Tanzania sets sights on Hong Kong for source of investment and luxury tourism
- Delegation adds city on trip to major mainland Chinese hubs in bid not to overlook its uniqueness
- Direct flights from Guangzhou to African nation expected to also boost tourism volumes from neighbouring Hong Kong
Tanzania is looking to draw tourists and funding from Hong Kong, with officials from the east African nation visiting the city on Friday to pitch a wide range of investment and travel opportunities.
Although Tanzania and other African nations have long had close financial ties with China through the belt and road strategy and other direct investment, they often missed Hong Kong as a potential partner, according to Wu.
“When African countries think about China, they all go to Beijing, then on to Shanghai and Guangzhou. That’s the normal trend, but they never come to Hong Kong,” she told the Post, noting this was because they overlooked the city’s unique status under “one country, two systems”.
She was referring to the principle by which Beijing governs Hong Kong and allows it a high degree of autonomy.
“The beauty of one country, two systems is that [it allows us to be] more flexible at doing business, [with a] rule of law more in line with the Western system, and communication [that’s] in English,” said Wu, who was appointed to her role as honorary consul in September.
The visit by the delegation was part of a 12-day tour of major Chinese cities. It was planned after Beijing's pledge to further open China’s market to Africa, made during the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation in September.