PRESIDENT Samia Suluhu Hassan has expressed optimism that Tanzania will meet a target of receiving five million tourists by the year 2025, calling for the private sector to invest more in the accommodation and hospitality sector.
Taking the stance while inaugurating the Tanzania National Business Council (TNBC) in Dar es Salaam, she assured of the government’s commitment to continue improving investment and business climate in the country for national development.
Elaborating, she said there is a need for members of the private sector to invest in hospitality for the country to be ready to host large numbers of tourists, going forward.
“A lot of efforts have been put in place to attract tourists into the country, and they are coming, but we need more hotels and lodges that will host all visitors coming to Tanzania,” she urged.
On the note, she further said improvements of business and investment climate has played a great role in increasing the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) from 39.9 tri/- in 2021 to 45.2 tri/- last year, implying the economy is growing.
Reinforcing, Dr Samia instructed Regional and District Commissioners to conduct business councils within their areas of administration for the sake of improving the economy at all levels.
The Head of State noted that, it’s crucial for the country to have a business council from local government levels for the government to be able to respond on time to all challenges that have been facing members of the business community.
“These business councils must also be active at district and regional levels, we are expecting to be receiving reports on the implementation of resolutions being made,” she said, noting that the report should be sent to the office of Chief Secretary in every quarter.
The reports, according to her, will be used in assessing the performance of every region in boosting the economy through business and investment.
“Regions that perform well will be awarded,” she said, tasking all regulatory authorities to fast-track the implementation of policies and strategies aimed at improving business climate.
In another development, President Samia said the government is working to address the mismatch in the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) system in a bid to harmonise the business environment.
She said, the mismatch on the ICT system within government institutions has been resulting in complaints from members of the business community, adding that the government will ensure the gap is addressed within a short period of time.
“In less than six months we will have a unified ICT system, with that, I will even be able to see what is going on at the port,” she said, welcoming new investors who are capable of setting up smartphone assembly factories, given the country’s drive on exploiting opportunities in the digital economy.
She moreover, said the government is taking a number of efforts to support the private sector in agriculture for it to contribute highly in the national economy through export of food and cash crops.
According to the Head of State, by 2030, the agriculture sector should contribute 20 per cent to the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) from the current 4 per cent.
“In this regard, the government has embarked on application of new technologies and the use of high quality seeds as part of efforts to increase productivity in the agriculture sector,” she said.
President Samia stated further that modern farming assured the country of food security as well as having enough stock to be exported for the country to collect more foreign currency.
Earlier, Chairperson of Tanzania Private Sector Foundation (TPSF) Angelina Ngalula commended President Samia for various initiatives that she has been taking to support growth of the private sector.
“President Samia has done a lot, a number of challenges that we were facing have been addressed as a result of the success that the country has recorded so far, we call upon continuation of dialogues aimed at resolving the disputes,” she said
Source: Nam News Network