By Adonis Byemelwa
The murmurs began as whispers,
carried through bustling markets and crowded commuter buses, before swelling
into an uproar that now echoes across Tanzania’s social media platforms. The
nation—once a beacon of stability in East Africa—is grappling with a profound
crisis of trust.
Behind the numbers that flood
the headlines lies a painful reality: while the country’s public debt
skyrockets, the promise of shared prosperity remains a distant dream for most
Tanzanians.
A damning report by The
Chanzo, an English online newspaper, released on March 4, 2025, laid bare
the scale of the country’s borrowing spree. Citing data from the Bank of
Tanzania’s monthly reports, the investigation shows how the country’s public
debt has ballooned from Sh16.7 trillion in 2011 to a staggering Sh94.5 trillion
by the end of 2024.
According to data from the Bank
of Tanzania, Tanzania's government debt has witnessed an unprecedented surge
over the past decade, rising from TZS 16.7 trillion in December 2011 to a
staggering TZS 94.5 trillion by December 2024.
The consistent upward trajectory
has raised concerns among economists, policymakers, and citizens alike
regarding the country's financial sustainability and long-term economic
prospects.
The data reveals that Tanzania's
national debt has more than quadrupled in 13 years, with the sharpest increases
occurring in recent years.
Between 2020 and 2021, the
country's debt rose from TZS 58.8 trillion to TZS 68.3 trillion, marking a TZS
9.5 trillion jump in just one year. The trend continued with a notable increase
to TZS 87.1 trillion by the end of 2023 before reaching TZS 94.5 trillion in
2024.
The consistent growth in public
debt reflects the government's efforts to finance various development projects,
particularly in infrastructure, energy, and transportation.
However, the rapid pace of borrowing has sparked debates about the country's ability to service its debt without compromising essential public services.
While investments in infrastructure are expected to spur
long-term economic growth, critics argue that the government must balance
development goals with fiscal responsibility. High debt levels could strain
public finances, leading to higher taxes, reduced social spending, and limited
fiscal space to respond to future crises.
The graphic depiction of the
debt curve—rising year after year without pause—has ignited national outrage,
forcing a reckoning with the government’s borrowing habits and the mounting
burden placed on ordinary citizens.
The outcry is not just about the
figures—it’s about what they symbolize. For many Tanzanians, the rising debt is
a mirror reflecting the widening gap between the ruling elite and the
struggling masses.
Anger boiled over as rumors
began circulating about the Finance Minister’s alleged construction of a
luxurious TZS500 million mansion in Wazo Hill, Kinondoni District—reportedly
for his side partner.
The allegations, though
unverified, have struck a nerve in a society where stories of officials living
lavishly while citizens battle unemployment and high taxes have become all too
familiar.
“What hurts the most is not just
the debt,” one Twitter user lamented, “It’s that the money we are borrowing is
not for us—it’s for their mansions and their foreign bank accounts.”
The Finance Minister, when pressed,
has maintained that Tanzania’s debt remains within sustainable levels. But such
reassurances ring hollow against the backdrop of persistent poverty and youth
unemployment hovering around 15%.
The government’s favorite
defense—that the loans are financing mega projects like the Standard Gauge
Railway (SGR) and the Julius Nyerere Hydropower Plant—offers little comfort to
those struggling to put food on the table.
Critics argue that while these
projects may yield long-term benefits, they have yet to create the immediate
economic relief that millions of Tanzanians desperately need. The concept of
“debt-fueled development” has become a bitter pill for many, reinforcing the
suspicion that the government’s borrowing spree is driven more by political
prestige than by genuine economic priorities.
Julius Nyerere Hydropower Party. Photo: Courtesy
The Chanzo report has reignited
a wider debate about Africa’s addiction to foreign loans—a debate that
economists like Dambisa Moyo have been warning about for years. In her seminal
book Dead Aid, Moyo argues that reliance on external financing locks
African nations into cycles of dependency, corruption, and stagnation.
NJ Ayuk, Executive Chairman of the African
Energy Chamber, has echoed these concerns, calling on African leaders to
harness the continent’s vast natural wealth to fuel homegrown development
instead of turning to donors.
“The real scandal,” Ayuk said in
a recent op-ed, “is that Africa is rich enough to finance its future. What we
lack is the political will to break free from the chains of aid and debt.”
Tanzania is a case in point. The
country sits on some of the largest natural gas reserves in East Africa. Its
gold mines produce hundreds of thousands of ounces every year.
Nickel, graphite, and rare earth
minerals—essential for the global clean energy transition—lie beneath its soil.
With the right policies, Tanzania could easily transform itself from a borrower
into a donor nation.
Instead, the government’s
growing appetite for external loans has followed a familiar script seen across
Africa. Nigeria, Zambia, and Mozambique have all walked the same path—borrowing
heavily to finance mega-projects while neglecting critical investments in
education, health, and job creation.
Today, Zambia spends nearly half
of its budget on debt servicing. Mozambique’s debt crisis, triggered by hidden
loans, plunged the country into recession. Nigeria, despite its oil wealth, is
among the world's highest borrowers from the IMF.
What makes Tanzania’s case
particularly frustrating is that the debt burden has fallen squarely on the
backs of ordinary citizens.
Over the past few years, the
government has imposed a barrage of taxes and levies—from phone tolls to mobile
money transaction fees—tightening the screws on those who can least afford it.
The feeling on the streets is
that citizens are being asked to bear the weight of debts they never consented
to.
“In the village, they tell us
the government is building railways and power plants,” said Juma, a boda-boda
rider in Dar es Salaam. “But what we see is more taxes on mobile money and no
jobs for our children.”
As the 2025 general elections
approach, many fear that the debt spiral will only worsen. African governments
have a long history of ramping up spending during election years to shore up
political support—often through foreign loans that saddle future generations
with the bill. The specter of election-driven borrowing is casting a long
shadow over Tanzania’s already fragile economy.
Economists are urging the
government to adopt a more sustainable path—one that prioritizes domestic
resource mobilization, curbs corruption, and invests in small and medium-sized
enterprises (SMEs) as engines of job creation.
Dambisa Moyo has long advocated for African
countries to move away from aid dependency by expanding their tax bases,
cracking down on illicit financial flows, and creating business-friendly
environments that attract private investment.
“The way out of debt is not
through more debt,” Moyo once said. “It’s through economic self-reliance.”
But self-reliance remains a
distant dream in Tanzania, where transparency in debt management is minimal and
public participation in decision-making is virtually non-existent.
The social media storm sparked
by The Chanzo’s report has shown that Tanzanians are no longer willing
to suffer in silence. The nation is at a crossroads—either it heeds the growing
demand for accountability and reform, or it continues down the perilous path of
unsustainable borrowing.
For now, the lived reality for
many Tanzanians is one of deepening hardship. The question hanging in the air
is whether those in power will choose to listen.
The future of Tanzania’s
economy—and the fate of millions—depends on whether the country’s leaders will
finally break free from the cycle of debt and chart a new course toward
economic independence.
The Chanzo’s report may have
opened the floodgates of public outrage, but the power to reshape Tanzania’s
destiny rests with its people. If the government will not act, then perhaps the
ballot box—or the streets—will.