Category: The Citizen

. President Samia Suluhu Hassan has directed town planning authorities in Zanzibar to allocate designated areas for sports and children’s entertainment facilities.

She also urged authorities to ensure the spaces are protected against encroachment and conversion to alternative uses.

President Hassan made the statement on Wednesday, August 12, 2026, during the launch of a children’s amusement park in Kizimkazi, South Unguja, as part of the Kizimkazi Festival 2026. . President Samia Suluhu Hassan has directed town planning authorities in Zanzibar to allocate designated areas for sports and children’s entertainment facilities.

She also urged authorities to ensure the spaces are protected against encroachment and conversion to alternative uses.

President Hassan made the statement on Wednesday, August 12, 2026, during the launch of a children’s amusement park in Kizimkazi, South Unguja, as part of the Kizimkazi Festival 2026. Following this increase, President Hassan invited investors to expand child-related services, including toy shops and other facilities that can help children enjoy entertainment while learning.

She officially handed over the parks to regional and district leaders, emphasising that generated revenues should be preserved and used for infrastructure maintenance to ensure longevity and long-term service to children.

President Hassan also urged parents and guardians to continue raising children on foundations of faith, morality and love, stressing that the greatest heritage society can leave behind is not just property, but a safe, peaceful nation enabling them to achieve their dreams.

Minister for Social Development, Gender, Elderly and Children Anna Atanas Paul said rural children also deserve better environments to play, learn and nurture their talents.

She stressed the importance of having such centres across all regions of Zanzibar to ensure children enjoy equal opportunities to grow in physically, mentally and socially enriching environments.

‘These centres should not be viewed merely as sports and entertainment spaces, but as vital components of child rearing and welfare,’ she said.

According to Ms Paul, the Ministry has begun reaching rural children through Day Centres, aimed at providing care and early learning from as young as two years.

“The government aims to narrow the opportunity gap between urban and rural children, giving every child the chance to start their life journey in a conducive environment,” said the minister.

South Unguja Regional Commissioner, Ms Hamida Mussa Khamis, said the region continues to expand opportunities for children to access safe spaces for play and health promotion following the opening of designated children’s grounds in Kizimkazi.

She noted that launching the grounds is a crucial step aligned with the rapid development momentum witnessed across the region and neighbouring areas.

“These grounds have been specifically prepared for children aged between one and 15 years, aiming to provide a safe, friendly environment to play, learn and build health,” said the Regional Commissioner.

She added that the rising child population and regional development make demand for more grounds essential, preventing children from playing in unsafe environments.

Dar es Salaam. The government is moving to reduce the time oil tankers spend at the port by improving the handling, storage and distribution of petroleum products, in a move aimed at cutting costs and improving efficiency across Tanzania’s fuel supply chain.

Speaking on August 14, 2026, during an inspection of petroleum infrastructure at the Tanzania Ports Authority (TPA) and Tanzania International Petroleum Reserves Limited (TIPER), Ministry of Energy Permanent Secretary responsible for Petroleum and Gas Dr James Mataragio said vessels arriving in the country should discharge their cargo and leave without unnecessary delays.

‘Our expectation as the government is to see ships arrive, discharge petroleum products and leave. Every institution must understand its responsibility and prepare accordingly,’ he said.

Dr Mataragio said the government was working to improve coordination among institutions involved in the importation and handling of petroleum products to prevent vessels from remaining at the port longer than necessary.

He said slow receipt and clearance of petroleum products at some privately owned storage facilities was among the factors contributing to prolonged stays by oil tankers.

The delays create bottlenecks in the petroleum supply chain, forcing vessels to wait before their cargo can be discharged and increasing congestion at the port.

Dr Mataragio directed Petroleum Bulk Procurement Agency (PBPA) Chief Executive Officer Erasto Simon to strengthen oversight of privately owned storage facilities and ensure operators invest in infrastructure capable of handling petroleum products efficiently.

He said storage facility owners should upgrade pumps and other equipment, particularly at facilities where ageing or inadequate infrastructure was slowing the receipt of fuel supplies.

