THE Tanzania Ports Authority (TPA) took its raising awareness initiative to the Mbeya City Expo 2023 in a continuous effort to educate the public about the services they offer.
Several exhibitors from within and outside the country sent representatives to the expo organised by the Tanzania Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture (TCCIA)- Mbeya Region in collaboration with the Mbeya Regional office.
The TPA team, led by Public Relations and Communication Manager, Nicodemus Mushi, used the fair to promote various port services offered by the Authority, including cargo handling services.
Mr Mushi underlined the issues that people were more interested to know when they visited their pavilion, top being importing vehicles, cargo and transportation of Sulphur from abroad until it arrives in the country.
“The majority of visitors expressed their desire to learn how to make use of the opportunities for shipping goods along Lake Nyasa’s shores to Tanzania’s neighbours Zambia and Malawi through the ports in the regions of Mbeya, Njombe and Ruvuma,” he said.
According to Mr Mushi, TPA and TCCIA have a solid working relationship and have frequently worked together to advance business, investment and industrial operations in the maritime transportation sector.
“TPA and TCCIA institutions are important stakeholders in achieving the growth of the industrial and entrepreneurial sector where raw materials and manufactured goods are transported through our ports before reaching the end users,” said Mr Mushi.
He stated that their partnership will continue as they collaborated to expand their commitment to serve the public and the economic development of the country.
Mr Mushi said that TPA supports the exhibition because the Southern Highlands is a vital connection for port activities involving Tanzania and the neighbouring nations of Zambia, Malawi, Congo DRC and Zimbabwe. The theme of the exhibition was “Southern Highlands, a Wealthy Destination for Trade and Investment.”
In terms of road transport, he stated that a significant step towards connecting the country has been taken and that the government, through TPA, has begun to undertake a vital project for the development of Mbamba Bay Port in Ruvuma Region, which will serve as an essential transport link between Tanzania and Malawi.
“The port of Mbamba Bay will be an important driver of the Southern market, increasing cargo and efficiency at Mtwara’s port. Cargo from Mtwara Port will be transported by road to Mbamba Bay Port, which has the shortest distance and the lowest cost for transferring cargo to Malawi,” stated Mushi.
The port’s construction will begin in the fiscal year 2023/2024, where the procurement process to find a contractor is ongoing and compensation payments to people who were relocated to complete the construction have been made as they are the final steps towards the start of the project, which will take 24 months to complete, according to Mr Mushi.
The expo that took place from 10-15 May, this year attracted more than 100,000 visitors from all over the world and exhibitors of various agricultural products, industrial products and other services from over 10 countries, including Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries.
The Rungwe District Commissioner, Jafar Haniu, who represented the Mbeya Regional Commissioner, thanked all participating institutions, including TPA, for the success of the event, which was the first of its kind in the Mbeya Region.
“The Mbeya Regional Authority extends its heartfelt congratulations to TCCIA and the event sponsors who have enabled these exhibitions to take place with such great efficiency because they are open exhibitions with no admission, thus providing an opportunity for all groups in the community to participate freely and benefit from education provided by the participants about their products and services,” Mr Haniu said.
According to Dr Rangarirai Chikwizo, the head of the Chancery Embassy of Zimbabwe in Tanzania, Tanzanian ports contribute significantly to the economic development of Zimbabwe and the entire African continent by exporting products such as sea products, natural resources and minerals to international markets, while various products from European and Asian countries entre African markets through Tanzanian ports, particularly the main port of Dar es Salaam.
Last month, Zimbabwean traders also lauded the Dar es Salaam port for being the safest and providing the best services to its customers.
The commendations were made at the 63rd Zimbabwe International Trade Fair (ZITF) by several visitors and traders to the Tanzania Ports Authority pavilion, who expressed their appreciation for the port’s security efforts.
Separately, they stated that because there was no longer a bad culture of people stealing some of the devices in imported vehicles, something that used to cause friction between agents and clients, traders from Zimbabwe were now comfortable choosing the Dar es Salaam port.
The Port of Dar es Salaam also handles cargo from Tanzania’s neighbours, including Rwanda, Burundi, Uganda, Malawi, Zambia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Zimbabwe, a new market that is expanding quickly.
The TPA with the government’s helping hand has in the past two years succeeded to transform port operations and enhanced efficiency.
There has been a massive improvement in port infrastructure, acquisition and use of modern cargo handling equipment and technologies, safety and security, while considerable measures have been taken to market the country’s ports with the ultimate goal of multiplying volumes of cargo passing through Tanzania’s ports.