Kikwete invited by Vatican

The Vatican has invited President Jakaya Kikwete of Tanzania to be the guest of honour at an annual general meeting that will involve religious leaders from different sects in the world.

The invitation was presented to President Kikwete by a special envoy of the Vatican, Mario Giro, when he met President Kikwete here in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where the President is attending the 8th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of the African Union that ends today. Giro told President Kikwete that the Vatican, which organizes the meeting every year, always invites political leaders to discuss issues and this time around, the Vatican has decided to invite the President of Tanzania.

He said the reason for inviting President Kikwete was his stance on implementation of policies that encouraged Tanzanians to live in unity, respect and tolerance in spite of their religious beliefs. `Tanzania and Tanzanians are tolerant in their basic principles of religion, a policy which was initiated by the father of the nation Mwalimu Julius Kambarage Nyerere, and you Mr President, still implements them. That is why the Vatican has decided to invite you as our chief guest,` said Giro.

The meeting will take place in Nepal, Italy on October 21, 2007. President Kikwete has accepted the invitation. The AGM was established 20 years ago by Pope John Paul II, with an objective of gathering leaders to discuss important issues that touched on their religion beliefs and emphasise cooperation and tolerance.

Meanwhile, the Unesco director general, Koichiro Matsuura, has also invited President Jakaya Kikwete to officially open the organisation?s Annual General Meeting on October 22 in Paris.

The Unesco chief issued the invitation when he met President Kikwete in Addis Ababa. Kikwete has accepted the invitation.
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