Mwanza to have Sh88bn mall

Mwanza. Mwanza City readies itself to be the home of one of East Africa’s largest shopping malls.

A nearly $40 million (about Sh88 billion on the prevailing exchange rate) ultra-modern shopping complex with over 32,000 square metres off Kirumba Street will act as the gateway to the Great Lakes region. The mall, almost the same size as Nairobi’s Westgate, is executed in partnership with the Local Authority Pensions Fund (LAPF) as financier and the Mwanza City Council as the landowner.

Works official Zuberi Magazini says the construction of the complex is in final touches and tenants are streaming in for strategic spaces.

TSN supermarket, Woolworths, CRDB Bank, National Microfinance Bank and the National Bank of Commerce are among the first major occupants of the building.

The complex has a parking lot for 700 vehicles and 100 motorcycles. Mwanza City Council (MCC) executive director Halifa Hida says Ilemela Council and MCC will double their revenue through business licence, property tax and service levy as well as dividends, which could as well be re-invested to increase shareholding.

Besides the councils, the central government also will benefit through revenues collected by the Tanzania Revenue Authority. For many, the Rocky City Shopping Mall adds up on the metropolitan beautification as it is expected to attract a number of tourists.

Designs show the mall will serve more than 500,000 people from within Mwanza City; and it will attract more people from the whole Great Lakes region and tourists from outside the area.

Mwanza City mayor Stanislaus Mabula says the mall also will serve as a marketing outlet for local produce such as fish, horticulture and rice. “The existence of the shopping mall provides a marketing centre of international standards for selling and buying different commodities of local and international manufacturers.”

“Moreover, shopping is a therapy by nature and shopping malls are lifestyle changer” Mr Mabula notes.

How idea came, the mayor says, following the rapid growth in population by early 2000 and the increase of the middle class among other reasons, the Mwanza old central market became inadequate to serve the citizens.

Since then the city council embarked on plans to develop an ultra-modern market for its diversified citizenry.

Initially, the idea was to improve the old central market, but thanks to partnership with LAPF, it was decided that the commercial complex be developed in a more spacious area, easily accessible and on the outskirts of the central business district.

“Being part of service delivery, the commercial complex, which is of state-of-the-art in nature, shall operate as a one-stop-shopping centre to easily provide people in Mwanza and the whole Great Lakes region to shop,” Mr Mabula says.