Africa’s first radio-chemistry laboratory inaugurated in Tanzania

Tanzania has recently inaugurated Africa's first fully-fledged Radio-chemistry Analysis Laboratory at the Tanzania Atomic Energy Commission located in the northern safari capital of Arusha.

The new state-of-the-art radiochemistry laboratory facility at Tanzania Atomic Energy Commission was built at a cost of USD 4.3 million.

"The country is at the forefront in reinforcing strict control in mining, handling and the transportation of Radioactive Materials and the establishment of this laboratory facility is yet another indication of this commitment," said Prime Minister of Tanzania, Kassim Majaliwa after inaugurating the facility.

He advised the Tanzania Atomic Energy Commission (TAEC) to build nuclear reactors so that the country can be ready to make use of its abundant uranium deposits by converting them to energy. "So far the Mkuju River Uranium Development Project itself has nearly 59,000 tons of uranium deposits, among the highest in Africa," Kassim Majaliwa opined, as reported by Xinhua.

The PM Kassim Majaliwa said Tanzania targets new dimension in large scale uranium mining, with significant deposits being identified in various parts of the country, including Mbulu and Simanjiro Districts of Manyara, Rural parts of Songea in Ruvuma Region, Minjingu, Arusha as well as Namtumbo, Madama and Lindi, along the Southern Coast peninsular.

In line with that, more than 25 companies are conducting exploration of the uranium in different areas of Tanzania and these explorations are based on the already radiometric surveys conducted in over 40 years ago that pointed to uranium enrichment in various places in the country, that is why the state is establishing complementing facilities.

The newly inaugurated Radio-chemistry Analysis Laboratory is already equipped with various modern and technological paraphernalia valued at more than USD 3.2 million donated to Tanzania by the European Union, Xinhua noted.

With such a facility in place, Tanzania through TAEC is now in a position to conduct radioactive tests from all neighbouring countries, such as Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia and Malawi, where such services are not available.

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