‘Delays at the port increase operational costs, including charges associated with vessels waiting to discharge their cargo, and these costs can eventually have an impact on petroleum prices for consumers,’ he said.

The government’s intervention will therefore target the wider petroleum supply chain, from the arrival of vessels at the port to the transfer of fuel into storage facilities.

PBPA Chief Executive Officer Erasto Simon said the agency would bring together key petroleum industry stakeholders, including oil marketing companies (OMCs) and TPA, to review the Standard Operating Procedure Manual governing the handling of petroleum products.

‘We will meet with key stakeholders in the petroleum sector, including oil marketing companies and TPA, to review and improve the Standard Operating Procedure Manual. The review will clearly define the responsibilities of every stakeholder, set timelines for implementation and strengthen accountability throughout the process,’ he said.

The review is expected to improve coordination between vessels and petroleum storage facilities, reduce the time oil tankers spend at the port and limit costs associated with delays.

The government’s focus on improving petroleum handling comes as efficient fuel imports and distribution remain important to transport operators, businesses and households that depend on reliable supplies.

During the inspection, Dr Mataragio was accompanied by Petroleum Commissioner Goodluck Shirima, PBPA Chief Executive Officer Erasto Simon, Dar es Salaam Port Manager Abed Gallus Abed, Energy and Water Utilities Regulatory Authority (Ewura) Eastern Zone Manager Engineer Lorivii Long’idu and experts from the Ministry of Energy.

. Reaching the age of 40 or above is associated with experience, confidence and professional maturity but for some workers, those years are increasingly becoming a source of anxiety in the workplace.

Concerns over age discrimination are emerging as some employees and younger colleagues associate older workers with resistance to technology, limited adaptability and declining productivity.

For workers affected, the discrimination is not always expressed through formal policies. Sometimes it comes in casual remarks, jokes or assumptions about what people in their 40s and above can or cannot do. Paul Jonas, 44, an employee at a bank whose name he asked to be withheld, experienced such first-hand during a staff event.

While organising teams for games at the event, a junior colleague shouted: ‘You are old already.’

‘I was very surprised that such a comment was made in that kind of environment,’ Mr Jonas says.

He responded: ‘Yes, I am older than you but let’s focus on what lies ahead of us.’

The colleague then asked why people became upset when they were told they were old.

For Mr Jonas, the exchange illustrated how age-related comments can be dismissed as harmless humour even when they make colleagues uncomfortable or undermine their sense of belonging. Nurse Mgala Mwakatundu, 47, says she has encountered similar attitudes since her late 30s.

During an official meeting, her supervisor referred to employees in her age group as ‘those old nurses’. Junior colleagues turned the comment into a joke, triggering a discussion among staff before employees in their 40s and 50s felt valued and respected again.

‘It is important for people to respect one another regardless of our differences,’ Ms Mwakatundu says.

She argues that workplaces can benefit from having employees of different generations working together because experience and new skills can complement each other.

Human resources expert Lugano Bwenda says workers in their 40s can be among an organisation’s most valuable employees because of the practical experience, professional judgement and institutional knowledge they have accumulated.

He rejects the assumption that employees who began their careers before the rapid expansion of digital technology cannot adapt to technological change.

‘When their experience is combined with digital skills through continuous training, they become exceptionally productive and difficult to replace,’ Mr Bwenda says.

However, he identifies family responsibilities as one of the challenges faced by many mid-career professionals, with some simultaneously supporting children and ageing parents.

He says employers should consider flexible working arrangements rather than treating such responsibilities as a disadvantage.

Mr Bwenda cites his own experience of working three days from the office and two days from home, an arrangement that allowed him to care for his seriously ill mother while continuing to meet his professional responsibilities.

‘Such experiences demonstrate that flexible work policies not only help employees manage life’s responsibilities but also enable organisations to retain experienced, committed and high-performing talent,’ he says.

For Nehemia Kachenje, 44, the problem goes beyond the workplace.

‘Many young people consider those in their 40s to be too old, and the language used to describe them is often discriminatory,’ he says.

