Tanzania, 2010

Let me

begin by congratulating you, Sir, on your well-deserved

election to preside over the sixty-fifth session of the

General Assembly. I assure you of Tanzania’s full

support and cooperation. I also thank and congratulate

your predecessor, His Excellency Mr. Abdussalam Treki,

for his leadership and accomplishments.

Having just concluded a successful summit on the

Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), I would like

to congratulate the Secretary-General, His Excellency

Mr. Ban Ki-moon, for his leadership, dedication and

commitment to the work of the Organization and for

the new momentum that he is bringing towards the

achievement of the MDGs. Once again, we welcome

his Global Strategy for Women’s and Children’s Health

and urge the international community to render the

necessary support for its implementation.

We emphasize the importance of national

leadership and global partnership in meeting the

MDGs. Tanzania will do its part. We call on all

partners to do their part, as stipulated under MDG 8.

One such successful partnership is the collective efforts

of the African leadership through the African Leaders

Malaria Alliance (ALMA), chaired by His Excellency

Mr. Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete, President of the United

Republic of Tanzania. Our focus within ALMA is on

ensuring that we attain the 2010 targets for universal

coverage of appropriate malaria prevention, diagnosis

and treatment interventions. We are confident that, if

the requested support is realized, we can attain that

target. For that reason, we ask for the full and timely

replenishment of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS,

Tuberculosis and Malaria.

We all know that the Millennium Development

Goals will not be attained without sustained economic

growth and sustainable development. For Tanzania,

where the vast majority of the people depend on

agriculture for their incomes and livelihoods, poverty

cannot be alleviated without addressing the challenges

of production, productivity and markets in the

agricultural sector.

Recognizing that, Tanzania has developed a

programme known as Kilimo Kwanza, which translates

as “Agriculture First”, aimed at transforming and

modernizing the agricultural sector. A key component

of the programme is the improvement of infrastructure,

especially irrigation systems, transport and energy.

However, the major challenge for us remains how to

finance the huge investment gap in infrastructure. That

gap cannot be filled by the public sector alone. For that

reason, the participation of the private sector is

imperative.

Tanzania has undertaken a number of reforms to

create an environment conducive to private sector

investment. We have created the requisite legal,

regulatory and institutional framework to attract both

local and foreign private investment in infrastructure

development. We now have a public-private

partnership policy in place, and Parliament enacted a

bill on such partnerships in June.

Through a presidential circular, Tanzania also

established the Tanzania National Business Council as

an institution to provide a forum for public-private

sector dialogue. The Business Council brings together

public and private sectors with a view to reaching

consensus and mutual understanding on strategic issues

relating to the efficient management of resources in the

promotion of socio-economic development in

Tanzania. The Council’s Chairperson is the President

of the United Republic of Tanzania.

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The Government of the United Republic of

Tanzania would like to reaffirm its commitment to

democratic good governance, the rule of law and

respect for human rights. The recent peaceful

referendum in Zanzibar produced a new political

dispensation that provides for a Government of

national unity whichever party wins the elections. That

should now stabilize Zanzibar and strengthen the

democratic ideals that we all aspire to as Tanzania

prepares for its general elections, scheduled for

31 October. As in previous elections, we will do

everything in our power to ensure that these are

peaceful, free and fair. We thank all partners that,

bilaterally or through the United Nations system, are

strengthening our capacity to realize that goal.

Tanzania is pleased that Africa has continued to

play a leading role in conflict prevention, management

and resolution, as well as in entrenching principles of

good governance. Increasingly, more and more African

countries are holding free, fair and peaceful elections,

followed by smooth transitions. The peaceful

referendum in Kenya that paved the way for a new

Constitution demonstrates the will of African countries

to take charge of their own destinies. That is a matter

of great satisfaction to us, and we commend the people

and leadership of Kenya for that important

achievement.

We thank and commend all who continue to work

hard for a political solution to the situation in Darfur

that will lead to durable peace and address the

humanitarian situation. We are concerned about

periodic eruptions of violence, and we call on all sides

in Darfur to join the peace process. In the meantime,

we commend the African Union-United Nations Hybrid

Operation in Darfur (UNAMID) for the good work that

it continues to do under very difficult conditions. We

therefore urge the international community to give

UNAMID all the support that it needs.

We note the preparations and progress towards

the holding of a referendum in Southern Sudan early

next year. We call on all parties to do everything in

their power to keep to the timetable for that

referendum. The referendum must be peaceful, free and

fair, and the wishes of the people of Southern Sudan

must be respected. We commend the Secretary-General

for his initiatives to facilitate that process, including

his decision to appoint a panel of eminent persons,

headed by His Excellency Mr. Benjamin Mkapa, the

former President of the United Republic of Tanzania, to

monitor the process. We pledge Tanzania’s full support

to Mr. Mkapa and his team for the successful

accomplishment of the task ahead of them. We urge all

parties to cooperate with the team, and we call upon

the international community to provide the requisite

support for the successful holding of the referendum

and the peaceful management of its outcome.

Tanzania will continue to play its role in ensuring

lasting peace and stability in Africa and elsewhere.

That includes contributing to United Nations

peacekeeping operations and missions in Africa and

elsewhere, including those we have deployed in Darfur

and Lebanon.

