Sports should be treated as more than entertainment because they can provide young people with jobs, skills, experience and opportunities to compete on national and international stages, Special Seats MP for youth from North Pemba, Zanzibar, Zainab Abdallah Issa, has said.
Ms Zainab made the remarks on August 29, 2026, after attending the SportPesa National Sevens Circuit in Dar es Salaam, part of a rugby competition being staged in different regions of Tanzania.
She said the tournament demonstrated the potential of rugby and other sports to create opportunities for young people, particularly when stakeholders invest in competitions that allow athletes to develop their talents.
“I am pleased to see young people from different parts of the country participating in this competition. Through sports, they can secure employment, gain experience and get opportunities to compete in other regions and even outside the country,” she said.
The MP said the circuit started in Dodoma before moving to Dar es Salaam, with the final stage scheduled to take place in Arusha.
Teams from Dodoma, Iringa, Dar es Salaam, Arusha and Kilimanjaro are taking part in the competition, with the overall winner to be determined through points accumulated across the different stages.
“Each team collects points at every stage. After the Arusha leg, the points will be combined to determine the overall champion,” she said.
Ms Zainab said she was watching rugby live for the first time, having previously followed the sport mainly through television.
She said Tanzania's strong focus on football should not come at the expense of other sports, urging stakeholders to give disciplines such as rugby greater attention and investment.
“Football is very popular in our country, but other sports also have great potential. We need to create more opportunities for young people to participate and benefit from them,” she said.
Beyond employment, she said rugby could help young people develop valuable networks by bringing together athletes, businesses, sponsors and professionals from different sectors.
She commended SportPesa, the tournament's main sponsor, together with Heineken, Afro Oil, the National Sports Council (NSC) and the Dar es Salaam City Council for supporting the competition.
The MP also praised organisers for putting emergency medical services in place, including two ambulances, saying the measures were important in protecting players and other participants.
She further applauded President Samia Suluhu Hassan for supporting the development of sports in Tanzania and called on sports leaders to step up efforts to expand rugby across the country.
Ms Zainab said cooperation between the Tanzania Rugby Union (TRU) and the South African Rugby Union (SARU) could play an important role in improving players' skills and exposing Tanzanian athletes to wider opportunities.
She urged TRU to expand the circuit to more regions so that more young people can discover and develop their rugby talent.
“Our ambition should be to increase the number of participating regions every year. We want to see Tanzania eventually competing at the world level with more representatives and, ultimately, winning medals,” she said.
She congratulated TRU for sustaining the National Sevens Circuit, pledging her continued support for initiatives that use sports to empower young people and expand their economic opportunities.