More than 7,000 revenue workers across Tanzania are set to receive financial literacy and investment training under a five-year partnership between the Bank of Tanzania (BoT) and the Tanzania Revenue Workers Union (TAREWU).
The programme seeks to address a challenge facing many salaried workers: how to turn regular income into long-term financial security through disciplined saving, informed investment and proper money management.
Under the agreement, BoT will use its Mwanza-based training college to equip TAREWU members with knowledge on managing personal finances, identifying viable investment opportunities and protecting their earnings from poorly informed financial decisions.
Speaking after the signing of the memorandum of understanding (MoU) in Mwanza, BoT Governor Emmanuel Tutuba said the college had specialists who would deliver training in collaboration with the union.
He said the programme would be organised to reach workers in their respective locations, with trainers travelling to workplaces or agreed venues to facilitate learning.
Mr Tutuba said financial literacy was particularly important because higher earnings did not automatically translate into better living standards without the ability to manage money effectively.
"Earning a high income alone does not necessarily mean that someone will have a better life if they lack the knowledge to preserve and use that income productively," he said.
He described the partnership as part of BoT's wider efforts to extend financial education to different groups of Tanzanians, noting that the Mwanza college was increasingly being used to deliver such training.
For TAREWU, the agreement is also intended to address the gap between earning a salary and building sustainable personal wealth.
The union's Secretary-General, Dr Michael Marere, said the initiative was aligned with its second strategic plan for 2026-2030, which seeks to ensure that every member has access to financial education.
He said the union wanted members to move beyond earning and spending towards developing a culture of saving and investing in opportunities capable of generating returns.
"Our members earn their income through hard work, and we consider that income a seed that must be planted in the right place to produce the expected results," he said.
"To ensure that our members plant those seeds in the right places, we have found it important to partner with the BoT through its college so that they can invest their income in appropriate areas and obtain reasonable returns."
Dr Marere said working in revenue collection did not necessarily mean employees had sufficient knowledge to manage their personal finances.
He said the training would cover the fundamentals of earning, saving and investing, enabling members to make decisions based on reliable information rather than commit their money to ventures they did not fully understand.
Participants are also expected to learn about opportunities in capital markets and other economic sectors, helping them identify suitable investments and grow their financial resources.
The union said the programme was expected to benefit not only its members but also their households, as improved financial management could strengthen the economic wellbeing of spouses, children and other dependants.
Dr Marere linked the initiative to Tanzania's broader development ambitions, including the National Development Vision 2050, which targets a $1 trillion economy.
He said achieving that ambition would require active participation by citizens through productive economic activities, savings and investment, alongside government efforts.
Workers in revenue collection, he added, had a responsibility to contribute to national economic development while also ensuring that their own earnings translated into better living conditions.
The five-year partnership is expected to strengthen members' ability to manage their income, build wealth and improve household financial security, while encouraging wider participation in investment activities.