TZ eyes 124tri/- investment

DAR ES SALAAM: TANZANIA is targeting to attract at least 50 billion US dollars (about 123.5tri/-) in investment capital and create eight million jobs by 2030 as the government rolls out a new investment drive aligned with Vision 2050, with strong emphasis on youth empowerment, industrialisation and export growth.

The Minister of State in the President’s Office for Planning and Investment, Prof Kitila Mkumbo, said the strategy will guide investment decisions over the next five years, focusing on projects with high economic impact and long-term national development benefits.

“The direction we are taking is to ensure that every major investment contributes meaningfully to employment creation, export growth and sustainable economic transformation,” Prof Mkumbo said.

He explained that, in line with Vision 2050, investment projects will be selected based on their capacity to generate mass employment, increase export earnings, stimulate growth in other sectors, enhance value addition and boost government revenue.

“These criteria will help us focus on investments that not only grow the economy but also improve the livelihoods of Tanzanians,” he said.

Guided by these priorities, the government has identified key sectors to anchor economic transformation, including agriculture and agroprocessing, manufacturing of essential goods for domestic use, livestock, fisheries and aquaculture, tourism, construction, mining, financial services, forestry and energy, including oil and gas.

Prof Mkumbo said special priority will be given to domestic production of strategic goods that Tanzania currently imports in large quantities, notably pharmaceuticals and medical supplies, edible oils and wheat.

“Our aim is to reduce import dependence by encouraging local production of essential goods,” he said.

He added that the government will welcome, encourage and facilitate investment in cooking oil processing plants, establishment of seed multiplication centres for oil crops and development of large-scale sunflower and wheat farms.

Placing young people at the centre of the investment agenda, Prof Mkumbo said the government will establish a Youth Investors Resource Centre to provide targeted support and facilitation to young investors.

“Youth are the backbone of our economy, and we want to ensure they are fully empowered to participate meaningfully in investment and industrial development,” he said.

He further said a special nationwide programme will be launched to enable young graduates from universities and technical colleges to design and establish industrial investments across the country.

“The programme will provide training, facilitate access to land, link young investors with suppliers of machinery and raw materials and connect them to financial institutions,” he said.

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The initiative will be implemented in collaboration with the Tanzania Investment and Special Economic Zones Authority (TISEZA), in partnership with Azania Bank, TCB and CRDB. Under the programme, designated areas have been set aside for youth-led investments in Dodoma, Coast Region, Mara, Ruvuma and Bagamoyo.

Prof Mkumbo said both the initiative and the Youth Investors Resource Centre will be launched before the end of this year. He also said the government will decentralise investment facilitation services to all regions by 2028, in line with President Samia Suluhu Hassan’s directive to bring services closer to the people.

“Each region will have a dedicated centre to promote and support investors, working closely with the President’s Office–Regional Administration and Local Government,” he said.

Prof Mkumbo said that in collaboration with the private sector, the government will develop industrial investment infrastructure nationwide, with TISEZA entering into public-private partnerships to construct industrial sheds to be rented at affordable rates to Tanzanians investing in manufacturing.

“This initiative will significantly reduce the cost of industrial investment and expand economic opportunities for our people,” he said, noting that it will enable more citizens to benefit from the ongoing economic transformation. He added that preparations are at an advanced stage for the launch of a new National Strategy for Improving the Business and Investment Climate, MKUMBI II.

“The strategy will be unveiled before the start of Vision 2050 implementation on July 1, 2026,” he said. Meanwhile, the National Development Commission is finalising key instruments to guide the implementation of Vision 2050, including the first Five-Year Development Plan, the Annual Development Plan for the 2026/2027 financial year and a resultsbased monitoring, evaluation, learning and accountability framework.

On public sector reforms, Prof Mkumbo said the President’s Office is finalising a new Public Investment Bill aimed at strengthening the structure, management and performance of public institutions.