On the 21st July José Manuel Barroso, President of the European Commission, and Andris Piebalgs, European Commissioner for Development, visited Tanzania on a three day visit for the signing of six new financing agreements, worth €126.5 million, and to inspect various development projects financed by European Union (EU).The agreements, to which Andris Piebalgs and Dr William Mgimwa, the Tanzanian Minister for Finance, were the signatories, were signed at the State House in Dar es Salaam during a ceremony which was witnessed by President Jakaya Kikwete and José Manuel Barroso. This latest tranche of aid from the European Union (EU) will fund six new development programmes which will improve access to water and sanitation, strengthen the road transport sector and rural road infrastructure and aid good governance and social accountability. As a result 500,000 people will have access to drinking water, 200 km of roads will be upgraded and sanitation infrastructure and services will be improved for 140,000 Tanzanians.

Prior to the visit President Barroso stated: "Tanzania has become one of the EU's main partners in Africa, and is also playing an increasingly important role in the stability of the whole region. We now want to deepen our regular political dialogue with Tanzania and further increase our cooperation in areas like energy, security, anti-piracy, counter-terrorism or migration; issues which are of concern both for Africa and the European Union.  I am also pleased to further increase our development cooperation by launching new programmes that will encourage inclusive growth and help us to make even more of a difference in the fight against poverty." (IP/12/811) In a speech at the ceremony President Jakaya Kikwete praised the EU for its continued support to Tanzania saying, "We are committed to increase cooperation and dialogue between our two sides” and “The EU is one of our key development partners both in terms of magnitude of financial support and commitment to our development initiatives.” (Tanzania Daily News)

Although Tanzania’s economy has grown over the past decade (averaging 6-7% GDP) the country remains one of the poorest in the world with a sizeable proportion of its inhabitants living below the poverty line of $1.25/day. It is for this reason that the EU has been supporting Tanzania financially through aid and development programmes. As a consequence, for the period from 2007 to 2013, Tanzania has “benefited from an initial allocation of €555 million (part of the 10th European Development Fund) as well as an additional €51.5 million on water under the MDG [Millennium Development Goals] initiative. More than half of the funding is delivered through budget support to the government. The focus of the EU cooperation is on infrastructure and on trade and regional integration, particularly on agriculture. Furthermore, another €50 million are provided for projects in energy, environment and supporting civil society.” (MEMO/12/584)

One of the EU financed projects José Manuel Barroso and his delegation will visit is the Comprehensive Community Based Rehabilitation in Tanzania (CCBRT) hospital in Dar es Salaam city. The CCBRT is a locally registered non-governmental organisation, established in 1994, which is now the largest indigenous provider of disability and rehabilitation services in the Tanzania. During their official visit to Tanzania, José Manuel Barroso and his delegation are also expected to travel to the Mbeya Region, which lies in the south western corner of Tanzania, close to the border with Malawi. While there José Manuel Barroso will visit the Swaya project site which will be inaugurated by him. The Swaya project, which is a new water treatment facility that will produce drinking water for distribution to Mbeya city benefiting 140,000 people and several industries, was constructed under the Mbeya Urban Water Supply and Sanitation project, which will reach 490,000 people in total.

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