… so where does this question about democracy and human rights values come from?” Queried President Kikwete.
China last year loaned Tanzania $1.01 billion to finance construction of a 522-km of gas pipeline from Mtwara to Dar es Salaam at an interest of 3 percent, which reportedly shocked the Canadians.
With that huge loan – payable within 20, and with a grace period of seven years, Canada is said to have been ‘shocked’ by what was described as China’s ‘sudden interest in Tanzania.’
The government last year finalized an agreement with China on the funding of the two new gas processing plants and pipeline, with an initial capacity to transport 420 million standard cubic feet per day -- enough to generate 2000MW and a maximum of 784 million cubic feet which could produce 3,900MW of power.
Apart from the $1.01bn loan, Chinese investments in Tanzania have grown rapidly over the past decade, mainly in construction, oil and gas, mining and other key areas.
Last year, Chinese investment in Africa represented a small—3 to 4 percent—but represented a growing piece-of-the-pie in total Chinese outward foreign direct investment (OFDI) worldwide. Africa is the third largest recipient of Chinese OFDI behind Asia and Europe, totaling nearly $90 billion.
Driven by a desire to secure natural resources and tap new markets, PRC state-owned enterprises (SOEs) have made large investments throughout Africa. Today, China not only recognizes Africa as a source of energy and natural resources but also as a rapidly expanding market for Chinese goods.
Moreover, Africa represents an additional destination for Chinese manufacturing to move offshore as profit margins on the mainland deteriorate and the PRC government promotes policies seeking to move the Chinese economy up the value chain. Key destinations for Chinese investments include South Africa, Nigeria, and Algeria in sectors such as energy, transportation, and metals.
While private Chinese firms are becoming increasingly active globally, SOEs make up the lion’s share of OFDI in Africa – which is largely a result of the maturity and size of SOEs -- which provide them with greater capacity to seize opportunities in more volatile environments.
Leading state-owned firms include China National Offshore Oil Company (CNOOC), China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation (Sinopec), and China National Machinery Industry Corp (Sinomach).
In another development, President Kikwete has denied that the government had earlier planned to build a tarmac road right through the world-famous Serengeti National Park, reports Florian Kaijage.
“We have never had plans to build a tarmac road across Serengeti National Park.
“These are distorted facts, though I might not know where the distortion comes from,” the President said.
The government planned a two-lane highway across the park to connect Lake Victoria with coastal ports. But studies showed it could seriously affect animals such as wildebeest and zebra, whose migration rank at the top of list of world wonders of nature.
The government also confirmed the road across the park would remain gravel.
In a letter sent to the World Heritage Centre in Paris in June last year, the Department of Natural Resources and Tourism says the 50km (30-mile) section of road across the park will "continue to be managed mainly for tourism and administrative purposes, as it is now".
SOURCE: THE GUARDIAN
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