Author: Padili Mikomangwa

The Government of Tanzania and Barrick Gold entered into a partnership last year, and created a new joint venture, Twiga Minerals Corporation.  Barrick Gold’s one-year-old partnership with the Tanzanian government marked new ground as the Canadian miner was awarded 10 new exploration licenses this year and subsequently plans to spend $8 million on exploration, Barrick’s president and chief executive Mark Bristow said during a recent press briefing.  According to Barrick, the North Mara mine—which was at the centre of scrutiny by the Tanzania government is now “re-energized and ahead of plan in the year to date and Bulyanhulu has resumed underground mining operations and is scheduled to restart processing of underground…

Wildfire strikes Africa It is no quite often Tanzania experiences wildfires ravaging world heritage sites, but currently, it is facing fire battle. For nearly five days now wildfire has been causing havoc in Tanzania’s Kilimanjaro mountain and Africa’s highest peak—with 5,895 meters. According to information from The Citizen, still the Tanzania National Parks (TANAPA) until yesterday, still, no new information on the progress of the fire had been produced. According to  TANAPA communication official Pascal Shelutete on Tuesday, the fire which was sparked on Sunday afternoon in Whona—a tourist stopover was caused by porters warming food for tourist, according to…

Central Bank of Tanzania Tanzania Central Bank (Bank of Tanzania) has released it’s monthly economic review bulletin for September 2020, earlier this week, which displayed rather a good prospect for Tanzania’s economy. The bulletin comes within the same week, when the central bank’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) affirmed that Tanzania’s economy will grow by 5.5 per cent in 2020, according to information from The Citizen. Further, the team noted that—the bank’s accommodative monetary policy was being implemented in a fashion that macroeconomic indicator remained positive, despite the impact of coronavirus (COVID-19) on the global economy. However, the monthly economic review…

Digital ID Africa Financial Inclusion We can all agree that there is a possibility in the future, for anyone who can’t be digitally identified, the opportunity to access services are slim to none, especially financial services.   A digital ID is a form of identification where an individual can be known via remote means over digital channels. This features a high degree of verification and authentication, uniquely formed with individual consent and also observes user’s privacy and control over personal data. The latter, user privacy is a matter of a different discussion, but for now, the digital inclusion of an individual is paramount…

Africa Entertainment Industry Nothing soothes the African plains like heart-pumping beats and the melodious ethos of African instruments playing to cultural tunes intertwined with western influences of hip hop and RnB (Rhythm and Blues). As Africa poses the world’s youngest population, the continent is not short of excitement. The region has plenty of singers, dancers, musicians and beatmakers, all hungry to produce the continent’s next hit. But it’s not just music that’s driving the continent’s entertainment industry.   The billion-dollar business of entertainment spans across, television, cinema, radio, video games, e-sports, print and online publishing, book publishing, business-to-business, music, out-of-home, and virtual reality.  Currently, only five countries are taking the lead in churning more revenue and putting talents out…

Africa is big! Africa is growing and is projected to be more populous than it is now. Estimates indicate that nearly 2.8 billion people will inhabit Africa by 2060, according to the World Bank.   The high population could impact African countries depending on each respective country’s reaction toward overpopulation and urbanization.   A crucial factor in this is land. To be more specific, urbanization of African economic hotspots ought to be analyzed effectively, because Africa is not open to the world as it supposed to be.  Not only that, but African cities are changing fast, and Africa requires a robust approach which is close to fool-proof to push the region towards…

Africa is rising and gradually taking over the helm of economic power. This growth is now evenly spread, as other parts of the continent experience a slower growth pace compared to the rest, albeit recent years point to evidence of uneven growth across the continent’s sub-regions.   The African Development Bank’s (AfDB) economic outlook observed that only a third of Africa’s nations met the inclusive mark—downplaying inequality and poverty across the continent.  Inequality and poverty have not been combatted efficiently as that would require deep structural reforms, build resilience for farmers against harsh-weather conditions by providing for smart agricultural schemes and providing fiscal…

The insurance industry in Tanzania is poised for growth and has the potential to pocket more markets over time.   The industry has gained vital milestones as the Tanzanian Insurance Regulatory Authority (TIRA) argues that the country has continued to play its strategic role in the national economy by providing underwriting capacity, making appropriate compensation against risks and contributing towards mobilization of financial resources for Tanzania’s sustainable economic development.  In 2019 former insurance regulator Dr. Baghayo Saqware noted that essential reforms were underway to increase coverage and stimulate economic growth by ensuring implementation of policy and non-policy reforms intended to boost the image of…

It is nature that is going to save us, yes, nature.   The rich arable lands of Tanzania, the recycling business potential in Nigeria and Kenya, and the sustainable-architectural business models in Rwanda and South Africa are few angles that the World Economic Forum (WEF) finds to be vital in channeling better economic solutions and resilience.  This thinking-approach emanates from the second report (of three), The Future of Nature and Business by the WEF which provides practical insights necessary to steer economies around the world towards a nature-positive economy.  It is safe to say the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has given rise to a…

The quarterly economic bulletin published by Bank of Tanzania (BoT) has provided promising prospects for Tanzania’s fast-growing economy.   The Q2 report for the period ending June 2020 recorded satisfactory performance in a few sectors despite the coronavirus grip.  In the reporting period, real gross domestic product grew by 5.7 per cent which is slower than 6.3 per cent in the corresponding quarter in 2019.  In the same period, Tanzania attained a lower-middle-income status as categorized by the World Bank.  According to the central bank’s bulletin, construction, agriculture, transport and storage, mining and quarrying sectors all together were accountable for the 60 per cent mark on growth.  As Tanzania keeps its mast strong amid…