Author: Giza Mdoe

Tanzania has introduced the use of Electronic Tax Stamps (ETS) water bottles and soft, carbonated drinks. The move is meant to add on to the already registered increase in tax collection.

The Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) reported earlier this year that it has seen a 34 percent increase in revenue collection thanks to the use of the Electronic Tax Stamps (ETS) on branded products.

The ETS system was first rolled out in Tanzania early last year (15 Jan 2019) after regulations was passed to have all manufacturers in the country install an electronic tax stamp management system.

The tender went to a Swiss-based firm called SICPA which was contracted by the Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) to install and enroll all manufacturers, producers and importers onto the system.

To start with, the electronic stamps were used for cigarettes, wines, spirits, beer and other alcoholic beverages. It then begun to be applied …

As part of your positive reinforcement regimen, you have probably bought junior that tasty chocolate biscuit that he loves so much or the packaged ice cream that has him agreeing to anything you say. Did you know almost all snacks are made using the most popular vegetable oil in the World, Palm Oil?

Palm oil is used in the preparation of most processed foods from biscuits to chips to instant noodles. It is also used in the manufacturing of soap and cosmetics, and with the exponential increase in population, global demand for these products has equally put pressure on the demand for palm oil.

While palm oil is indigenous to West Africa, now the continent is losing almost 7.5 million acres of land to palm oil companies. Communities are been displaced and forests are been destroyed to make room for the coveted palm tree.

“In the past decade, West Africa …

For many in Africa, the concept of an electric vehicle is still new, by the time these futuristic automobiles become popular in Africa, land rights in the Congo may very well be buried deep in the cobalt mines.

 Did you know, the Democratic Republic of the Congo produces more than half of the world’s supply of cobalt? You probably did not, neither did I. Here is another fun fact, did you know cobalt is the mineral that powers your phone battery, your laptop battery and most all your rechargeable batteries?

I bet you were also not aware that this bluish mineral that is found in a dull brownish ore of dirt is used in hospital labs for imaging, for cancer radiotherapy and even for sterilizing medical equipment.

Cobalt is also in the component that stores solar energy in the solar panels that have now become popular solution to Africa’s energy …

Tanzania became the first East African nation to reopen its schools, businesses and ports of entry, charting a new path in the management of the Corona Virus.

As of May 18, Tanzania reopened its airspace for international arrivals and the World is responding.

Only three days after it announced its reopening its airspace, local media reported that a chartered airplane landed at the Kilimanjaro International Airport on May 21. The plane had on board four Greek nationals.

Previously, the tourists would have had to go into a 14-day mandatory quarantine but not anymore. Now anyone entering the country only needs to go through a simple temperature check upon arrival. Other measures include having all arriving flights present an Advance Passenger Information System (APIS) so as to allow the Tanzania’s Immigration Department and Airport Authorities to identify high-risk passengers.

All non-APIS compliant flights will now be required to notify their passengers …

There has not been a more demanding time for Africa to adopt modern agriculture methods than now. In the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, food security in Africa is threatened at all levels and farming activities have nearly been brought to a standstill.

African farmers lost market as borders closed and flights were grounded to curb the spread of Covid-19. As a result the, pandemic severely affected the agriculture value chains from supply of inputs to transporting the end product.

Africa now finds itself more in need of modern farming methods to increase production in a cost effective manner. However, while attempting to increase production, African farmers must also mitigate the effects of climate change by adopting climate smart agriculture.

There is need to use improved seed varieties even in the backdrop of the side effects of using hybrid seeds. Improved seed varieties are more resistant to disease and poor …

U.S. dollar is muscling it up against gold, but the precious metal just wont let up, not with the threat of a second Covid-19 outbreak as new cases emerge.

In Africa, the big gold miners, Tanzania is one of the countries that made some good money out of the increased demand for gold during the height of the Covid-19 global pandemic. However, over the past month, World market prices for gold declined slightly due to decrease in global demand as economies begin to stabilize

Actually, the prices for several selected commodities were lower in the year ended March than in the preceding month with the exception of Arabica coffee,” reports the Bank of Tanzania (BoT) monthly economic review.

As economies start opening up, Tanzania gold export is expected to remain strong however gold futures reported a second loss in a row at the end of June. This slight dip by …

Amid strong demand for automotive vehicles, several domestic and foreign manufacturers are planning to expand their production bases in Tanzania. Government of Tanzania also prioritizes the automotive segment as a key revenue generator and is encouraging flow of FDIs in automotive industry – Tanzania Automotive Market, Size, Share, Outlook and Growth Opportunities 2020-2026 (Report)

Tanzania is one of the most promising and fastest growing automobile markets in the region. Tanzania automobile industry is supported by multiple factors such as labour availability, R&D efforts, geographic advantage and government support.

With positive outlook for economy and greater household purchasing power, the automobile sales in the country are set to witness strong surge in sales.

Meet Mr. Edwin Mac Temba the CEO of Mac Auto Express Garage in Dar es Salaam. He gives The Exchange an exclusive breakdown of how the subsector is performing, how it survived during the corona virus outbreak and …