Samia pushes banks to make growth benefit Tanzanians

DAR ES SALAAM: PRESIDENT Samia Suluhu Hassan has challenged Tanzania’s financial sector to ensure that economic growth delivers tangible improvements in people’s lives, saying banking and monetary reforms should be judged by their real impact on citizens rather than figures and statistics alone.

Speaking at the 60th anniversary celebrations of the Bank of Tanzania (BOT) in Dar es Salaam on June 12, 2026, President Samia said the success of the country’s financial system should be measured by how effectively it supports business expansion, increases access to capital, and improves household incomes.

She said the focus should move beyond measuring how many people have access to financial services and instead examine whether those services are helping traders grow their businesses, farmers secure timely financing, young entrepreneurs turn ideas into enterprises, and families build savings to withstand economic challenges.

The President emphasised that the private sector remains central to Tanzania’s production, investment, and employment creation, adding that affordable and timely access to finance is critical for expanding economic opportunities and improving productivity.

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She noted that private sector credit has grown from 6.6 percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 1994 to around 16 percent in the previous year, describing the progress as encouraging but still below what is required to achieve Tanzania’s ambition of becoming a US$1 trillion economy by 2050.

According to President Samia, the existing gap highlights the need to strengthen capital markets, insurance services, investment funds, and other financial mechanisms that can widen access to funding, support the formalisation of small businesses, and encourage greater investment.

She also called on financial institutions to pay closer attention to public concerns, particularly complaints over high interest rates, urging lenders to provide clear and simple explanations of borrowing costs before issuing loans.

The President stressed the importance of transparency across the financial sector, especially when dealing with small businesses and informal traders, so borrowers can fully understand repayment conditions and associated costs before making financial commitments.

At the same time, she commended the BoT for strengthening financial regulation and improving lending standards, saying such measures are essential for building confidence, stability, and trust in the country’s financial system.