Unbeknown to many, Oman has a significant Swahili-speaking population that has close ties to East Africa - particularly the coastal towns in Kenya and Tanzania. In 2017, Magufuli was pleasantly surprised by the Swahili fluency of Omani government officials who had toured Tanzania to partner on infrastructural development. "He (Magufuli) was a brave leader for the Tanzanian nation in his tenure. Many of the Kenyan and Tanzanian Arabs have close family ties in Oman and other neighboring Middle Eastern countries. The CS continues to maintain close ties with Yemen.

Source: Daily Nation March 25, 2021 16:11 UTC