DAR ES SALAAM: TANZANIA’s export earnings surged by 40 per cent in 2024 to reach 3.94 billion US dollars from African markets alone as the government intensified efforts to secure reliable markets for locally produced goods and unlock thousands of new jobs for young people.
Speaking to the media this week, Minister for Industry and Trade Judith Kapinga said the strong performance reflects the growing impact of regional and global market access on Tanzania’s industrial and commercial sectors, saying that assured markets remain central to sustaining production and expanding trade.
“We produce goods with the expectation of selling them both domestically and internationally. What we need are reliable markets,” the minister said, adding that the expansion of trade has created employment opportunities, particularly for young people as investment in industry and commerce continues to grow.
She said intra-African trade under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) has been a major driver of the export surge, explaining that the growth was driven by increased exports of agricultural and industrial products, including coffee, tobacco, glass products, cereals, spices and sisal fibres.
Ms Kapinga said AfCFTA has opened new markets for Tanzanian products in countries such as Nigeria, Morocco, Senegal, Ethiopia, Ghana, Algeria, Djibouti and Guinea, creating fresh opportunities for exporters across multiple sectors.
“On this basis, I would like to inform Tanzanians that this is a major opportunity especially for young people to establish exportoriented businesses in agriculture, value addition, spices, food processing, clothing and industrial products,” she said.
She added that the government has already prepared and launched a National Strategy for the Implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area to ensure citizens are well positioned to benefit from the continental market and to maximise gains for the national economy.
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Beyond Africa, the minister said Tanzania continues to strengthen its presence in the European market. Exports to the European Union rose from 633.5 million US dollars in 2023 to 686.3 million US dollars in 2024, representing a 7.6 per cent increase. The rise, she said was largely driven by higher exports of avocados, cocoa, coffee, tobacco and minerals. Turning to Asia, Ms Kapinga said Tanzania earned 2.84 billion US dollars from exports to Asian markets in 2024, compared to 2.92 billion US dollars in 2023.
Key products contributing to exports to Asia included cashew nuts, pulses, avocados, cotton, groundnuts and goat meat. She said the availability of these markets; alongside others the government continues to pursue provides a solid foundation for expanding export volumes and diversifying Tanzania’s trade portfolio. In this regard, she said that the government is in the final stages of preparing a National Export Strategy that will deliberately place young people at the centre of its implementation.
“We want young people to be among the primary beneficiaries of access to better markets for Tanzanian products and that is why we are ensuring this strategy is inclusive,” she said.
Ms Kapinga however stressed that effective participation in trade also requires addressing structural challenges, particularly the need to accelerate the formalisation of businesses and further improve digital systems that support investors and entrepreneurs.
She said the government has made significant progress in simplifying business registration and licensing procedures, while acknowledging that further improvements are still needed. She emphasised that regulatory institutions are being reoriented to play a facilitative role rather than acting purely as enforcement bodies.
“When we find a business operating without a licence, our approach is not to close it down, but to support it to formalise. This helps businesses grow while also expanding the revenue base,” she said.
As part of ongoing reforms, the minister said all business registration and licensing services are now offered online through electronic platforms, including the Online Registration System (ORS), the Tanzania National Business Portal (TNBP) and the Beneficial Ownership Portal (BO).
The use of these systems, she added, has significantly improved service delivery by making processes faster and more accessible to stakeholders. She further said that the systems are continuously being upgraded to enhance user-friendliness and to accelerate business formalisation in support of sustainable economic development.
Ms Kapinga said the ORS has been integrated with 29 government and private institutions, enabling seamless access to information required at various stages of institutional operations and service delivery.
To further strengthen service delivery, she said the Business Registrations and Licensing Agency (BRELA) established a Customer Service Call Centre where they receive between 300 and 500 calls daily. She said the call centre has enhanced communication with customers and improved the speed at which challenges are addressed, saying that all calls are recorded and archived to support accountability and continuous service improvement.
Through these measures, the government aims to consolidate export growth, widen youth participation in trade and industry and position Tanzania as a competitive player in regional and global markets while advancing inclusive and sustainable economic development.