Oct 27, 2016: The governments of Tanzania and Uganda have signed a memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to fast track the implementation of the East Africa crude oil pipeline from Ohima District in Uganda to Tanga port with the sole aim of tapping the world market. The signing ceremony was witnessed here yesterday when the Tanzanian Minister for Energy and Minerals, SospiterMuhongo and his Ugandan counterpart, Minister for Energy, Irene Muloni, signed the deal. The signing contract came after thorough discussions that had been on-going between the technical teams from the two countries, which had agreed to adhere to some terms in the process of the implementation inorder to make the project go fast enough and reach its deadline by 2020. Muhongo cited some of the terms which were discussed as on fiscal package which had gone through three stages of approval in the Tanzanian government machinery including the cabinet. He further elaborated it that the cabinet has approved the fiscal package where two of the six incentives included in it in the required review of law tax, making the cabinet to direct the Attorney General (AG) to prepare and then submit it to parliament for consideration and approval. The minister mentioned another area as operations at the port of Tanga, where its management in collaboration with the project company should resolve business issues so that smooth running of cargo handling and other related issues during the project operation will be attained. Besides that the question of upgrading infrastructure was also well discussed and left as an obligation of the state parties to prioritise, requiring that feeder and access roads remaining alongside it became the obligation of the project.

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