Tanzania no longer needs financial support from the International Monetary Fund according to IMF Deputy Managing Director Murilo Portugal quoted in the Guardian. He said that Tanzania had achieved strong growth and low inflation through macroeconomic policies in the past few years. He added that the external position had strengthened in recent years, and debt relief had reduced Tanzania’s external debt burden. He said the role of the Fund now would be to continue supporting Tanzania’s development of a sound macroeconomic policy framework and to encourage reforms in areas that are critical to securing higher and more sustainable growth. Much remained to be done for Tanzania to make greater inroads in reducing poverty and raising living standards especially in creating a business environment conducive to private investment. Continue reading →

The Tanzania Investment Centre has been named the world’s best Investment Promotion Agency (IPA) of the year 2007 by the World Association of Investment Promotion Agencies (WAIPA) during an investment conference in Geneva. WAIPA is under the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD). More than 200 WAIPA members had competed for the award. Other winners were: ‘Invest in Portugal’ and South Korea’s ‘Trade IPA’. Continue reading →

Different views
The East African (October 30) compared the different views on the economy which had been expressed by President Kikwete and Bank of Tanzania (BoT) Governor Daudi Balali. Kikwete was quoted as saying on October 2 that the economy was upbeat, the budgetary performance undisturbed, and – despite the power crisis – the economy was stable and on course. Continue reading →

(Exchange rates: £1 = 2,426 TShs, 1US$ = 1,244 TShs on August 6th 2006 )

The economy recorded a lacklustre performance for the year 2005. Though there was an increase in value of exports by 13.8% to $1,676.3 million this was matched by a similar increase in value of imports to $ 2,661 million leaving a trade deficit of $985 million equivalent to 5.8% of GDP. There was a 10.8% decrease in foreign reserves to $2,048 m which is equivalent to 6.4 months of imports as opposed to the targeted 7 months. This may have contributed to the 3.6% depreciation of the shilling to an average of TShs 1,128.8 to the dollar. Continue reading →

Exchange rates: 1 £ = TShs 2,124 1 US$ = TShs 1,216

The onset of the fourth government in the history of Tanzania came without the usual stories of inheriting empty coffers which is a very good sign of things to come. The market welcomed the new government enthusiastically with the CRDB Bank announcing a record profit of TShs 4bn. However, the value of the Shilling has been falling while headline inflation continued on an upward trend to 5.4% in February 06 from 4.5% in September ‘05. Continue reading →

By Joseph Kilasara

Tanzania has come of age with the onset of the fourth phase government as we like to call it. The third phase government of Mr Mkapa has made tremendous achievements in addressing the macroeconomics fundamentals of the economy with the exception of unemployment which remains astronomically high.

At the start of Mkapa’s government in 1995, the economy was in a dire state with inflation hovering around 29% and growing; the currency was depreciating daily; foreign donors had deserted the country; tax evasion and corruption, both high level and petty, was seen as a norm; and, as the government was not collecting revenue, salaries were extremely meagre and frequently delayed. For some time the economic and business environment was all but chaotic and the government had lost its credibility and was becoming more of a joke. Continue reading →

In an effort to boost the capacity of local microfinance institutions the Governor of the Central Bank of Tanzania, David Balali, has launched the ‘The Financial Sector Deepening Trust (FSDT)’. The objectives of the fund are to support any organization that contributes to realizing the objectives of the government’s ‘Poverty Reduction Strategy Plan (PRSP).’ The Trust’s investments will include research and development of financial markets, products and services, training, capacity building, strengthening smaller financial institutions as well as developing regulatory and supervisory frameworks – The Guardian.

The Guardian has also reported some good news for coffee farmers in Kilimanjaro thanks to the introduction of the Tanzania Kilimanjaro brand initiated by a company called Peet’s Coffee & Tea. The coffee is being marketed as a single origin coffee in the US as the result of a project funded by USAID, the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs, Farm Africa and other private donors.

Creditors have been closing in on the once high-flying flag of the road transport sector – The Scandinavian Express Services Limited – which operates throughout East Africa with its luxury buses. The liquidation bid has been filed in the High Court by Shell Tanzania seeking to recover about Tzs 1.5bn in unpaid oil supplies. This petition was immediately followed by those of several major local banks leaving the future of the company in a gloomy state. Nevertheless, this could in a way be a blessing in disguise to the credit market in general as it will instill a much needed debt-repayment culture.

Exchange rate: 1US$ = Tzs 1,136

At the G8 summit in Scotland in July President Mkapa received assurances that in view of its impressive record in economic management, poverty reduction, good governance and good use of aid and previous debt relief, Tanzania can expect to receive a significant share of the new resources being added to the aid programme. The actual amount will be worked out by the boards of the IMF, the World Bank, and the African Development Bank over the next few months. The President said that to him, debt relief was the most assured form of development assistance as it freed revenues in his government’s budget to help in poverty reduction. Continue reading →

Exchange rates: £1 = Shs 2,010
$1 = Shs 1,110

In its third review of Tanzania’s ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE under the three year Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility (PRGF) arrangement, reported in the Guardian, Agustin Carstens, the Deputy Managing Director of the IMF said that the results were excellent. Tanzania had made further strides in enhancing macroeconomic stability and addressing key impediments to growth through the accelerated pursuit of structural reforms. The report said the completion of the review enabled a further release of about $4.2million bringing total disbursements under the programme to the equivalent $17 million. Continue reading →

EXCHANGE RATES:
£1 = Shs 1,925
$1 = Shs 1,355
Continued improvement of the environment for investors saw foreign investments to Tanzania between January and June last year surge to an estimated Tsh.268.7 million. Investments included projects in paper manufacturing, textiles, cement, gas pipeline building, edible oil and soap manufacturing and tourism. Investment worth Tsh. 68.3 million was made in the Mufindi Paper Mills, which, after rehabilitation, should create 2,200 new jobs. The China-Tanzania Friendship Textile Mill, after rehabilitation, will have 1,269 vacancies, while Premier Cashew Industries Ltd expects to create 3,555 new jobs. Three local business firms have made deals with Dutch companies to develop new businesses in honey, beeswax and production of enriched flour meal – Guardian. Continue reading →