DAR ES SALAAM: VICE-PRESIDENT Dr Philip Mpango yesterday outlined seven key measures to boost domestic revenue, including instructing tax collection agencies to intensify efforts in strengthening their revenue collection and management capacity.
Dr Mpango also stressed the importance of accelerating efforts to reform the tax system to ensure equity and eliminate unproductive tax exemptions and concessions.
“We must provide suf- ficient incentives for agents and institutions involved in tax collection to combat corrupt practices,” the Vice- President said.
VP Mpango issued the directives while officiating the 2025 Tax and Investment Dialogue held yesterday in Dar es Salaam.
He further instructed the relevant authorities to increase the use of ICT in tax collection, particularly by expanding the deployment of Electronic Fiscal Devices (EFDs), insisting that that it is crucial to implement deliberate strategies to gradually reduce and ultimately eliminate dependence on foreign aid.
“We must also continue improving the business environment and enhancing investment,” the VP emphasised, underlining the need to build a robust taxpayer database, encompassing cur- rent and potential taxpayers, and to intensify efforts to increase the number of taxpayers.
He noted that the number of active domestic taxpayers had dropped from 3.36 mil- lion in 2021/2022 to 2.183 million in 2024/2025.
Dr Mpango said this year’s forum calls for reflection on how best to harness domestic resources to drive development and increase domestic revenue.
“National demands are growing rapidly, with the population now reaching 65 million, the majority being youth. The current state of tax compliance calls for the development of comprehen- sive strategies to boost rev- enue,” he said.
According to the VicePresident, despite substantial efforts, tax compliance continues to face challenges, which consequently impacts domestic revenue collection.
He added that many local government authorities have fallen short of their revenue targets, highlighting the need to enhance investment and business policies, regulations, and procedures to achieve sufficient revenue levels.
VP Mpango asserted that this would necessitate reforms in both tax and non-tax domestic revenue collection.
“Therefore, this forum must engage in deep reflection and identify necessary improvements to broaden the tax base and enhance inclusivity,” he said.
Earlier, Zanzibar’s Minister of State, President’s Office – Finance and Planning, Dr Saada Mkuya Salum, said the government has continued to improve the investment environment to ensure active participation of the private sector in economic growth, having already eliminated nearly 380 investmentrelated bottlenecks.
Dr Mkuya noted that through that forum, the ministry will gather feedback to help refine strategies that increase citizen participation in economic development.
For his part, Deputy Minister in the President’s Office for Planning and Investment Mr Stanslaus Nyongo, said the government has taken strong measures to improve the investment climate in the country.
ALSO READ: Tanzania’s tax-to-GDP ratio soars to 14pc in 2024/25
Mr Nyongo noted that 66 tax and investment laws had been amended, leading to the scrapping of hundreds of levies. The government has also enhanced digital registration systems across various regulatory bodies.
Additionally, the second phase of the Blueprint for Regulatory Reform to Improve Business Environment (MKUMBI II) is set for implementation to address existing challenges.
Deputy Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Finance, Mr Elijah Mwandumbya, said that the Tax and Investment Dialogue was initiated three years ago, to bring together stakeholders to support the inclusive preparation of the national budget.
“It is our norm to sit with stakeholders to ensure we incorporate their input so the budget reflects their needs. So far, in preparing the 2025/26 budget, we have already collected views from various zones,” he said.
This is the third such forum, themed “Enhancing the Development of Domestic Resources through Expanding Citizen Opportunities.”
He added that since July last year, the Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) has consistently surpassed its revenue collection targets, exceeding 100 per cent of its goals.
Speaking earlier, Chairperson of the Tanzania Private Sector Foundation (TPSF), Ms Angelina Ngalula acknowledged the Ministry of Finance’s leadership in implementing President Samia Suluhu Hassan’s 4Rs (Reconciliation, Resilience, Reforms and Rebuilding) agenda in the financial and tax sectors.
She noted the ministry’s efforts to streamline tax systems and ensure taxes are collected more efficiently— aligned with the president’s vision of collecting taxes in a civilised, non-coercive manner, which has helped improve compliance.
The TPSF leader also stated that the forum was timely, coinciding with the drafting of the National Development Vision 2050, and considering the rapid pace of global technological change.
“These global shifts call for us to change our mindsets and the way we do things. Given the mix of stakeholders present at this forum, we believe we will find a constructive path forward,” she said.
She added that there was an opportunity to add value to the country’s agricultural products so that could be exported directly to target countries, rather than relying on intermediaries.
Ms Ngalula also underscored the need for education on the importance of paying taxes and formalising businesses, hence urging the Ministry of Finance’s Research and Development unit to focus on public education.
She pointed another significant issue was tax administration, recommending that the tax arbitration board be made independent and exclude TRA staff.