Mr Kachenje says the solution is not for older workers simply to compete with younger employees, but for organisations to combine the strengths of different generations.

‘While the younger generation may have stronger digital skills, people in their 40s possess extensive knowledge and experience that are highly valuable in the workplace. What is needed is to combine the strengths of both generations and strike a balance that reduces tension and promotes mutual respect,’ he says.

Employment lawyer Edson Kaindoa says employers can also address age bias through their recruitment and employment practices.

He recommends avoiding unnecessary age restrictions in job advertisements and assessing candidates according to their skills, qualifications and performance rather than their age.

A career adviser, who requested anonymity, says technological change should not automatically be equated with youth.

Many mid-career professionals continue to acquire digital skills through training and professional development, she says, warning that employers who overlook experienced workers could lose valuable expertise.

‘As populations age and demand for skilled professionals grows, organisations that embrace age-diverse workforces may benefit from a wider range of perspectives, stronger institutional memory and improved decision-making,’ she says.

. Coca-Cola Kwanza has received the United Nations Business Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Award 2026 from the Global Compact Network Tanzania (GCNT) in recognition of its contribution to advancing SDG 6: Clean Water and Sanitation.

The award recognises a project implemented under the Coca-Cola system’s Africa Water Stewardship Initiative, which represents a nearly $25 million investment to help address critical water-related challenges in local communities across 20 African countries by 2030.

In Tanzania, the initiative involves a $1.94 million investment focused on restoring the Ruvu Basin, a vital water source for Dar es Salaam residents and a lifeline for communities, farms and businesses across eastern Tanzania. The project is a joint effort involving the Coca-Cola system in Tanzania, Global Water Challenge, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and the Wami-Ruvu Basin Water Board.

It aims to deliver tangible impact through initiatives including tree planting and the adoption of more climate-resilient livelihood practices, benefiting at least 2,000 farmers.

The award was presented by GCNT during the third edition of the Business SDG Awards Gala on June 26, 2026.

GCNT recognised the project for demonstrating a commitment to embedding the Sustainable Development Goals into core business operations and contributing to Tanzania’s 2030 Agenda.

‘We are immensely proud of this recognition, which demonstrates the impact of collective action,’ said David Chait, general manager of Coca-Cola Kwanza, a company in the Coca-Cola Beverages Africa group.

‘Water is essential to people and ecosystems and is the main ingredient in most of our products. We aim to promote water stewardship within our business and beyond, to increase water-use efficiency and treat and return safe water to communities.

‘This project in Tanzania is a strong example of our deep-rooted commitment to Africa and our belief that we are most successful when we work hand in hand with our partners and dedicated implementing organisations.’

The award-winning project focuses on improving water replenishment through nature-based solutions, restoring catchment areas and supporting more sustainable water management in the Ngerengere catchment of the Ruvu sub-basin.

The recognition highlights the importance of partnerships in addressing complex water challenges and the role of collaborative action in building a more sustainable and water-secure future for Tanzania.

Tanzania’s pageantry scene has ushered in a new group of beauty queens, with Jihan Dimack crowned Miss Grand Tanzania 2026 and six other contestants selected to represent the country at international competitions.

The grand finale, held on Saturday, marked the culmination of a competition that began in April with nationwide auditions and brought together aspiring models and beauty queens from different parts of the country.

Dimack, representing Mwanza, emerged as the overall winner, making a notable return to the national pageantry spotlight nearly a decade after her first major title.

Her victory adds another chapter to an already established pageant career. Dimack was crowned Miss Universe Tanzania in 2016 and went on to represent Tanzania at the Miss Universe competition in the Philippines in January 2017. She had earlier finished as second runner-up at Miss Tanzania 2014.

She has also built a career in fashion, working as a professional model and appearing in advertising campaigns and fashion publications. Earlier in her career, she worked as an administration officer while pursuing modelling.

Her return to competitive pageantry comes at a time when Tanzania’s beauty industry is experiencing renewed momentum, with national competitions increasingly serving as gateways to major international pageants.

