The Citizen (Dar es Salaam)
2 June 2008
President Jakaya Kikwete is today scheduled to officially open the 8th Sullivan Summit in Arusha that is playing host to one of the largest gatherings bringing together political and business leaders, civil society and academics to discuss Africa's development.
President Kikwete will play host to thousands of delegates attending the meeting, the first of its kind in this region, with Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Minister Bernard Membe yesterday saying at least seven African head of states have confirmed their participation.
Member said by last night, a 1500 strong core delegation from America was expected to be in Arusha for the summit that is anticipated to enhance the country's presence in the international tourism circuit and also attract more direct foreign investments.
Arusha town was a bee hive of activities as individuals and organisations made last minute preparations to play a part and make some income and build contacts during the event.
However confusion reigned for a better part of yesterday in the allocation of booths for small and medium enterprise (SME) exhibitors who by midday had not been allocated space where to showcase their exhibits.
Overwhelmed officials were involved in frantic meetings to try to diffuse growing tension and impatience among the hundreds of exhibitors who feared they would locked out of the meeting due to lack of space.
According to information obtained last evening, Kikwete will open the meeting late afternoon and later host a state banquet for the visitors. Other plenary meetings however kick off this morning.
Expected head of states who are scheduled to arrive from today include the host Kikwete, Omar Al-Bashir of Sudan, John Kufour of Ghana, Armando Emilio Gebuza of Mozambique and Mwai kibaki of Kenya whose 60 people delegation of government officials and business people is said to be one of the largest, followed by Mozambique which has 39 officials.
Other presidents include Paul Kagame of Rwanda, Moahmmed Abdelazi of the Arab Republic of Saharawi and retired Nigerian President Olesegun Obasanjo.
Uganda wuill be represented by vice president Prof Gilbert Balibaseka while the minister for labour Thoko Didiza will be there on behalf of South Africa.
According to Minister Membe, delegates are expected to come from more than 20 countries that include Nigeria, Brazil, Namibia, Angola, Morocco, Zambia, Botswana, Congo, Libya and Swaziland.
Reports said presidents Bingu Mutharika of Malawi, Enerood Jugnauth of Mauritius, James Micel of Seychelles and Sidi Mohamed Ould Cheikh Abdala of Mauritania were still expected to confirm their arrivals.
Arusha town was a bee hive of as foreign and local delegates continues to arrived in the municipality .Various streets and roads in the municipality have been decorated with posters depicting the country's natural and cultural heritages, targeted mainly to the foreign delegates from the United States.
Most of the streets have been spruced up and buildings repainted for the five day event which aims to bring the Africans in Diaspora much closer with their ancentral home, now the world's poorest continent.
Many residents of the municipality of 400,000 say they are happy with the Summit because with it Arusha is now having street lights for the first time in its 120 year history.
The biennial summit, whose preparations started nearly two years ago, has also seen increased rooms in hotels and lodges and, of course, employment for hundreds of people in and outside Arusha.
Police have reinforced security personnel to maintain peace during the entire period of the meeting.
A high-powered delegation from the US led by the Secretary of Interior Dirk Kempthorne jetted at the Kilimanjaro International Airport yesterday to a rousing welcome from the traditional dances and local officials.
The former Nigerian president Olusegun Obasanjo, who hosted the seventh Sullivan Summit two years ago, was scheduled to land at the Arusha airport later afternoon.
For the second day yesterday KIA, the country's second largest airport roughly midway between Arusha and Moshi, continued to be hectic as planes bringing foreign and local delegates landed.
High profile dignitaries from the US included Rev. Jesse Jackson and the former American ambassador to the United Nations Andrew Young and several top singers and other famous players in the entertainment industry in the world' strongest economy.
Mr. Young, one of the key officials of the Leon Sullivan Foundation which is organising the summit,r was part of the 500-plus delegates who flew directly to KIA directly from the US aboard Ethiopian Airline planes.
Other American delegates will include Michael Green, the US Ambassador to Tanzania, Ms Jedanyi Frazer, Assistant Secretary for Foreign Affairs (Department of State) and John A. Simon, Executive Vice President, Overseas Private Investment Corporation.
Others are Michael Steele, former Lieutenant Governor, Maryland and also a chairman of GOPAC, a global partnership organisation against corruption, Edward W.
"Ward" Brehm III, chairman of US African Development Foundation and Melinda, a top rated singer in the US.
Arusha International Conference Centre, the main venue for the Summit, was abuzz yesterday as local people, many of them small and medium entrepreneurs, continue to register.
Exhibitors allocated space within the precints of AICC were also putting final touches on their pavilions.
They included key public institutions and private companies.
SMEs will exhibit their wares inside the adjacent Natural History Museum grounds.
Some 200 to 300 kilometres away from Arusha, many foreign delegates were amazed by the natural and archaeological wonders that have made Tanzania a one of the leading tourist destination in Africa.
For the past two days, the foreign visitors have been to the famous Ngorongoro crater, already christened the world's eight wonder and the Olduvai Gorge, which top rated scientists consider a cradle of mankind for its archeological discoveries.
The itinerary of the visits within the Ngorongoro Conservation Area has also been extended to Laetoli footprints near the Serengeti National Park where the oldest footprints (4 million) of the first hominids to roam over Earth were found in the 1970s.
Visitors to Ngorongoro included scientists from across the world who attended a two day pre-Sullivan Summit workshop.
One of the Prof. Wole Soboyeyo said Arusha was poised to become the Silicon Valley of Africa because of its geographical location and attractive landscapes.
Rough estimates are that there could be as many as 5,000 people from both outside the country and local officials and business people who are coming mainly to the trade fairs.
The figure could be higher for the support staff of various public and private institutions who are mainly here for the three exhibitions taking place here this week.
One of the exhitions starts this morning near AICC.
An international trade fair that has being going on at the Nane Nane grounds at Themi since the middle of last week is also part of the Summit.
The fair has attracted foreign firms.
Another equally important event will be the Karibu Travel and Tourism Fair at Magereza Open grounds at Kisongo on the Dodoma road. It will be opened on Thursday and extend to Sunday and is targeted to Sullivan Summit delegates.
The tourism fair has attracted over 250 firms, non-governmental organisations and conservation bodies.
At least a quarter of the participating firms are foreign.
Officials of the national organising committee say most of the foreign delegates will be prospective investors, business people, politicians, composers and other people in the entertainment industry.
With the high profile meeting only hours away, Arusha has started to feel the impact of visitors who have flooded hotels, lodges and guest houses,restaurants and bars while the heavy presence of police in all corners.
There was anxiety all over the municipality yesterday as a helicopter made rounds over the town for several hours.
According to the minister for Foreign Affairs and International Relations Bernard Membe the summit will be a major boost for the tourism industry in Tanzania.
This is the third time for the Sullivan Foundation Summit to be hosted in Africa.
Two summits have already taken place in Nigeria.
The Sullivan Foundation is made up of black Americans who consider themselves Africans in Diaspora.
It was founded by the late Leon Sullivan, a black American.
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