Minister for Foreign Affairs meets Prime Minister of Tanzania

An Roinn Gnóthaí Eachtracha Preas Ráiteas

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Minister for Foreign Affairs meets Prime Minister of Tanzania

The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Micheál Martin TD today met with Prime Minister Mizengo Peter Pinda of Tanzania during the Prime Minister’s official visit to Ireland.

Speaking following the meeting, Minister Martin said:

"I was delighted to meet with Prime Minister Pinda on his first visit to Ireland as Prime Minister. Ireland’s development partnership with Tanzania goes back over a quarter of a century. We have had a most useful meeting today, at which we discussed a broad range of topics including the important contribution which Ireland’s development aid programme makes to Tanzania’s economy and the critical role which Tanzania, as a stable and peaceful country, plays in the eastern Africa region.

We spoke about continued cooperation in a number of priority areas for Tanzania, in which Ireland is already actively involved, notably education, local government reform and agriculture. The Prime Minister expressed his gratitude to the people of Ireland for their continued commitment to the development of Tanzania.

Our meeting took place against a backdrop of crisis and conflict among some of Tanzania’s neighbours. I raised with Prime Minister Pinda my serious concerns, and those of the Irish people, regarding the ongoing crisis in Zimbabwe, in particular as regards the cholera epidemic and the continued imprisonment of political prisoners. We agreed on the need to see real democratic change with the appointment of the new power-sharing government. Prime Minister Pinda made clear that Tanzania shares our concerns and will continue to press Mr. Mugabe to honour his commitments.

I also raised the prospects for lasting peace in the Democratic Republic of Congo and had the opportunity to hear the Prime Minister’s views on the importance of regional structures to long-term solutions in this region.

I also congratulated the Prime Minister on Tanzania’s very successful chairing of the African Union, which concluded earlier this month.

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26 February 2009

Press Office