The Miss Grand Tanzania 2026 competition officially began with auditions on April 25 in Dar es Salaam. More than 50 aspiring contestants took part in the initial screening, with 20 finalists eventually selected to proceed to the national competition.

The auditions assessed contestants on areas including confidence, stage presence, personality and communication.

Dimack succeeds Beatrice Alex Akyoo, who won the Miss Grand Tanzania title in August 2025 after representing Dar es Salaam.

Beyond the main crown, the Miss Grand Tanzania finale also served as a platform for selecting Tanzania’s representatives for several international beauty competitions.

Prisca Lyimo, who represented Arusha, was crowned Miss Cosmo Tanzania 2026. She succeeds Jesca Michael Micca, Tanzania’s representative at Miss Cosmo 2025.

Celine Edson, representing Shinyanga, received the Miss Earth Tanzania 2026 title. She succeeds Amina Abdulkadri Jigge, who represented Tanzania at Miss Earth 2025.

Agape Anthony, who represented Kigoma, was named Miss International Tanzania 2026, taking over from Efrazia Makene, Tanzania’s representative at Miss International 2025.

The remaining titles went to Rose Uisso, who was crowned Miss Global Tanzania 2026; Zulfa Yazid, who received the Miss Africa Golden Tanzania 2026 title; and Namala Patrick, who was crowned Miss Tourism Tanzania 2026.

The expanded list of titles reflects the direction taken by the current Miss Grand Tanzania franchise, which has increasingly used its national competition to identify contestants for several international pageant platforms rather than focusing solely on the Miss Grand International crown.

The model was already evident in the 2025 edition, when contestants were selected to represent Tanzania at competitions including Miss Earth, Miss Cosmo, Miss International and other international pageants.

The development comes as Tanzania’s wider pageant calendar continues to expand.

The Miss Grand Tanzania franchise returned to national competition in 2024 after several years without a standalone national contest. The organisation had previously held national editions in 2017 and 2018 before a break in the franchise. It returned under new management in 2024, with Nazimizye Mdolo leading the current organisation.

The 2025 and 2026 editions have since helped restore Miss Grand Tanzania as one of the country’s prominent platforms for beauty, fashion and international representation.

The growth also mirrors increased activity across Tanzania’s pageantry sector, with competitions such as Miss World Tanzania and Miss Grand Tanzania forming part of a busy national calendar.

The Citizen reported in April that both competitions were scheduled for major events in Dar es Salaam, reflecting the growing importance of pageantry within the country’s fashion and entertainment industries.

The Cereals and Other Produce Regulatory Authority (COPRA) has won two awards at the 2026 Nanenane agricultural exhibitions, emerging third in two separate categories at the national and Lake Zone events.

At the national Nanenane exhibition in Dodoma, COPRA secured third place in the category for government agencies, authorities and commissions providing services and engaging in production.

The authority also finished third in the Lake Zone exhibition in the category for management and regulatory institutions. The awards recognise COPRA’s participation in the eight-day exhibitions, where it engaged farmers, traders and other stakeholders on issues including production, quality, standards, trade and markets for cereals and other produce.

During the exhibitions, COPRA conducted seminars on regulations governing avocado production, contract farming, and quality control and standards.

Stakeholders also used Cocoa Day to discuss opportunities in domestic markets, value addition and the role of young people in the cocoa business, including opportunities in chocolate, cocoa butter and cosmetics production.

COPRA further organised an Agribusiness Influencers Day, bringing content creators together with its officials and experts to discuss production, regulations, trade formalisation, market systems and the COPRA Management Information System (MIS).

The engagement was intended to equip content creators with accurate information to improve public understanding of the cereals and other produce sector.

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The authority also facilitated practical sessions on the use and value addition of pulses, including food-tasting activities and demonstrations of different recipes.

Beyond domestic engagement, COPRA held discussions with regional stakeholders, including officials from South Sudan, on agricultural trade, regional markets and digital systems.

