Following decades of work, a beautiful country is set to become one of the richest in Africa. Tanzania now has an economy centred around manufacturing, tourism, agriculture and financial services.
The World Economic Forum said that the country doubled its wealth in 15 years. In 2000, wealth per capita (the average value of assets owned by an individual) was just £194. By 2015, this had gone up 92% to £372. In the same period, the number of people able to meet basic consumption rose by 6%, and the number of people living in extreme poverty fell by 2%.
Global Finance said Tanzania’s socioeconomic transformation has accelerated at an “unprecedented pace” over the last decade due to the work of former President John Pombe Magufuli and his successor, President Samia Suluhu Hassan.
“Tanzania has a reputation for peace and stability compared to [other] countries in East Africa,” said Tenda Msinjili, head of banking and finance at law firm Clyde & Co.’s Tanzania office.
This safety makes it more attractive, with foreign investors able to offer money with less fear of sudden upheavals upending projects. The country got £1 billion in foreign direct investment in 2023.
According to Global Finance, investors are “flocking” to Tanzania to exploit opportunities in mining, energy, agriculture, tourism, manufacturing, transportation and commercial real estate.
This has mainly been done by protecting contracts, resolving disputes, improving infrastructure and extracting abundant natural resources like gold, diamonds, silver, gas and uranium.
In 2020, the country’s GDP grew by 4.8% reaching £69.3billion, versus £64.2billion in 2019. This growth made it the second-largest economy in East Africa after Kenya.
Tanzania’s finance minister and central bank governor said that the economy is expected to grow by about 6% in 2025 from an estimated 5.4% growth in 2024. The International Monetary Fund said Tanzania is set to grow into a £105 billion economy by 2028.
Mwigulu Nchemba and Emmanuel Tutuba (respectively) said potential risks to this growth would include regional conflicts, commodity price volatility, a global economic slowdown and natural disasters related to climate change.
The country’s main export partners are India, the UAE, South Africa, Kenya, and Rwanda. Its main import partners are China, India, the UAE, the DR Congo and Saudi Arabia.