We are concerned about the worsening political,

humanitarian, social and security situation in Somalia,

which threatens the whole region and, ultimately, the

world. Recently, we witnessed terrorist bombings in

Uganda by the group Al-Shabaab, which caused the

loss of many innocent lives and the destruction of

property. Having been victim to similar attacks in

Dar es Salaam in 1998, Tanzania condemns that

barbaric attack in the strongest terms and expresses

solidarity with and support for Uganda and other

neighbours in tracking down and prosecuting those

involved.

We highly commend Uganda and Burundi for

contributing peacekeeping troops in Somalia under the

African Union Mission to Somalia (AMISOM). We

further thank all those African countries that have

committed to providing additional troops to AMISOM.

We ask the international community to provide the

support needed to make that deployment possible and

timely. However, the problem of Somalia cannot be left

to Africans alone. In that regard, the Security Council

must be more engaged and supportive in finding a

lasting solution to Somalia.

Tanzania is concerned about the continued

increase in piracy activities in the Gulf of Aden and the

Indian Ocean, which are now spreading beyond the

coast of Somalia. The piracy issue cannot be resolved

on the seas alone or without addressing the causal

factors on land. A coordinated, coherent,

comprehensive and integrated response that includes

political, military, financial and legal support is

needed. The United Nations and the international

community should work closely with the African

Union, members of the Intergovernmental Authority on

Development and other neighbouring States to

11 10-55122

suppress acts of piracy, as well as to apprehend and

prosecute those who commit that crime.

In the United Republic of Tanzania, we recently

amended the criminal code to allow our courts to

prosecute suspected pirates under universal

jurisdiction. We call on the international community to

enhance the prosecution and custodial capacities of

countries, such as ours, that apprehend and prosecute

pirates. The international community must also agree

to share post-prosecution custodial responsibilities

with the affected States. Tanzania has also offered to

train 1,000 Somali soldiers in Tanzania in the firm

belief that, in the final analysis, peace and security in

Somalia lie in the hands of the Somalis themselves.

Over the years, Tanzania has been a home for

many refugees. The current stability in our

neighbouring countries has enabled voluntary

repatriation of many refugees, in addition to those who

have been naturalized. As a result, the population of

refugees in Tanzania declined from 1.2 million in 1994

to 108,426 by 31 July this year. This has enabled the

closure of 12 refugee camps.

Tanzania has also continued its tradition since

independence of granting citizenship to refugees who

have been in our country for many years. In April this

year, we naturalized 162,254 refugees who entered the

country in 1972. The Government is now in the process

of integrating these naturalized persons into Tanzanian

society.

This, however, is a costly exercise. It is estimated

that the naturalization and local integration programme

will cost over $146 million. This is a huge burden to a

poor country like Tanzania. We call upon the

international community to support this integration

programme under the principle of equitable

responsibility and burden-sharing.

We join others in welcoming the adoption of

resolution 64/289 on system-wide coherence, which,

among other things, established UN Women. It is our

hope that UN Women will receive the required support

from the international community and the entire United

Nations system to deliver on its mandate. Tanzania

congratulates Ms. Michelle Bachelet on her

appointment to head UN Women and assures her of

Tanzania’s unwavering support as she discharges her

duties.

Tanzania’s experience as a pilot country in the

delivering as one reform initiative has convinced us

that this, indeed, was a good decision and has

strengthened national ownership and leadership. I am

pleased that Tanzania will, in January 2011, be the first

country to present a common country programme.

Tanzania fully supports the priorities that you,

Sir, have set for the sixty-fifth session of the General

Assembly. Inclusive and democratic governance is as

important at the national level as it is at the global

level. It has, sadly, taken too long to give this issue the

priority it deserves at all levels. We believe that the

inclusive global governance agenda will ensure

accountability and equitable participation in

international trade and financial institutions, and open

doors for fair and equitable participation of developing

countries in the World Trade Organization, the

International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.

Tanzania emphasizes and reaffirms the

inclusiveness of the General Assembly as opposed to

the Security Council. We thus call upon all Member

States to press for the expeditious reform of the

Security Council. Africa has the largest number of

Member States. It cannot continue to be denied fair

representation in that important organ of the United

Nations. We urge all Member States to support Africa

in its rightful pursuit of permanent representation on

the Security Council.

In this regard, Tanzania reiterates the decision of

the African Union, as contained in the Ezulwini

Consensus, which demands not less than two

permanent seats with all the prerogatives and privileges

of permanent membership, including the right of veto,

as well as five non-permanent seats.

On the issues of the Middle East and Western

Sahara, let me reiterate what His Excellency President

Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete said during the sixth-fourth

session of the General Assembly in 2009 (see

A/64/PV.6). Tanzania supports a two-State solution

whereby Israel and Palestine would live together side

by side and at peace with each other. Tanzania strongly

maintains that this is the best way to sustainable peace

in the Middle East.

Regarding Western Sahara, the President also

called upon the Security Council to expedite the

process of giving the people of Western Sahara the

opportunity to decide their future status. This matter

10-55122 12

has dragged on since 1975 — in other words, for too

long. The time has come to end the impasse.

Let me conclude by once again reaffirming

Tanzania’s belief and confidence in the United Nations

as the Organization and forum for global governance

and the pursuit of the letter and spirit of its Charter: a

world free from wars and dehumanizing poverty; a

world of sustainable economic and social progress, as

well as freedom, human rights and justice for all. We

reaffirm our commitment to doing our part in pursuit of

that world.