Angela Normino
VICE-PRESIDENT Dr Philip Mpango yesterday said Tanzania and Cuba have heightened collaboration in various priority areas including agriculture, tourism, education and health in cherishing a historic diplomatic cooperation spanning over six decades.
“In our discussion, we have agreed to revitalise the working of the Joint Permanent Commission (JPC),” Dr Mpango said, adding that Cuba has agreed to increase the number of medical personnel that are generously assigned to support both Tanzania Mainland and Zanzibar.
He made the statement yesterday at the joint press conference which was held at State House in Dar es Salaam, shortly after having a bilateral discussion at the country’s top office with the Cuba Vice-President, Mr Salvador Mesa, who is in Tanzania for a three-day working visit.
Prior to the joint press conference, the two nations signed two Memorandum of Understanding (MoUs) involving the Sokoine University of Agriculture’s (SUA) and Cuba’s University of Artemisa Diaz Gonzalez, as well as the Tanzania Medical Department Authority’s (TMDA) with the Cuba’s Centre for State Control of Medicines and Medical Devices, all together elevating cooperation in education and health transformation.
Highlighting the MoUs, Dr Mpango said they will boost the collaboration of the aforementioned entities, including TMDA and Cuba’s Centre for State Control of Medicines and Medical Devices through sharing of medical skills, personnel and technologies.
Furthermore, he said they agreed to diversify the operation of the Tanzania Biotech Products Limited (TBPL) venturing into manufacturing biolarvicide to begin producing new ten types of biotechnologies and agricultural products. The aim is to cater to the East and Southern African countries including Kenya and Angola.
The TBPL is the only factory producing biolarvicide in Africa. It is located in Kibaha District, Coast Region and is operated by Tanzania in collaboration with Cuba. This initiative is described as among the signals of a well-rooted health diplomacy between the two nations.
Dr Mpango commended the Cuban Vice-President, Mr Mesa for visiting Tanzania, saying the visit has facilitated a fruitful bilateral talk in key priority areas including tourism, agriculture, education and health to strengthen ties.
He said the current splendid diplomatic relation between the two countries was established by the founding fathers of the two nations, Mwalimu Julius Nyerere for Tanzania and Fidel Casto in Cuba in the 1960s.
To strengthen social ties, he said this year Cuba will organise a cultural conference for promoting Kiswahili beyond its borders to various countries in Latin America. Dr Mpango said Tanzania is ready to provide the utmost support to bring the desired outcome of promoting the language and its attached culture.
Mr Mpango said Tanzania will continue collaborating with Cuba by voicing up against the unfair economic blockade imposed on it by some neighbouring countries which undermines its economic well-being, hinting that so far Cuba faces fuel and financial crisis.
For his part, Cuban Vice-President, Mr Mesa commended Tanzania’s warm reception embedded in exemplary hospitality, which led to constructive discussion for maximising the exploitation of potential opportunities available between the countries.
Mr Mesa said Cuba will collaborate with Tanzania to ensure all set targets underlined by MoUs including sharing of medical personnel and equipment are achieved so that the two nations can grow together in all endeavours.
He appreciated Tanzania for continuing to voice up against all unfair sanctions imposed on Cuba, saying Tanzania’s dedication to standing with them is an expression of true friendship.
Globally, Tanzania and Cuba have been collaborating by showcasing similar stances in all matters of mutual interest as both of them are member states of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) and the Group of 77 (G77) plus China supporting economic justice and development of democracy in the United Nations (UN).
Meanwhile, on a different occasion Dr Tulia Ackson, the Speaker of the National Assembly met and held talks with Mr Valdes Mesa, at the Parliament Annex yesterday in Dar es Salaam.
Among other things, they discussed the continuation of the longstanding bilateral cooperation in various areas, including diplomacy, education, the health sector, tourism, and the military.
Regarding parliamentary relations, they both discussed the best ways to collaborate in exchanging experiences in communication technology, with a focus on the widely emerging field of artificial (AI) intelligence worldwide.
In another development, the Cuban Vice-President, Mr Mesa also visited the Mwalimu Nyerere Foundation, whereby he used the podium to call upon citizens to utilise the socialism foundation built by the founding father of the two nations, to dive into other economic sectors including trade and investment.
He emphasised on the importance of unity among citizens to attain inclusive social transformation.
For his part, Mwalimu Nyerere Foundation’s Managing Director, Mr Joseph Butiku said the foundation has been advocating for equitable sustainable development of nations in contributing to realise people centred-development as Mwalimu Nyerere emphasised during his lifetime.
