Dar es Salaam, 30 March 2015

PRESS RELEASE
Handover ceremony of the Medical Diagnostic Centre built by the
German Army in Pemba Island
.

Deputy Ambassador of the German Embassy in Dar es Salaam,

Mr. John Reyels is today handing over the Medical Diagnostic Centre
built by the German Army on the Island of Pemba in the presence of the
Tanzanian Minister for Defence, Honorable Dr. Hussein Ali Mwinyi.
Please find below the speech delivered by John Reyels at the
ceremony:
I am very happy to be able to hand over this newly built Medical Centre
today. May this building be a centre of caring and healing. May this
centre make life on this island healthier, safer and better.
The Medical Diagnostic Centre Pemba will be able to serve both civilian
and military patients. We are confident it will substantially improve the
level of medical support available to the residents of this island by
providing x-ray, ultrasound and dental treatment. Even minor surgery and
outpatient services can be offered on site at this Centre.
I am proud to say, that the opening of this Medical Centre is part of a
long-standing cooperation between the Tanzanian Peoples Defence
Forces and the German Army, the Bundeswehr, which looks back on a
tradition of more than twenty years.
The German Armed Forces Advisory Group is today based at the Lugalo
Military base outside Dar es Salaam. As part of our cooperation the
German Army has also supported the rehabilitation of the General
Military Hospital at Lugalo in Dar es Salaam.
Currently my colleagues from the German Army are working on the
completion of a Medical School, which will be located next to General
Military Hospital at Lugalo. The Medical school will get a modern Training

centre, for nurses, paramedics, and medical assistants, and we hope to

be able to finish the project this year too.
Other important areas of activity are the Vocational Training Centre at
Lugalo and the provision of German Mobile Medical Care Units. They
assist the Tanzanian Defence Forces in their international missions in
Congo and Darfur, where Tanzania is making an important contribution to
bringing more peace and stability to embattled areas of this continent.
Germany commends Tanzania for its Africa-wide leadership in this
regard. We feel privileged to be able lend our support to you in fulfilling
these important missions.
I would like to express my thanks to everyone who has worked hard to
make this day happen. I thank the Tanzanian Defence Forces for their
excellent cooperation and for their trust in our capabilities. I thank my
colleagues from the German Bundeswehr for their hard work to make
this Medical Diagnostic Centre become a reality.
What we look at here today certainly marks a milestone in the
relationship between Zanzibar and Germany. It shows how much
Germans and Zanzibaris, Germans and Tanzanians can achieve when
they work together with a common goal. I wish that this day may inspire
all of us to tackle new joint projects and to take cooperation, trust and
friendship between the peoples of Tanzania and Germany to new
heights.
For further information, please contact:
John Merikion
Phone: +255-(0)22 211 7409-15