Tanzania

Navigating riches and challenges on a foreign-led growth horizon

C3

SENSITIVE RISK for enterprise

  • Economic risk

  • Business environment risk

  • Political risk

  • Commercial risk

  • Financing risk

  • Economic risk

  • Business environment risk

  • Political risk

  • Commercial risk

  • Financing risk

Last updated in August 2023.

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GDP
USD68bn (World ranking 78, World Bank 2021)
Population
61.5mn (World ranking 23, World Bank 2021)
Form of state

Presidential Republic

Head of state Samia Suluhu Hassan (President)
Next elections 2025 (presidential and legislative)
  • Large endowment of mineral (gold, copper, nickel, natural gas) and vegetal (tobacco, coffee, cotton, cashew) natural resources in a relatively stable and secure environment.
  • Demographic potential with good literacy rates and growing development of infrastructure networks connecting landlocked producers in the region with logistics hubs at sea.
  • Strong inward investment flows and positive relations with all major donors and international multilateral bodies.
  • Growing foreign debt and imports of capital goods, not sufficiently balanced by an increase in non-commodity related domestic production.
  • Despite poverty-reduction efforts, half the population still lives on less than USD2 a day (2011 at purchasing power parity) and nearly 60% in moderate to severe food insecurity.
  • Although revenues are increasing, about a third of it is spent on debt servicing, leaving limited room for measures to support the neediest and new debt, which is capped at levels agreed with the IMF.

Trade structure by destination/origin

(% of total, 2021)

Exports Rank Imports
India 18.6%
1
31.9% China
United Arab Emirates 15.3%
2
10.5% India
South Africa 8.0%
3
8.9% United Arab Emirates
Switzerland 7.1%
4
7.8% Saudi Arabia
Uganda 6.1%
5
3.2% Dem. Rep. of the Congo

Trade structure by product

(% of total, 2021)

Exports Rank Imports
Gold, non-monetary (excluding gold ores and concentrates) 37.0%
1
14.9% Petroleum, petroleum products and related materials
Non-ferrous metals 8.7%
2
7.7% Road vehicles
Coffee, tea, cocoa, spices, and manufactures thereof 8.0%
3
6.1% Iron and steel
Vegetables and fruits 7.7%
4
4.7% Plastics in primary forms
Cereals and cereal preparations 7.3%
5
4.3% Specialised machinery
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