The authority said the recognition would encourage it to continue improving services, strengthening markets, formalising trade and enhancing the competitiveness of Tanzanian agricultural produce in domestic, regional and international markets.

COPRA said the efforts were also in line with the implementation of Tanzania’s National Development Vision 2050.

‘Know the Market; Increase Productivity to Implement Vision 2050.’

. The government and development partners have launched a plan to construct 1,000 footbridges within five years to reduce deaths and injuries caused by dangerous river crossings.

Data shared on Thursday, August 13, 2026, by Helvetas Tanzania’s Safe Footbridges Construction project manager, Ms Rosemary Kayanda, show that between 14 and 15 people die every year while crossing the Ruvu River, and a similar number are injured.

Ms Kayanda was speaking at the closing of a 15-day training programme, hinting that the initiative had begun with six model bridges in Morogoro Rural, Mvomero, Malinyi and Ulanga districts. ‘We are looking at 1,000 bridges within five years. We are starting with six bridges in Tanzania, expecting to build as many bridges as possible,’ she said.

Funded by the Lloyd’s Register Foundation, the three-year project will start in Morogoro before expanding to other regions.

Ms Kayanda said Helvetas had identified communities facing serious challenges crossing rivers during rainy seasons, limiting access to healthcare, education and markets.

‘Citizens have been unable to reach healthcare services, pupils fail to attend school during rains, and farmers cannot transport their produce to the market,’ she said.

She said some pupils had gone for up to two months without attending classes when rivers swelled, while patients failed to reach health facilities and farmers left produce to rot, noting that crocodiles in some rivers further increase the danger.

Tununguo, where the Ruvu River crossing is located, and Misengele Matuli in Mvomero District, where the Mbamba River is found, are among affected areas.

Ms Kayanda said the bridge technology was cost-effective, allowing several structures to be built simultaneously.

Each bridge costs between Sh50 million and Sh70 million and can last 50 to 100 years with proper maintenance.

‘These are long-lasting, affordable, and safer bridges for the community,’ she said.

Helvetas is working with Tanzania Rural and Urban Roads Agency (Tarura), local councils, and other stakeholders to expand the programme.

Tanzania could draw on Helvetas’ experience in Nepal and Ethiopia, where thousands of bridges have been built.

The Morogoro training involved 15 engineers and technical experts from Tarura, the Prime Minister’s Office-Regional Administration and Local Government, Morogoro and Mvomero councils, and Helvetas.

It comprised 12 classroom days and three days of fieldwork.

Participants covered site selection, surveying, design, foundations, cables, towers, costing, BoQ preparation and quality control.

They also prepared detailed project reports for bridges in Morogoro and Mvomero.

The reports will guide planning, approvals, procurement and implementation.

Morogoro Regional Administrative Secretary, Dr Mussa Ali Mussa, called for closer institutional cooperation, urging councils to use local resources and expertise to increase bridge construction.

‘We need to collaborate genuinely and practically, not just through words,’ he said.

Tarura consulting engineer, Mr Pharles Ngeeleja, said the agency manages about 144,149.18 kilometres of roads, most of which are unpaved, underscoring the scale of rural connectivity challenges.

‘Our country is still poor, and poverty is sometimes perpetuated by poor road infrastructure,’ he said.

For communities separated by swollen rivers, a footbridge means more than a crossing; it can be a child’s route to school, a patient’s path to hospital, and a farmer’s route to markets.

. The National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) is turning to cooperatives, insurance agents and community-based structures to expand health insurance coverage among farmers and other informal-sector workers.

The approach is part of the government’s efforts to extend health insurance coverage under the Universal Health Insurance programme to people who earn their livelihoods outside formal employment.

NHIF manager for marketing and customer services Angela Mziray said the Fund was using structures already trusted by farmers and other informal workers to take insurance information and registration services closer to communities. ‘Cooperatives bring together large numbers of farmers, creating an established platform through which health insurance information and registration services can be taken closer to communities,’ she said.

