On 1st December 2023, Ambassador Luvanda had a follow-up meeting with Ambassador Mr. Horiuchi Toshihiko, the newly appointed Director General of African Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan. The meeting aimed to introduce each other; and follow up on the outcomes of the Eighth Summit of the Tokyo International Conference on African Development - TICAD 8 held in August 2022, in Tunisia and the Working Visit of the Prime Minister of the United Republic of Tanzania, Hon. Kassim Majaliwa Majaliwa held in September 2022, in Japan.
Ambassador Luvanda began his speech by expressing his gratitude towards the Japanese Government for the diplomatic and fraternal relationship that has been established between Japan and Tanzania since its independence in 1961. He stressed that Tanzania views Japan as a crucial partner in its economic development.
Ambassador Luvanda also extended his appreciation to the Japanese Government for their support in increasing the accessibility of educational opportunities in Japan for Tanzanian citizens. He revealed that Tanzania had received scholarships this year for undergraduate and technical studies at the certificate and diploma level through the MEXT Scholarship Program, which was a significant achievement, considering the limited scholarships that were previously available only for master's and PhD degrees. Ambassador Luvanda credited this outcome to the bilateral talks between Prime Minister of Tanzania, Honorable Kassim Majaliwa Majaliwa, and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, in August and September 2022.
Furthermore, Ambassador Luvanda reminded Ambassador Toshihiko about the pending requests of the Government of Tanzania presented by Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa to Prime Minister Kishida regarding Tanzania call to resume negotiations on tax agreements (Double Taxation Avoidance Agreements - DTAA) and investment protection agreements (Bilateral Investment on Promotion and Protection Agreement - BIPA) between Tanzania and Japan. He reiterated Prime Minister Majaliwa's assuarance to Prime Minister Kishida that Tanzania is ready to resume negotiations to revive the agreements, which have been stalled since 2018.
Additionally, Ambassador Luvanda informed Ambassador Toshihiko about the completion of the Special Leadership Training Program (OSAKA Special Training Program) offered by JICA, which spanned over 22 years since its inception in 2000. He explained that the program has been instrumental in generating new knowledge and ideas for participants by drawing on Japan's experience and using it to enhance Tanzania's leadership policies, especially at the Central Government and Local Government levels. Ambassador Luvanda emphasized the importance of the program and expressed the desire to re-submit a request for the continuation of the program to the Japanese Government for further consideration.
Ambassador Luvanda also highlighted about the potential labor force in Tanzania, in connection to the Japanese market. He informed that Tanzania features one of the world's fastest-growing populations of young people, with over 70 percent of its citizens under 30 years of age. Given the size of this population, he recommended the Japanese Government to consider exploring labor force potential in Tanzania for creation of job opportunities for Tanzanians in Japan.
Ambassador Luvanda concluded his remarks by thanking the Ambassador Luvanda thanked the Japanese Government for their successful implementation of various development projects in Tanzania, including the recently completed Gerezani Bridge in Dar es Salaam. He then requested the Government of Japan to consider concluding the pending projects submitted during TICAD 6&7 and the new ones submitted during TICAD 8.
In response, Ambassador Toshihiko thanked Ambassador Luvanda for his visit and expressed appreciation for the recognition of Japan's contribution to Tanzania's development projects. He further assured Ambassador Luvanda of his unwavering commitment to addressing all the pertinent issues that were deliberated during the meeting by promptly submitting them and following up with the relevant Japanese authorities.