Author: Padili Mikomangwa

• Tanzania is not only striving to bring out the best movies on a global scale, but it is also collaborating with notable figures in the industry
• Over the past decade, the Tanzania film industry had a rather dim shadow, associated with sub-standard movies flooding the market and missing out on the global stage.
• Number of Tanzania films dominating the international streaming platforms—Netflix and Showmax are still low.

Bongo Movies or “movie za Kibongo” – coined term to brand and represent Tanzania cinema, is now taking a rather international tone which is revolutionalizing the way cinema lovers consume and engage their favourite films.

Tanzania’s film industry is currently going through its own renaissance period. Currently, the industry is changing the way stories are written, produced, directed, scored, marketed and distributed. Local productions are among the most viewed Netflix movies in Tanzania, a promising development that will stir the movie industry in …

• The European Union Investment Bank (EIB) have agreed with commercial banks to unlock a whole new business financing valued at around $580 million.
• The EU is optimistic about the government’s efforts to attract businesses and support investment
• Tanzania Development Vision (TDV) 2025 indicates that about 54.3 percent of Tanzania’s small, medium and micro enterprises (MSMEs)

Over the past two years, President Samia’s administration has not only brought back confidence to investors who left Tanzania but attracted new ones and reinforced the old partners, including the United States.

Tanzania is walking confident with almost $1 billion in investment from various companies from the US, thanks to President Samia’s US visit in April 2022.

The European Union Investment Bank (EIB) and other investors have agreed with commercial banks in Tanzania to unlock a whole new business financing valued at around $580 million.

The support is breathing life into additional capital to small …

 The Tanzania Investment Centre (TIC) said that the country garnered a 22.2 percent rise in registered projects over the past five months. 132 additional projects will be registered between July and November of 2022, compared to 102 during the same period in 2021. 

Tanzania is making significant progress in attracting the appropriate investment over time and space. This development is attributable to the current government under the leadership of President Samia Suluhu Hassan, whose dedication to expanding investment is shared by the whole economy. 

Tanzania’s economy is currently at 5,2 percent of GDP (3rd quarter 2022) and 4.9 percent inflation. Notwithstanding this, growth in other vital areas has been crucial to ensure Tanzania’s industrialization goals remain on track. 

 According to a research published by African Mining Market on February 13, the mining industry in East Africa is witnessing tremendous expansion. Whereby, Tanzania’s sector is adding to the GDP whose proportion …

Politics in Tanzania are now taking a different shape compared to the past five years. Opposition parties in Tanzania, such as CHADEMA  and ACT are collaborating with the main leading party CCM to put the nation in the right economic boost trajectory.

Over the past two decades, East Africa has witnessed how political instability has dealt a blow to economic growth. During the 2007/2008 post-election violence in Kenya, the country recorded its worst economic performance. The ripple effects spread to neigbouring countries of Uganda and as far as Rwanda and DRC.  

Tanzania had its own political turmoil between 2015 and 2020 where human rights and press freedom were often infringement. 

However, Tanzania, which has ambitions of becoming an industry-driven economy, is tuning its economic pro-growth policies in the right way to attract the necessary investors and environment for sustainable development. 

This economic vision is now being backed by President Samia …

• Region economic communities such as East African Community (EAC) are opening doors for citizens to expand their hands across various economic opportunities.
• The movement of people over space and time is the bloodline of the modern world’s economies.
• South Africa, Africa’s highest ranked passport, was position 54 globally with South Africans having visa-free access to 106 nations.

A recent World Economic Forum (WEF) report revealed that an American passport holder can access 43 percent of the global GDP without a visa while a United Arab Emirates (UAE) passport gives access to 70 percent of the global GDP.

In contrast, the Nigerian (top African economy) passport holder can access 20 percent of the world, equivalent to 1.5 percent of the global GDP. The measure of access is a wake-up call on assessing strategies and measures regarding the movement of people over space and time in Africa.

