Minister of State in the President’s Office (Planning and Investment), Prof Kitila Mkumbo, hands gifts to Japan External Trade Organization (Jetro) Executive Director Mr Suzuki Takafumi. PHOTO | COURTESY
Dar es Salaam. Tanzania has stepped up efforts to attract Japanese capital, technology and expertise to support industrialisation, with the government seeking to deepen economic ties with one of Asia’s leading industrial powers.
The government wants to use its investment promotion campaign in Japan to attract companies capable of establishing industries, creating jobs, transferring technology and integrating Tanzanian producers into regional and global value chains.
The campaign, which began yesterday and runs until September 18, brings together Tanzanian and Japanese investors, business leaders and other stakeholders in Tokyo, Osaka, Yokohama and Okinawa.
Speaking at the Tanzania Investment and Business Seminar in Tokyo, Minister of State in the President’s Office (Planning and Investment), Prof Kitila Mkumbo, said Tanzania was looking beyond capital inflows to investments that would strengthen domestic productive capacity.
“Our objective is not simply to attract more projects. Our objective is to build industries,” he said.
Tanzania currently has 24 registered investment projects involving Japanese interests, with capital of about $42.7 million and around 1,182 jobs created.
Prof Mkumbo said the government wanted to double the number of projects to at least 48 as the country begins implementing its Development Vision 2050. However, he said the quality and impact of the investments would be more important than the number of projects.
“We want investments that create jobs, transfer technology, strengthen local industries and connect the country to regional and global value chains,” he said.
The minister urged Japanese companies to consider Tanzania as a production, supply and distribution base for the wider African market, citing the country’s strategic location on the Indian Ocean and membership of the East African Community (EAC) and Southern African Development Community (SADC).
Together, he said, the regional blocs provide access to a market of about 300 million consumers.
The government is pitching opportunities in agro-processing, food manufacturing, automotive assembly, electronics, pharmaceuticals, machinery, logistics, energy, ICT, infrastructure, tourism and the blue economy.
Prof Mkumbo said Tanzania was particularly interested in investments that could help develop local suppliers and enhance the country’s ability to produce goods for domestic and export markets.
He also highlighted reforms at the Tanzania Investment and Special Economic Zones Authority (Tiseza), saying they were intended to improve coordination among government institutions, speed up investment facilitation and strengthen investor aftercare.
“Investors need more than opportunities. They need confidence. They need predictability. They need transparency. They need efficiency,” he said.
Japan already has a significant commercial presence in Tanzania, with more than 40 Japanese companies operating in the country in sectors including agriculture, infrastructure, energy, manufacturing, digital technology and critical minerals.
The seminar also brought together representatives of the Japan External Trade Organization (Jetro), including Executive Director Suzuki Takafumi, for discussions on strengthening investment and business cooperation.
The government’s latest push comes as Tanzania seeks to use foreign investment as a catalyst for industrialisation and economic transformation under Vision 2050.
