Saudi Arabia deepens bonds with Tanzania

DAR ES SALAAM:IT is authentic that celebrating diplomacy is not just about parties and toasts, it is about action.

And over the weekend in Dar es Salaam, as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia marked its 45th National Day, where the Ambassador to Tanzania, Yahya Ahmed Okeish, made it abundantly clear that Saudi Arabia’s friendship with Tanzania is more than ceremonial.

Under his stewardship, the relationship is being strengthened with concrete cooperation across economic, developmental, investment, health and cultural fields.

Ambassador Okeish used the platform not only to celebrate the history of bilateral relations but to reaffirm and outline new fronts of cooperation.

The theme for this year’s Saudi National Day- “Our pride is in our nature” was more than a slogan; it captured the essence of how Saudi Arabia wishes to engage with Tanzania: Natural, respectful and developmental.

Speaking at the event, which brought together ambassadors, government officials, the business community and Minister of State Prof Kitila Mkumbo (from the President’s Office for Planning and Investment, the chief guest), Ambassador Okeish emphasised that his country remains committed to deepening cooperation with Tanzania in all sectors: Economy, investment, development and culture.

“I am confident that the coming phase will witness remarkable leaps in our bilateral relations under the wise leadership of both our nations,” he asserted, underlining Saudi Arabia’s belief in partnerships built for the long haul.

Diplomacy with a heart: As part of its commitment to community engagement, Saudi Arabia, via its embassy in Tanzania, organised several social programmes this year.

Among them: A Mbezi Beach cleanup campaign, an open day for orphanage children and other people‑to‑people programmes that show that cooperation isn’t just between governments but between citizens.

These programmes are small gestures, but they carry symbolic weight: Shared environment, care and humanity.

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Health, relief and humanitarian action Saudi Arabia’s investment in the health sector in Tanzania is one of the more tangible outcomes of this bilateral friendship.

Under the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Centre (KSrelief), the Kingdom has supported relief and development projects including a volunteer medical mission in which teams performed many heart surgeries for Tanzanian children.

On that front, during a recent paediatric heart surgery camp, the Jakaya Kikwete Cardiac Institute (JKCI) – in partnership with KSrelief – treated 30 children with various heart conditions, saving lives and significant expenses for families.

Ongoing support via medical equipment, surgical teams and collaborations aimed at building local capacity so Tanzanian doctors gain experience and operate.

Through these efforts, not only are more lives saved, but local medical institutions are strengthened. Economic, trade and investment momentum It is not all hospitals and heart surgeries.

The trade figures and investment opportunities between Saudi Arabia and Tanzania indicate that both sides see tangible mutual benefit. For example, in 2023, bilateral trade passed 1.4 billion US Dollars.

There have been business forums in Riyadh and in Dar es Salaam, where the two governments announced the formation of a Joint Business Council designed to streamline, encourage and escalate trade and investment flows.

Tanzania’s exports to Saudi Arabia and imports from the Kingdom have been growing; agriculture, fisheries and industrial goods all feature.

Meanwhile, Saudi investors have shown interest in sectors including energy solutions, food security, infrastructure, cultural exchange and others.

Ambassador Okeish also emphasised that recent projects align with President Samia Suluhu Hassan’s priorities – especially in food security and energy.

A Saudi team from the “supporting energy solutions for food security” initiative recently visited Dar es Salaam as preliminary steps to launch programmes tailored for Tanzania’s needs.

(As always, there is a serious side to diplomacy: Ensuring that policy aligns, projects are well‑designed and aid doesn’t merely become aid‑dependence.) Regional and global responsibility Saudi Arabia, through its envoy, also made clear that its commitment to cooperation goes beyond strictly bilateral interests.

On the regional and international stage, the Kingdom remains dedicated to promoting peace, stability and humanitarian relief.

Tanzania, for its part, has been recognised as a partner in this and is seen as a stable, cooperative state in East Africa with growing potential.

Minister Prof Kitila Mkumbo, speaking at the celebration, thanked Saudi Arabia for its multi‑sectoral support especially in health. He highlighted the impact JKCI has had: Surgeries conducted, children helped.

Likewise, he pointed to trade flows: In the previous year Tanzania exported goods worth over 32bn/- to Saudi Arabia and imported goods worth about 1.4tr/-.

These numbers reflect both imbalance (imports being much larger) and opportunity for Tanzania to increase its exports, diversify products and add value at home. No partnership is perfect without challenges.

Among the things for both governments and stakeholders to watch in the coming period, should include ensuring that investment and trade are fair, not just large in headline amount.

That also guaranteeing that Tanzanian businesses and workers benefit, that technology is shared and that local capacity is built. Sustaining health programmes so that they don’t stop when the spotlight moves elsewhere. Medical missions are helpful, but long‑term strengthening of local health infrastructure must continue.

Energy and food security projects must be designed in ways that are environmentally sustainable, socially inclusive and aligned with Tanzania’s national strategies. Cultural cooperation should not be an afterthought.

People‑to‑people contacts, humanitarian gestures, cultural exchange – these build trust and understanding beyond what trade or aid alone can achieve.

Let us not pretend diplomacy is glamorous 24/7, when work like the Mbezi beach cleanup or heart surgery camps complement high‑level trade and investment deals, that is when diplomacy actually works.

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To watchers of foreign policy: It is not about who gives the biggest aid envelope or flies in fancy guests; it is about follow‑through, community impact, respect and mutual advancement.

As Saudi Arabia marks its 45th National Day, it appears Tanzania and Saudi Arabia are deepening their roots together in trade, in compassion, in health and in shared prosperity.

Ambassador Yahya Ahmed Okeish’s pledges are not empty; many have already translated into lives saved, roads improved, investments made and hearts touched.

If these efforts continue with transparency, with local involvement and with respect for each country’s stakeholders, then the coming years could indeed witness “remarkable leaps” in bilateral relations.

And that benefits everyone the governments, investors, doctors and ordinary Tanzanian family hoping for better healthcare, steady employment and dignified trade.

Because at the end of the day, this is diplomacy that works: When national pride isn’t just about parades, but about clean beaches, healthy children, trade that lifts lives and cultural bridges that endure.