Tanzanian Ambassador to China Omar R. Mapuri [Maverick Chen / China.org.cn]

Beijing Review:

How will Tanzania balance economic development and environmental protection?

The issue of balancing economic development and environmental protection has been given due consideration and accommodation in Tanzania's first Five-Year Plan of implementation of the National Vision 2025.

Tanzania also has in place environmental policies and legislation that make it mandatory to do an environmental impact analysis before any development project is undertaken.

Beijing Review: What is the difference between previous and current Sino-Tanzanian economic and technological cooperation?

The major difference is basically of modality, whereby our economic cooperation is now framed within the wider China-Africa cooperation under the coordination of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation. Also, the scope and stature of technological cooperation is shaped by the very technological advancement itself. The basic spirit underlying technological cooperation is technology transfer through investment projects.

Beijing Review: What is your opinion of foreign investment to Africa?

Apart from stimulating economic growth, foreign investment to Africa avails an opportunity for the continent to acquire new technologies through technology transfer. This is important in bridging the technological gap existing between Africa and the rest of the world.

Beijing Review: What are the cultural and educational exchanges between China and Tanzania in recent years?

Tanzania has continued to benefit from Chinese scholarships in different fields of study and offering a few scholarships to Chinese students learning Swahili in Tanzania. Institutional exchanges are also taking shape with Mianyang University of Sichuan Province seeking to establish cooperation with the State University of Zanzibar.

On the culture side, China has continued to train Tanzanian acrobats while exchanges of cultural groups between the two countries have continued almost on an annual basis.