On 17 December 2025, H.E. Anderson Mutatembwa paid a courtesy visit to the Chairman and CEO of the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO), Mr. Norihiko Ishiguro, at JETRO Headquarters in Tokyo. Also, in attendance were Mr. Takafumi Suzuki, Executive Vice President of JETRO; Mr. Seki Takao, Senior Director for Global Strategy (Africa), Planning Department of JETRO; Mr. Kajiwara Hiromu, Advisor for Global Strategy (Africa) at JETRO; and Ms. Edna Dioniz Chuku, Counsellor for Economic Affairs at the Embassy of the United Republic of Tanzania in Japan. The meeting provided an opportunity to reaffirm the strong and growing partnership between Tanzania and JETRO in promoting trade, investment, and private sector development. 

H.E. Mutatembwa expressed his sincere appreciation to JETRO for its continued support to Tanzania, including its active participation in the Tanzania Trade, Investment and Tourism Forum held in Osaka on 26 May 2025, on the sidelines of EXPO 2025 Osaka; its engagement in the ICT Seminar organized in Tokyo in October 2025 as part of Tanzania’s ICT thematic activities during EXPO 2025 Osaka; and its role in promoting Tanzania’s flagship exhibitions, notably the Dar es Salaam International Trade Fair (Saba Saba) and the Tanzania Farmers’ Day (Nanenane). He further commended JETRO’s contribution to enhancing Tanzania’s visibility among Japanese companies and welcomed the appointment of Mr. Kazufumi TANAKA, a former JETRO official, as Special Investment Advisor based at the Tanzania Investment and Special Economic Zones Authority (TISEZA), noting that his presence would further facilitate Japanese investment in Tanzania.

Discussions also focused on strengthening collaboration in organizing business forums, investment seminars, and business missions of Japanese companies to Tanzania, particularly in priority sectors such as agribusiness, agro-processing, manufacturing, and value addition. H.E. Mutatembwa highlighted Tanzania’s strategic location and access to a combined EAC and SADC market of approximately 500 million people, as well as the significant potential to address the existing trade imbalance through enhanced value addition and agricultural commercialization.

Mr. Ishiguro reaffirmed JETRO’s commitment to supporting Tanzania through business matching, investment promotion, and platforms such as J-Bridge and e-Venue, which facilitate partnerships between Japanese and foreign companies. He further noted the growing momentum among Japanese businesses to invest in Africa following TICAD 9 and emphasized that Tanzania remains a country of strong interest for future business missions. In this regard, he informed that JETRO is currently preparing a business mission to Africa planned for next year, and that Tanzania would be considered among the potential destination countries. He also underscored the importance of continued communication and follow-up with the relevant departments within JETRO to facilitate further engagement.

Both sides reaffirmed their commitment to further strengthening Tanzania–Japan economic cooperation and agreed to continue close engagement in advancing mutually beneficial trade and investment opportunities.