DAR ES SALAAM Business Community has challenged Indian businesses to capitalise on the government’s recognition of the private sector as engine of growth and discovery of huge natural gas reserves to invest in the country.

The Community Chairman, Mr Yogesh Manek, speaking in the city on Tuesday night, said Tanzania was now on the move, welcoming big investments in infrastructure, agriculture and new found wealth in oil and gas.

Mr Manek, who was welcoming a delegation of Indian businesspeople in the country for exhibition of the country’s industrial prowess, said India and Tanzania have strong bilateral relations dating back several decades and that the private sectors should exploit the opportunity.

“The government has agreed that the private sector is indeed the engine of growth, things have changed, the numbers are big now, we are going into big infrastructure projects,” said Manek who is also Executive Chairman of MAC Group of companies.

He said by investing in Tanzania, Indian investors will also exploit the regional market of over 120 million people and several landlocked countries in the southern Africa. Dar es Salaam Business Community is a collection of private company owners and chief executive officers with a membership of Indian High Commissioner to Tanzania, Debnath Shaw.

“Our group has members from various sectors, making it convenient for you to partner with whoever you wish,” Manek noted. Over 100 business leaders and company senior executives from the Asian nation are in the country to stage a twoday exhibition that started at Mwalimu Nyerere Trade Fair grounds along Kilwa road.

Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Director General, Chandrajit Banerjee said Indian business people are interested in Africa in general and particularly in countries like Tanzania whose economies are growing fast. “We are looking forward to working with you,” said Mr Banerjee, the delegation head.

He said Indian has several years of doing business with African countries including Tanzania hence their visit is aimed at further strengthening bilateral trade ties between the two countries.

Bilateral trade between India and Africa stood at 65 billion US dollars, with Tanzania’s share estimated at 1.4 billion US dollars.

Dar es Salaam imports mainly pharmaceutical products, iron, alloy steel, electrical apparatus, motor vehicles, machines and tractors while exports include cashew nuts, sesame, minerals and cotton.