Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday announced that India and Tanzania elevated their ties to a strategic partnership as the two countries signed six accords and agreed on a five-year roadmap for cooperation in the field of defence.

”Today we are tying our age-old friendship into a strategic partnership,” Mr Modi announced at a press conference after wide-ranging talks with visiting Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan here.

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The PM said India and Tanzania were important partners for mutual trade and investment. ”Both sides are working on an agreement to increase trade in local currencies. We will continue to explore new opportunities to realise the full potential of our economic cooperation,” he added.

Under the defence cooperation programme, the two nations will cooperate in areas like military training, maritime cooperation, capacity building, defense industry. Both leaders said they looked forward to increased interoperability between their armed forces.

The six accords signed by the two sides are for cooperation in the field of digital solutions; technical cooperation between the two navies on sharing white shipping information; cultural exchange programme; cooperation in the field of sports; MoU between Jawaharlal Nehru Port Authority and Tanzania Investment Centre for setting up of an industrial park in Tanzania; and MoU between Cochin Shipyard Ltd. and Marine Services Co. Ltd. for cooperation in maritime industry.

Tanzania was India’s largest development partner in Africa, Mr Modi noted, adding that India was providing support to it in fields like skill development, capacity building, vocational training, agriculture, health, water supply and other sectors.

He informed that Tanzania has agreed to join the biofuel alliance, which was announced during the G20 summit in New Delhi last month. In addition to this, the African country has also decided to join the Big Cat alliance, which will help in exchange of felines like leopards and cheetahs, Modi added.

Mr Modi also said that the opening of an IIT Madras campus in Zanzibar would open up new dimensions of quality education for students in Tanzania as well as of other nations.

A joint statement issued by the two sides said the Tanzanian expressed interest to cooperate with India in the field of Blue economy including tourism, maritime trade, services and infrastructure, marine scientific research, capacity in seabed mining, ocean conservation and maritime safety and security.

India and Tanzania agreed to cooperate under the framework of the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) to ensure a peaceful, prosperous and sustainable Indian Ocean Region.