How Tanzania is using AI as a thinking partner

DAR ES SALAAM: IN villages across Tanzania’s Northern and Southern highlands, sunflower farmers are beginning to get advice from an unusual source.

Using simple mobile phones, even those without internet access, they can ask questions in Swahili and receive quick advice about farming, crop diseases and how to deal with changing weather.

The adviser is not a human being. It is an Artificial Intelligence (AI) system that uses voice to communicate with farmers.

This shows an important way of looking at AI. AI does not always have to replace people. It can work alongside people as a thinking partner, helping us understand information, make better decisions and solve problems.

Across Tanzania, AI is already being used or developed in areas such as agriculture, healthcare, financial services and education.

Agriculture: Bringing expert advice closer to farmers

Agriculture supports the livelihoods of a large part of Tanzania’s population. However, many farmers face difficulties accessing expert advice, reliable market information and solutions to problems caused by climate change.

AI is beginning to help address these challenges

One example is an agricultural chatbot that works through WhatsApp. A farmer can type simple words such as “Picha” or “Chunguza”, take a picture of a diseased crop or sick animal, and send it through the system.

The AI can then help identify the possible disease and provide advice on crop production, soil health and disease control. It can also provide information about markets and financial opportunities. The system can communicate in both Swahili and English.

Another Tanzanian agricultural technology initiative combines AI-based information about soil with practical advice from agricultural experts. Its recommendations can help farmers reduce the amount of fertiliser they use by up to 30 per cent while increasing the use of organic manure fivefold.

There is also an AI-powered voice service designed for farmers who use basic mobile phones without internet access. It uses large amounts of agricultural information to provide farmers with advice in local languages.

The project aims to increase the productivity of 5,000 sunflower farmers by at least 20 per cent.

The important point is that these technologies are not replacing farmers.

Instead, they give farmers better information to help them make better decisions about their farms. Healthcare:

Helping health workers make better decisions

Tanzania’s health facilities are often busy and have limited resources. Health workers may not always have enough time to examine every patient in great detail.

AI can help health workers identify patients who may need urgent attention.

One study by Tanzanian researchers used more than 337,000 antenatal care records to develop an AI system that could identify pregnant women at higher risk of developing serious high blood pressure-related conditions.

The system achieved 90 per cent accuracy and identified all high-risk patients in the validation group.

The purpose is not to replace nurses or doctors. Instead, the system can help health workers identify patients who require closer attention, allowing limited medical resources to be directed where they are most needed.

AI is also being developed to help detect cervical cancer. A Tanzanian-developed system has demonstrated 95 per cent accuracy when analysing medical images. This compares with an average of 79 per cent for specialists examining patients with the naked eye.

Such technology could be particularly useful for women living in areas where access to qualified doctors is limited.

Again, AI is not the doctor. It is a tool that can help doctors identify things that might otherwise be missed.

Finance: Protecting Tanzania’s growing digital economy

Tanzania has experienced rapid growth in mobile money services.

Between March 2021 and March 2025, the number of mobile money accounts increased by 103 per cent, from 32.7 million to 66.5 million. However, rapid digital growth also creates new risks. Reported cases of online fraud increased by 33 per cent in early 2025.

AI could play an important role in fighting this problem

AI is particularly effective at analysing large amounts of information and identifying unusual patterns. It can therefore help financial institutions identify suspicious transactions before they cause serious losses.

AI is also being used in mobile money services to support digital financial services and provide credit to people who have traditionally had limited access to formal financial services.

For a farmer in Morogoro or a small business owner in Rukwa, much of this technology works quietly in the background. They may not even realise that AI is helping protect their money or creating new financial opportunities.

Education: Preparing Tanzanians for the AI future Tanzania is also preparing young people to participate in the growing AI and data economy.

A national scholarship programme focusing on Data Science and Artificial Intelligence has already supported a first group of Tanzanian students to study at leading universities in South Africa and Ireland.

Before travelling, the students completed a 10-month preparatory programme at the Nelson Mandela African Institution of Science and Technology.

The University of Dar es Salaam is also discussing cooperation with Harvard University on the use of AI in teaching, research and data analysis.

At the national level, the government is finalising a national AI guideline and planning to establish a National Institute for Digital and AI Technologies in Dodoma.

These efforts are important because Tanzania needs people with the knowledge and skills to develop, manage and use AI responsibly.

The human being must remain at the centre

The most important lesson from these examples is simple: AI works best when it works together with people.

The AI voice service does not replace the agricultural extension officer. It can help make agricultural advice more accessible and make the extension officer more effective.

The AI system used in maternal healthcare does not replace the nurse. It helps the nurse identify patients who may need greater attention.

The cervical cancer system does not replace the doctor. It gives the doctor another tool to improve diagnosis.

Tanzania’s AI journey is still at an early stage, but its direction is becoming clear. From sunflower farms in the highlands to research laboratories and universities, AI is increasingly becoming a thinking partner.

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The goal should not be to create machines that think instead of Tanzanians. The goal should be to use technology to help Tanzanians think better, make better decisions and solve problems more effectively.

For a country where resources can sometimes be limited but creativity and innovation are abundant, the partnership between Tanzanians and AI could become an important tool for improving lives and supporting Tanzania’s development.