Tanzania: AICC Set to Establish New Shopping Mall in Arusha

The Citizen (Dar es Salaam)

Zephania Ubwani

23 June 2011

A new shopping mall is to be constructed in Arusha, adding to the number of modern shopping outlets in the fast growing town, it was announced here recently.The new outfit would be put up by the Arusha International Conference Centre (AICC) on its plots in Kaloleni area near the heart of the city.

Several residential houses will be demolished to pave way for construction of the shopping centre, the AICC managing director, Mr Elishilia Kaaya, told journalists.He said the facility, a joint venture between AICC and the Local Authority Pension Fund (LAPF), will cost about $12 million (Sh18 billion).

He said 18 blocks comprising 72 living quarters would be demolished in Kaloleni area, popularly known as Soweto, a few metres from the central bus stand and Amri Abeid Stadium.”The shopping centre will cover a total of 7,000 square metres (nine acres),” Mr Kaaya explained, pointing out that construction would start anytime after next December.

His press conference followed reports circulating in Arusha that several tenants at the AICC’s Kaloleni estate have been served with notices to vacate their quarters.”It is true we served notices to the tenants whose houses are lined up for demolition,” he said, explaining that the AICC management would ensure the exercise was conducted “in a civilised manner.”

According to him, the tenants have been given until December this year to vacate the buildings. He played down complaints by some of them that they were being victimised.”Unfortunately some of them have been cheated that AICC would sell the houses to them because they have lived there for a long time. But there is nothing like that,” Mr Kaaya emphasized.

The shopping centre would offer a range of facilities. They include supermarkets, at least two banking halls, restaurants as well as airline and tour company offices. Other outlets would be rented out for bureaux de change, cinema and function halls.

AICC, a parastatal under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, is the leading landlord in Arusha. Besides its landmark structure (the imposing conference centre), it has at least 650 residential units in the city which former US President Bill Clinton described as the “Geneva of Africa”.

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