Malawi’s central bank visits BoT to learn Tanzania’s microfinance system

DAR ES SALAAM: THE Malawian central bank is seeking to learn from Tanzania’s microfinance regulation system to strengthen oversight of the sector and improve consumer protection.

A delegation from the Reserve Bank of Malawi, led by Deputy Governor, Henry Mathanga, visited the Bank of Tanzania (BoT) in Dar es Salaam on October 12, 2026, to exchange experience on supervising and regulating microfinance service providers.

The delegation was received by BoT Deputy Governor responsible for Financial Stability and Supervision, Sauda Msemo, who outlined Tanzania’s regulatory framework covering four categories of microfinance providers.

The categories include deposit-taking microfinance institutions, non-deposit-taking providers, Savings and Credit Cooperative Societies (SACCOS) and Community Microfinance Groups (CMGs).

During their meeting, Ms Msemo explained that BoT directly supervises Tier Two microfinance providers, while oversight of Tier Three and Tier Four providers is delegated to the Tanzania Cooperative Development Commission and the Prime Minister’s Office responsible for Regional Administration and Local Government, respectively.

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She also outlined measures taken by BoT to protect financial service users, including handling customer complaints, taking action against providers that violate legal and regulatory requirements, and developing and improving supervisory systems, guidelines and procedures.

Mr Mathanga said the visit was prompted by recognition of Tanzania’s experience in supervising the microfinance sector.

According to Mr Mathanga, the exchange offers Malawi an opportunity to study the systems and approaches used by BoT and identify lessons that could help improve microfinance regulation in his country.