Under President Samia Suluhu Hassan, who has been in office since 2021, the country has taken a more business-friendly course. The authorities issue work visas for foreign workers much more quickly, and the financial administration is less aggressive towards the business community. As a result, foreign companies are increasingly coming to Tanzania again.

With its port in Dar es Salaam, East Africa’s second largest market has a hub for regional trade. Entrepreneurial opportunities are mainly in the areas of construction, tourism, agriculture, food and raw materials.

The largest infrastructure projects include the railway line from Dar es Salaam to the interior and the Julius Nyerere hydroelectric power plant. The Zanzibari main island of Unguja  is experiencing a real construction boom (mainly housing and hotels).

Economy. According to the World Bank, the economy in Tanzania grew by 4.6 percent in 2022 (sub-Saharan average: 3.4 percent). For the current year, economists have calculated a growth rate of 5.1 percent. More than six percent are expected for 2024 and 2025 respectively.

The long-term development is positive: Tanzania’s gross domestic product per capita rose from the equivalent of 420 to 1349 dollars over the last 20 years. Inflation has recently been at a moderate level of around 4 per cent. The public debt is at 38.1 per cent of GDP.

Population. Tanzania has more than 66 million inhabitants. Annual population growth has declined from 3.5 to 2.9 percent since 2016. Experts predict a further decline to 2.6 percent in the next ten years. In the last 20 years, the average birth rate has fallen from 5.7 to 4.7 per woman. Life expectancy was at 66 years recently. 43 percent of Tanzanians have access to electricity (twenty years ago, it was ten percent).

Governance. On Transparency International’s latest Corruption Perceptions Index, Tanzania ranks 94th out of 180. With a score of 38 points the country has, according to TI, made one step backwards: in 2021, Tanzania scored 39 points. In 2015, however, it was only 30 points. The score puts Tanzania on the same level as Argentina, Brazil, Ethiopia and Morrocco.

Sources and further information:

World Bank: https://data.worldbank.org/country/tanzania

Africa Business Guide https://www.africa-business-guide.de/de/maerkte/tansania

Germany Trade & Invest: https://www.gtai.de/de/trade/tansania/wirtschaftsumfeld/weniger-risiken-mehr-chancen-das-gesamtpaket-wird-attraktiver-604228

https://www.gtai.de/de/trade/tansania/wirtschaftsumfeld/wirtschaftsdaten-kompakt-tansania-156864

Transparency International: www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/nga