Insurance agents are also being used to provide registration and information services, particularly to people who cannot easily access NHIF offices. Ms Mziray urged Tanzanians to enrol in health insurance before falling ill, saying it could protect families from having to use savings or sell assets to meet unexpected medical expenses.

‘Illness comes without warning. You may be healthy today, but tomorrow you will need expensive medical treatment.

That is why we urge people to join health insurance early so they can build financial protection for themselves and their families,’ she said.

She said the Fund was also conducting public education campaigns across the country to increase awareness of the benefits of health insurance and encourage people to avoid paying medical bills entirely from their own pockets.

NHIF members can access healthcare through government, private and faith-based health facilities registered with the Fund, she said.

‘Illness can affect anyone at any time. Having health insurance means that when the need arises, a family can seek medical care without having to bear the full cost of treatment from its own resources,’ she said.

The focus on farmers follows a directive by Health Minister Mohamed Mchengerwa on February 2, 2026, identifying farmers among the strategic groups to be reached under the Universal Health Insurance programme.

Other groups include livestock keepers, artists, motorcycle taxi operators and small-scale miners.

Mr Mchengerwa said the government would reach such groups in the areas where they live and work, using communication approaches and language suited to their circumstances to increase enrolment.

The government has also begun implementing the Universal Health Insurance programme for households unable to afford contributions, with Sh48.8 billion allocated to support healthcare access for specified groups.

As of the latest figures, 172,297 households had been reached and enrolled, with 463,228 beneficiaries beginning to access medical services at registered health facilities.

Tanzania has just closed a chapter that I spent years watching from the inside, one policy shift at a time. Under the Foreign Exchange (Amendment) Regulations, 2026, the Bank of Tanzania has opened Treasury bills and Treasury bonds to non-resident investors of any nationality, not only those from the East African Community, the Southern African Development Community, or the Tanzanian diaspora, who previously held exclusive access to this market.

More than a decade ago, I led a benchmarking exercise on Tanzania’s compliance with the EAC Treaty and the Protocol on the Establishment of the East African Common Market, with a specific focus on the free movement of capital.

What that exercise found was a capital market that did not honour its regional obligations. Tanzania then added the EAC and SADC residency requirements which gave the appearance of regional openness, while the underlying market remained, in practice, tightly held by Tanzanians and a narrow band of regional and diaspora participants.

Watching that market widen, cautiously and in stages, over the following ten years has been one of the more instructive lessons I have had in how capital account liberalisation unfolds in this region. It rarely arrives as a single dramatic reform. It arrives as a sequence of smaller ones that eventually cross a threshold.

This amendment crosses that threshold. Non resident investors, regardless of nationality, now access Treasury bills and Treasury bonds through approved Central Depository Participants and the Bank of Tanzania’s Central Depository System, the same infrastructure used by domestic banks, brokers and diaspora investors before them.

The reform follows the central bank’s earlier move to market determined bond coupon rates, adopted at the end of 2024 to improve price discovery, a precondition that matters more than it might first appear.

Foreign capital tends to avoid markets where pricing is administered rather than discovered. Tanzania removed that obstacle before opening the door, not after.

The timing speaks to a broader fiscal reality. Domestic debt currently makes up close to 30 percent of Tanzania’s total debt stock of just over $50 billion, and until now, retail and foreign holders together accounted for a modest share of that.

As Tanzania moves into the implementation phase of Vision 2050, and as budget financing becomes less reliant on concessional development assistance and more dependent on a mix of domestic revenue, market borrowing and blended finance, a shallow, closed government securities market becomes a genuine constraint.

Widening the investor base is not merely a technical fix to a funding gap. It is a structural requirement for a country that intends to finance its own long term development ambitions rather than borrow them from donors.

There is a currency stability dimension too, and it deserves equal weight. A broader base of non resident holders of shilling denominated government debt creates another channel through which foreign currency enters the economy, easing pressure on the exchange rate and deepening liquidity in the domestic bond market. Analysts have been quick to frame the reform in these terms, and they are right to. However, it is worth stating plainly that opening a market and deepening a market are not the same achievement. The regulation creates access. It does not, on its own, create demand.

