Switzerland and UN Trade Cluster Launch Innovative Project in Tanzania

The project is unusual in that it targets two seemingly unrelated economic sectors as part of the Tanzanian government's efforts to promote economic development through trade. The project also brings together expertise from a number of international organizations making up the United Nations Cluster on Trade and Productive Capacity.
This cross-cutting and cooperative approach reflects the integrated treatment of trade and development advocated by UNCTAD, said Mukhisa Kituyi, UNCTAD Secretary-General, at the launch ceremony in Arusha.
"I am confident that the links that this project has identified between these two sectors will benefit not only the project participants themselves, but will also serve as a model for Tanzania as a whole," Dr. Kituyi said. Building such synergies "is precisely how countries can profit from the interdependent nature of our interconnected globalized economy," he added.

Switzerland's State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) is funding the project, "Market Value Chains Relating to Horticultural Products for Responsible Tourism Market Access". Agencies that are part of the UN Cluster on Trade and Productive Capacity, which is led by UNCTAD, will implement the project. These are: the International Labour Organization, the International Trade Centre, UNCTAD and the United Nations Organization on Industrial Development, supported by UNOPS acting as administrative agent. The project is linked to Tanzania's Trade Sector Development Programme, coordinated by the Ministry of Industry and Trade.
SECO's three-year programme in Tanzania, with an approximate budget of US$3.5 million, focuses on improving livelihoods, using the tourism industry as an entry point. The project aims to upgrade and generate productive capacity of small horticultural producers, particularly of organic produce, and link such suppliers with hotels. It also seeks to increase the quantity and capacity of local tourism trainers to respond to the demands of the industry. In addition, it will reinforce financial security of national tourism training colleges and promote responsible tourism in Tanzania.
Attending the ceremony were: Uledi Mussa, Permanent Secretary of Tanzania's Ministry of Industry and Trade; Olivier Chave, Swiss Ambassador to Tanzania; Dr. Kituyi; Patrick Laederach, representative of Switzerland's SECO; Manuela Tortora, Global Coordinator for the UN Inter Agency Cluster for Trade and Productive Capacity; Adam Bouloukos, UNOPS Director; and other key project stakeholders.