Tanzania seeks Japanese investment to drive industrialization

Tanzania is actively seeking to attract Japanese capital, technology, and expertise to accelerate its industrialization and support the National Development Vision 2050. During investment seminars held in cities including Tokyo, Osaka, Yokohama, and Okinawa, Tanzanian officials emphasized a desire to shift the economic relationship from conventional trade to deep industrial production and technology transfer.

Professor Kitila Mkumbo, Minister of State in the President’s Office for Planning and Investment, stated that the goal is to move from exporting raw materials to producing higher-value products. Key sectors targeted for Japanese investment include automobile manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, agro-processing, energy, infrastructure, and the processing of strategic minerals such as graphite, nickel, cobalt, and lithium.

Tanzania currently hosts 24 registered investment projects involving Japanese interests, valued at approximately $42.7 million and employing 1,182 people. The government aims to at least double this number to 48 projects. Officials are promoting Tanzania as a strategic production and distribution hub for the broader African market, leveraging its membership in the East African Community (EAC) and the Southern African Development Community (SADC), which provide access to roughly 300 million consumers.