TRC break with subsidies signals accountability reset

DAR ES SALAAM: THE announcement that the Tanzania Railway Corporation (TRC) has finally weaned itself off government subsidies is a great news that signals a new era of public sector accountability.

After 13 years of depending on about 13bn/- annually from the Treasury just to meet its wage bill, TRC’s ability to finance its operations from internally generated revenue marks a decisive break from a culture of dependency that has long burdened the government.

The achievement, which has been reached within President Samia Suluhu Hassan’s first 100 days, deserves recognition not as a coincidence of timing, but as evidence of deliberate political will. Public entities do not become self-reliant by accident.

They do so when leadership insists on efficiency, commercial discipline and results and when managers are finally empowered and compelled to run institutions as enterprises rather than welfare cases. Transport Minister Prof Makame Mbarawa’s disclosure on Sunday that TRC has been self-financing since December 2025 sends a powerful message that reform is no longer theoretical. It is measurable.

And it is happening now. For taxpayers, this means relief from a recurring fiscal drain. For the wider economy, it signals a rail system that is beginning to operate on the logic of service delivery and demand, not survival.

The performance figures reinforce this narrative. Nearly 837,000 passengers transported in just 100 days, with the vast majority using the electrified Standard Gauge Railway (SGR), point to growing public confidence in rail transport. The movement of over 85,000 tonnes of cargo in the same period underscores rail’s re-emergence as a serious freight option. Crucially, these gains are not isolated.

They sit within a broader, coordinated push to modernise Tanzania’s entire transport ecosystem. Progress on the SGR network toward Mwanza, preparations to revitalise the TAZARA railway line, expansion plans at the Port of Dar es Salaam, and the development of logistics facilities such as Kurasini all point to a government thinking systemically.

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Rail, ports, roads and aviation are being treated not as silos, but as interlocking parts of a national logistics strategy. The planned rehabilitation of TAZARA is particularly significant.

If executed transparently and efficiently, it could revitalise regional trade corridors, strengthen Tanzania’s role within SADC, and unlock new economic opportunities far beyond the rail sector itself. Moreover, port expansion from 32 million to 50 million tonnes annually is not just about infrastructure, it is about competitiveness in a region where logistics efficiency increasingly determines economic relevance.

Therefore, this is to say celebration must be tempered with vigilance. Financial self-reliance must be sustained, not announced once and forgotten. Service quality, safety, maintenance and affordability must remain central, especially as utilisation grows.

Furthermore, other state-owned enterprises should now feel the pressure of example, if TRC can turn the corner after 13 years, excuses elsewhere will wear thin. Ultimately, TRC’s break from subsidies is a statement of possibility. It shows that with focused leadership and coherent reforms, public institutions can deliver value, ease the burden on taxpayers and support national development goals.