DAR ES SALAAM, April 6 (Xinhua) -- Tanzania and Uganda have signed agreements aimed at enhancing cooperation in energy and civil aviation, Tanzanian Minister for Foreign Affairs and East African Cooperation, Augustine Mahiga, said on Thursday.
Mahiga said the agreements between the two members of the East African Community (EAC) were signed on Wednesday night at the end of a Joint Partnership Commission (JPC) meeting in Arusha on Wednesday night.
The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the deals were signed by Mahiga on behalf of Tanzania and Ugandan Minister for Foreign Affairs, Sam Kutesa on behalf of the Ugandan government.
Under the MoU, the two countries agreed to implement a hydro-power project to generate 14 MW at Kikagati/Murongo on the two countries' border, said Mahiga.
He added that the two countries also agreed to co-operate in the civil aviation sector.
"The signing of the agreements will improve our relations with Uganda although the signing has been delayed since the JPC was established in Uganda in 2007," said Mahiga.
A statement released by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and East African Cooperation said during the JPC meeting the two countries were expected to sign six agreements.
However, the two countries didn't sign cooperation agreements in four other sectors because discussions were still ongoing, said the statement.
The sectors include railway, marine transport, broadcasting as well as defense, added the statement.
The statement said the agreements on the four sectors were expected to be signed during the East Africa Community (EAC) heads of state summit to be held later this year.
For his part, the Ugandan Minister for Foreign Affairs, Kutesa, said cooperation between the two countries was key to addressing challenges facing people, including poverty.
