Dodoma. Tanzania has identified six priority areas under a five-year industrial development programme with the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (Unido), which is expected to mobilise nearly $7 million to strengthen manufacturing, attract investment and create jobs.
The Programme for Country Partnership (PCP) 2026-2031 will focus on industrial policy and governance, value addition, skills development, investment and exports, cleaner production, and energy access and efficiency.
Deputy Minister for Industry and Trade Dennis Londo launched the programme on Tuesday, November 3, 2026, saying it would address structural challenges facing the industrial sector and support the country’s Development Vision 2050 ambitions.
Mr Londo said Tanzania needed to move beyond exporting raw materials and concentrate on processing its natural resources into finished products to generate greater economic value.
‘No country has achieved development by producing large quantities of raw materials and exporting them as they are. Countries that have succeeded have transformed their resources into finished products,’ he said.
The programme is expected to mobilise nearly $7 million over five years through government contributions, development partners, climate financing and private sector investment.
Mr Londo described the PCP as a government-led partnership bringing together public institutions, manufacturers, entrepreneurs, technical experts and development partners rather than a stand-alone Unido project.
It will cover Mainland Tanzania and Zanzibar, taking into account their respective industrial priorities and investment opportunities.
The six priorities include strengthening industrial policies and institutions; developing sustainable value chains by linking agricultural, livestock, forestry, mining and marine producers with processing industries; and addressing shortages of technical and professional skills.
Others are promoting investment and exports to expand production and competitiveness, encouraging cleaner manufacturing and circular economy practices, and improving access to reliable energy and its efficient use to reduce production costs.
Unidoi representative Lorence Ansermet said industrial transformation required more than infrastructure investment, stressing the importance of partnerships, financing and policy reforms.
‘The real success of the PCP will depend on the partnerships built, the investments we mobilise, the reforms we support and, most importantly, the tangible results we deliver,’ she said.
Ms Ansermet said the programme would also promote skills development among young people and women, particularly competencies needed in modern industries and emerging technologies.
Mr Londo said the private sector would be central to achieving Tanzania’s industrial ambitions, noting that businesses were expected to contribute about 70 percent of the resources needed to implement Development Vision 2050.
He said the government was also expanding opportunities for small and medium-sized enterprises, particularly those outside major urban centres.
Under the 2026/27 financial arrangements, an additional five percent of local government authorities’ own-source revenue has been allocated to productive infrastructure, including production facilities, equipment, skills training and markets.
The ministry will work with the President’s Office-Regional Administration and Local Government (PO-RALG) and the Small Industries Development Organisation (Sido) to implement the initiative.
Mr Londo said stronger links between large industries and smaller businesses would enable local enterprises to supply manufacturers, create jobs and spread the benefits of industrial investment.
He also cited the Mchuchuma coal, Liganga iron ore and Engaruka soda ash projects as potential sources of raw materials for steel, machinery, agricultural equipment, construction materials, chemicals and glass industries.
Zanzibar’s representative, Mr Yahaya Haji, said the partnership would strengthen industrial cooperation and investment across the Union.
He urged producers to improve capacity and competitiveness to benefit from opportunities under the African Continental Free Trade Area.
Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Industry and Trade, Ambassador Waziri Salum, said conference recommendations would be translated into an implementation plan specifying responsible institutions, timelines and performance indicators.
He said the PCP would complement Tanzania’s Sustainable Industrial Development Policy 2025, Zanzibar’s Industrial Policy 2019 and the development visions of both sides of the Union.