BY SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT
The Africa Blue Economy Roundtable (ABER) has appointed Mrs Daisy Makwaia Edwards, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Heylo Group Ltd., as its National Coordinator for Tanzania.
The appointment, which takes immediate effect, is for an initial two-year term, renewable based on performance.
A statement issued by ABER said the appointment recognised Edwards’ expertise and contributions to the Blue Economy, particularly in ports and logistics, maritime policy and law, and cruise tourism.
It said Edwards was the first woman to pioneer cruise tourism in Tanzania, describing the achievement as a significant contribution to the development of the country’s maritime tourism value chain.
Edwards founded Heylo Group Ltd. in 2024 with a mandate to promote East Africa as a world-class cruise destination within the broader Blue Economy framework.
Through the company, she has engaged maritime stakeholders on port readiness, safety standards, regional cooperation and sustainable development, the statement said.
It added that her work had also promoted innovation in shipping and seafaring while seeking greater economic opportunities for coastal communities.
As ABER National Coordinator for Tanzania, Edwards is expected to represent the organisation and serve as its focal point in the country.
She will coordinate ABER’s national activities, dialogues and stakeholder engagements in line with the African Union Agenda 2063, Africa Blue Economy Strategy and Tanzania’s National Blue Economy Policy.
She will also provide policy support on ports, logistics, cruise tourism, maritime law and coastal development.
Other responsibilities include establishing and operationalising the ABER Tanzania National Secretariat and mobilising membership across government, the private sector, academia, women and youth groups.
Edwards will liaise with relevant ministries, departments and agencies, including the Ministry of Transport, Tanzania Ports Authority and Tanzania Shipping Agency Corporation.
She will also lead efforts to develop strategic partnerships, mobilise resources, submit quarterly reports to the Regional Vice President for East Africa and Continental Secretariat, and coordinate Tanzania’s participation in ABER programmes.
These programmes include the ABER Continental Summit and the ABER Women’s Forum.
Dr Piriye Kiyaramo, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the BRACED Tourism Promotion and Development Initiative (BTPDI) and Convener/Chairman of the ABER Council, expressed confidence in Edwards’ capacity to contribute to the organisation’s continental mandate.
Kiyaramo said her experience, institutional network and commitment to Tanzania’s maritime development would add value to ABER’s vision of building “One Africa. One Ocean. One Prosperous Future.”
ABER is an initiative focused on advancing Africa’s Blue Economy through policy dialogue, partnerships, investment and stakeholder engagement acros
s the continent.
Jude Ossai (JP) a veteran journalist is a National Diploma holder in Mass Communication from Ogwashi-Uku Polytechnic Ogwashi-Uku, Delta State. He also studied at Enugu State University of Science and Technology (ESUT) Enugu and Imo State University, Owerri for his first and second degrees in Mass Communication, respectively.
He writes extensively on politics, crime, corruption, climate change, healthcare, human rights, social justice, among others.
He began his journalism career in The Republic Newspaper, Lagos in 1987 as a Special Correspondent in Benin City, Edo State.
In 1990, he was posted from Lagos to old Anambra State as a State Correspondent in Enugu.
In 1994, he joined the African Newspapers of Nigeria (ANN) Plc, Ibadan, Oyo State, Publisher of Nigerian Tribune Newspapers where he rose to the rank of Southeast Bureau Chief.
Retiring from the mainstream traditional media in 2019, he began another journey in online newspaper publication.
He was the Overall Best Reporter in 2015, an award bestowed on him by Correspondents’ Chapel of the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ), Enugu State.
He has attended several workshops/seminars organised by multi-nationals, government institutions, local and international media including BBC.
He is also a unionist and had held top positions as Chairman and Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Union of Journalists of Enugu Correspondents’ Chapel and State Council of NUJ, respectively. He was also a one-time Enugu State Secretary of Sports Writers’ Association of Nigeria (SWAN).
