CHATO, Tanzania
Tanzania on Monday pardoned hundreds of convicted migrants from Ethiopia who sneaked into the country on their way to South Africa on different occasions.
Speaking to reporters after talks with his
Ethiopian counterpart Sahle-Work Zewde during her one-day visit to Tanzania on
Monday at the state lodge in Chato, northern Tanzania, Tanzanian President John
Magufuli said a total of 1,789 Ethiopians will be pardoned as a goodwill
gesture to strengthen bilateral ties.
“We have about 1,789 prisoners who illegally
entered our country from Ethiopia. They will be released unconditionally,” said
Magufuli.
The east African country has for decade’s
intercepted illegal immigrants from Ethiopia and Somalia who crossed into the country
illegally on their way to South Africa.
Tanzania is a major transit route for migrants,
used by human traffickers to ferry Ethiopians and Somalis to South Africa and
Europe.
In December last year, officials from
Tanzania’s Ministry of Home Affairs said the migrants, mostly young people in
their early 20’s, often pay traffickers about $1,000 to $2,000 to reach South
Africa. Some traffickers have safe houses and contacts in Tanzania and Malawi
where the migrants are kept on transit before reaching their final
destinations, the officials said.
According to President Magufuli the visit is aimed at consolidating the existing diplomatic relations between Tanzania and Ethiopia through exploring new areas of cooperation, including trade and investment.
“I have requested the Ethiopian president to
let Tanzanian investors in the livestock sector to invest in Ethiopia and learn
from their counterparts,” he said.
Tanzania is one of the six
countries that signed the Cooperative Framework Agreement (CFA), an initiative
that outlines principles, rights and obligations for cooperative management and
development of the Nile Basin water resources.
CFA intends to replace the
bilateral cooperation agreements established by a fair pact for the riverside
states, but only Ethiopia, Rwanda and Tanzania have ratified it, and to enter
into force, it must be certified by at least six nations.
This treaty does not bind
Egypt nor Sudan, precisely the states that are along with Ethiopia discussing
over the regulation of the Nile River, especially since 2011, when the
construction of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam began.
On her part, President Sahle-Work Zewde said
she had come to congratulate the president on his re-election and they have
agreed to establish cooperation in new areas of trade and investment.
Earlier, Tanzania Minister for Foreign Affairs and East African Cooperation Palamagamba Kabudi told reporters in northern Chato district that Tanzania will seize the opportunity to promote leather industry as well as woo investors from Ethiopia to bolster the sector. - Africa
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