Tanzanian diplomacy activates under Samia Suluhu Hassan

The Tanzanian capital, Dar es Salaam, has seen a major diplomatic movement. The new system of the reference ministry is revived, under President Samia Suluhu Hassan.

Tanzania has seen a flow of diplomatic visits. This context contrasts with the era of nationalism by Magufuli. Although President Suluhu Hassan has left the Tanzanian representative to the UN in place, she has effected a reshuffle at the national level. The new Minister of Foreign Affairs, Liberata Mulamula, is part of the president's inner circle. Indeed, Mulamula was Tanzanian ambassador to the United States when Samia Hassan was Minister of State for Union Affairs. The new Minister of Foreign Affairs therefore owes her rise in Tanzanian diplomacy to the president.

So, under the new diplomatic administration in Tanzania, the diplomatic movement has intensified. British Under Secretary of State for Africa James Duddridge visited Tanzania on May 11. This is the first British diplomatic visit to Tanzania since 2019. And it would not be a simple courtesy visit, Duddridge is said to have held meetings with 6 ministers. On the agenda: funding for bilateral projects between Tanzania and Great Britain. The British government had decided to close or cut the budgets of 15 Tanzanian companies. Duddridge would have gone to Tanzania to remedy it. In addition to the British delegation, the Tanzanian diplomacy received five letters of credence from foreign diplomats. In this case, that of the new Turkish ambassador Mehmet Güllüoglu.

Ambassador Dr. Mehmet Güllüoğlu has presented today (15 April) a copy of his credentials to HE Liberata Mulamula, Minister for Foreign Affairs and East African Cooperation of the United Republic of Tanzania. pic.twitter.com/uM2jMusg0R

- Turkey in Tanzania (@TCDARSSELAMBE) April 15, 2021

And it's not over

The Ankara heavyweight was, among other things, the director of the Turkish Red Crescent. Also, he occupied the management of AFAD of Turkey, the disaster and emergency management agency. He has worked closely with several NGOs since the start of the Syrian war, and in several African countries. Güllüoglu was also responsible for the allocation of humanitarian aid in Africa. In addition, it had deployed a flat-rate assistance program for young Tanzanian graduates.

Among the ambassadors who have recently taken up their posts in Tanzania are also Marco Lombardi from Italy and Ricardo Mtumbuida from Mozambique. The latter, a former Mozambican intelligence leader, would be tasked with ensuring the collaboration of Samia Suluhu in the civil war file. More precisely, Cabo Delgado, on the border between Mozambique and Tanzania, is a field of war. Moreover, the first salvo of the european army has already set foot in Mozambique. Hundreds of Portuguese “trainers” were deployed for the field study.

However, Tanzania has never been involved in the conflict between the Mozambican state and its nemesis. On the one hand, the insurgents of the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) hold the North and South part of Cabo Delgado. And the terrorists of Ansar al-Sunna, affiliated with Daesh, have recently invaded the eastern part of the region.

Finally, Tanzanian Minister Mulamula also received her South African counterpart Naledi Pandor. Other official visits to the Tanzanian ministry followed. Namely that of Chinese Ambassador Wang Ke, Russian Ambassador Yuri Popov, as well as Charles Karamba from Rwanda. A visit by Moroccan diplomat Nezha Alaoui M'hammdi is also scheduled in the coming days. Otherwise, according to Africa Intelligence, Tanzania is surfing on a promise of financing from the World Bank, to the tune of 1,15 billion dollars.