AfricaPress-Tanzania: PRESIDENT John Magufuli says the government decided not to close its borders but keep them open for humanitarian reasons, as closing them would gravely hurt land-locked countries that are dependent on its ports, especially the Dar es Salaam terminal, for importing and exporting goods.
In his message after attending Good Friday prayers at Kilimani Catholic Parish in Chato, Geita Region, President Magufuli said eight countries depended on Tanzania’s ports for handling their imports and exports.
According to President Magufuli, terminals such as Dar es Salaam harbour were crucial for the country’s economy, adding that closing borders would mean shutting down the larger part of operations, given the huge amount of transit cargo destined for land-locked countries they handle.
Land-locked countries that use Dar es Salaam Port services for import and exports are DR Congo, Malawi, Zambia, Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda, South Sudan, Zimbabwe and some parts of Mozambique and Comoro.
He also said currently there are mega projects under implementation by the government, most of which depend on ports to receive equipment and material.
Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) and Mwalimu Nyerere Hydro Power projects are among the undertakings that depend on ports to receive equipment.
The country also imports other necessities such as drugs and oil. In his message, President Magufuli urged the public to engage in crop production to protect the nation from likely food shortage.
“Because of the impact of coronavirus outbreak, the world is likely to be adversely impacted, there is a possibility that we could experience food shortages as a result,” he said.
Many Christians around the world observe Good Friday on the Friday before Easter Sunday. It commemorates Jesus Christ’s passion, crucifixion, and death, which is told in the Christian Bible.
Good Friday commemorates Jesus’ death on the cross.
President Magufuli said so far the number of Tanzanians who have been infected with coronavirus is 32, five of whom have recovered, three have died and about 90 per cent of those infected are in good health.
In his message, Dr Magufuli thanked Father Innocent Sanga for a sermon that reminded Christians that the cross represents redemption and death of Jesus Christ and that through the cross God will save the world against various disasters, including coronavirus.
He urged all Tanzanians to continue to pray to God to save the world from the pandemic.
On 7th April 2020, the Southern African Development Community (SADC) passed a resolution that warrants undisrupted flow of essential goods across the region throughout the COVID-19 outbreak.
According to Minister for Foreign Affairs and East African Cooperation Prof Palamagamba Kabudi, proper logistics will be put in place to enable smooth flow of essential goods such as medical supplies, food, protective gears, spares, agricultural inputs, fuel, as well as food processing equipment whilst ensuring that the pandemic doesn’t spread further.
With countries increasingly resorting to lockdown to curb the spread of the deadly virus, the regional bloc has set a harmonised mechanism that allows ports within the region to continue transporting essential goods to land-locked members.
The move is aimed at enabling land-linked countries in the SADC region to have access to vital goods and commodities to ease the socio-economic impact of the contagion, which has so far spread to over 200 territories.