Since the launch of the …

Moving from one point to another has never been easier and more convenient as transportation or mobility applications have come to play. In Tanzania, where internet penetration stands at around 25 percent, digital mobility services simplify transportation, thanks to Bolt and bber ride-hailing services.  

However, this was not always the case, as in early 2022, Uber decided to leave Tanzania. Bolt also limited its operations due to regulatory concerns and the increase in transportation taxes imposed by authorities.    

With population expansions in cities such as Dar es Salaam, Arusha, Mwanza, Kilimanjaro, and Dodoma, digital mobility services are again getting attention and usage over time and space. 

Tanzania is witnessing the stark rise of locally developed solutions such as Paisha, Twende, and Linkee, which are challenging the status quo established by Uber and Bolt, which are progressively resuming their services. 

READ:Bolt Food revamps app, incorporates mobile money …

In the modern world, affordable housing is becoming a complex issue for many people, especially in Africa. Across the region, rapid urbanization, which has boomed over the past decade, has made affordable, decent housing challenging precipitating the emergence of informal settlements. 

In the case of Tanzania, Dar es Salaam, the commercial pulse of Tanzania, is struggling to develop cities that bring inclusive growth and job opportunities for people, the Kigamboni City Project tried by failed.. 

A December 2015 publication by the World Bank argued that Africa could have as many as 1.2 billion urban dwellers by 2050 and 4.5 million new residents in informal settlements each year, most of whom cannot afford basic formal housing or access mortgage loans.

The informal settlements or slums is particularly pronounced in big African cities. In 2020, 24.2 percent of the global urban population lived in slums. In Sub-Saharan Africa, the slum …

Africa is huge continent with untapped potential. With the rest of the world opening up for the best international trade and travel relations, Africa is learning and following the same path, with countries such as Uganda, Kenya and Rwanda easing entry restrictions by issuing visa on arrival and hence turning themselves towards open borders opportunities as members of the East African Community (EAC). 

Unrestricted movement of people and goods between African countries holds the key to unlocking this trade potential. That is why trade analysts are touting the African Continent Free Trade Area (AfCTA) as a game changer in inter-Africa trade.  

According to United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), Intra-African trade is currently low at 14.4 percent of total African exports. UNCTAD estimates that the AfCFTA could boost intra-African trade by about 33 percent and cut the continent’s trade deficit by 51 percent.

The possibility of more open …

• The tripling of investment in 2022 is a statement to the world that the East African nation is open for business.
• The success is a straightforward strategic plan from President Samia’s administration since she assumed office in March 2021.

Tanzania Investment Centre (TIC) records show that the year 2022 has made the statement ‘Invest in Tanzania’ hold water. Over the past months, several activities have echoed across multiple fields, including manufacturing, transportation and tourism.

TIC records show that from July to November 2022 there was an increase of 22.2 percent in investment projects (132 registered projects) compared to 102 projects registered during the same period in July to November 2021.

In October, the American firm Moody’s Investors Service changed its status on Tanzania’s outlook from stable to positive, noting that political risks have declined under President Samia Suluhu Hassan’s administration, which concurrently promotes economic development and strong diplomatic ties.

Tanzania’s …

• Green hydrogen is defined as hydrogen produced by splitting water into hydrogen and oxygen using renewable electricity.
• Green hydrogen is the future for Africa, especially in the wake of transitioning from old ways of energy production to modern systems featuring clean, renewable energies.
• The conversation on clean and renewable energy has become interesting over the years as technology and finance in the sector grows.

Africa has the potential to produce $1.06 trillion worth of Green hydrogen energy, according to a European Investment Bank report dubbed ‘Africa’s Extraordinary Green Hydrogen Potential’.

Global demand for hydrogen is projected to rise seven fold by 2050, with Egypt, Kenya, Mauritania, Morocco, Namibia and South Africa primed to ride the demand for green energy.

Another report by Africa Green Hydrogen Alliance by 2050 asserts that green hydrogen could increase the GDP of the six nations by $126 billion, equivalent to 12 percent of their GDP.…