Whether this reform delivers the capital inflows Tanzania is counting on will depend on execution that has, in other reform episodes, lagged the ambition of the policy itself: how efficiently Central Depository Participants onboard new foreign clients, how predictably the tax treatment of non resident bondholders is applied, and how consistently regulatory intent is honoured at the operational level once the initial announcement fades from the headlines.

Tanzania has, to its credit, been more disciplined on this front in recent years than it was a decade ago.

However, sophisticated institutional investors, sovereign wealth funds and development finance institutions among them, will watch implementation as closely as they watched the announcement itself.

For investors evaluating East African fixed income exposure for the first time, or reconsidering it, this reform deserves attention beyond the headline. It is not the end point of Tanzania’s capital account liberalisation, and it should not be read as one.

It is, however, the clearest signal yet that Tanzania intends to finance its next phase of growth on more diversified terms, and that the market it is offering access to is no longer the closed one I first worked on a decade ago.

Amne Suedi is the Managing Director of Shikana Investment and Advisory, Honorary Consul of Switzerland in Zanzibar, and Chair of the Switzerland-Tanzania Chamber of Commerce. Views expressed are strictly Amne Suedi’s only.

. The Rotary Club of Bahari Dar es Salaam will host its 16th Annual Charity Golf Tournament on Saturday, August 15, 2026, at the Gymkhana Club, bringing together golfers, corporate leaders, Rotarians and partners to raise support for community development initiatives.

Held under Rotary’s theme, ‘Each One, Engage for Impact,’ the annual tournament has become a key platform for combining sport, fellowship and service, while mobilising resources for projects in health, education, environmental conservation, water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH).

Rotary Club of Bahari President Irene Bizere said reaching the 16th edition was an important milestone, noting that the tournament had evolved beyond a sporting event into a platform for corporate partnerships and community service.

‘Over the years, this tournament has grown beyond golf to become a platform where friendship, corporate partnership and a shared commitment to service come together,’ Ms Bizere said.

She thanked sponsors, golfers and partners for their continued support, saying their contributions had enabled the club to make a tangible difference in communities.

The club’s recent projects include a Microforest Project implemented in partnership with the Aga Khan Foundation during the 2025/26 Rotary year. The initiative engaged 80 youth volunteers and directly benefited more than 300 students and staff.

The club also planted 1,000 trees around the University of Dar es Salaam campus, provided free cervical cancer screening to at least 150 women and delivered an incinerator to Toangoma Primary School to improve sanitation and waste management.

Several projects are also currently underway, including a Neonatal Global Grant Project in partnership with SolidarMed to support neonatal wards with equipment and training.

Other initiatives include renovating primary school toilets, installing an incinerator at Mtakuja Secondary School to support WASH and girls’ hygiene, and providing 450 desks to improve learning conditions for about 3,030 pupils, including 34 blind pupils at Toangoma Primary School.

Healthcare remains another major area of focus for the club.

In July, the Rotary Club of Bahari, working with Rotaract Tanzania and the National Blood Transfusion Service (NBTS), conducted a blood donation drive in Masaki, Dar es Salaam.

The campaign registered 77 donors and mobilised 41 volunteers, resulting in the collection of 44 units of blood, which could potentially save more than 130 lives.

Service Project Director Gladyness Mkumbo said the results demonstrated the impact that could be achieved through collective action and partnerships.

‘Forty-four units is a strong start, but our ambition is to go further,’ Ms Mkumbo said, adding that partnerships built around initiatives such as the golf tournament could help mobilise more people and resources for community projects.

The tournament has attracted support from a range of corporate partners, including Toyota, Ecobank, TotalEnergies, ASAS, GSM, Minet Insurance, SBC (T) Ltd, Allmol Freight Services, Neelkanth Group, Lodhia Group, Tanfoam, Abbas Autos, V One Ahead Insurance, Blueberry Travel and NCBA.

The Rotary Club of Bahari has invited golfers, companies, organisations and friends of Rotary to participate in the tournament and support its efforts to create lasting positive change in communities.