Borders are open, so should your business be
THERE’S a swahili saying that goes, “Usikate tamaa, hata kama soko ni la nyanya.” Translation: Don’t give up, even if the market is just for tomatoes. And guess what, fellow Tanzanians?
That tomato market just got bigger, friendlier and it is legal too! Let us talk straight: The government has been working overtime, not just in Dar es Salaam but across the globe. Our ambassadors are not out there enjoying diplomatic cocktails for nothing, they are on a mission, marketing our beloved country like never before.
From Nairobi to New Delhi, Dodoma is selling the Tanzanian dream. Foreign investors are being wooed to come, invest and thrive in our fertile land. But here is the catch: While we are rolling out the red carpet for outsiders, are we, the wananchi, just sitting back, folding our arms and watching like it’s a Bongo movie marathon?
This editorial is a wake-up call, especially to our brothers and sisters living along the borders-those in Namanga, Tunduma, Mutukula, Horohoro and elsewhere.
You are seated on a goldmine. The diplomatic environment Tanzania is creating with its neighbours namely Kenya, Zambia, Rwanda, Burundi, Uganda, Mozambique is not just meant to give you easier access to cheaper maize or sugar. It is your ticket to legally booming cross-border trade.
Gone are the days when everything across the fence looked greener. Now, thanks to regional integration and favourable government policies, both sides of the fence are open for business and the law is on your side, as long as your dealings are clean.
Let us be honest here, illegal businesses have long tempted many: Human trafficking, drug peddling, untaxed goods, smuggling… These are not “hustles”; they are crimes. And they come with a price. No amount of quick cash is worth a decade behind bars or losing your dignity.
Colluding in such activities doesn’t make you a clever trader; it makes you an inmate in waiting. Instead, why not set up legal export businesses? Sell our spices, textiles, fruits, furniture, crafts, fish, honey, leather goods-you name it. If you can hustle for heroin, surely you can hustle for horticulture.
The market is there. And when you pay taxes, you are not feeding a black hole, you are fuelling roads, schools, hospitals and services that help everyone, including your own children.
Even the local governments are stepping up, simplifying licensing procedures and creating tax incentives for small traders and startups. There is talk of onestop border posts, faster customs clearance and digitised trade.
This is not just paperwork, it is progress. So, fellow Tanzanians, don’t wait to see your neighbour with no Bongo, a Kenyan or Congolese accent drive past in a new Prado from a tomato export deal you ignored.
The world is coming to do business in Tanzania, why shouldn’t you? In short, if the government has cooked the chapati, there is no reason to sneak in through the kitchen window to steal it. Just grab a plate and eat legally. Let us lead by example. Our country deserves that much. Legal hustle is the best hustle. Let’s own it.
