Cold-Chain Agro-Processing Facility in the SAGCOT Corridor (Mbeya/Iringa)

Tanzania is experiencing a strong FDI surge, with the Tanzania Investment and Special Economic Zones Authority (TISEZA) registering 278 projects worth USD 3.16 billion in Q4 2025 alone — more than doubling the year-prior figure — and 901 projects worth USD 9.31 billion in full-year 2024, the highest since 1991. The government has opened four Special Economic Zones (SEZs) in Bagamoyo, Kibaha, Dodoma, and Kahama covering over 2,100 hectares, targeting manufacturing, agro-processing, mining, and real estate. A new National Trade Policy (2023 Edition) launched in mid-2024 prioritises industrial-led transformation, e-commerce infrastructure, and AfCFTA integration. Diplomatically, Tanzania signed eight MoUs with Kenya in May 2026 covering railways and a Dar es Salaam–Mombasa gas pipeline study, and signed an investment cooperation agreement with Russia's Roscongress Foundation at SPIEF 2026 projecting over USD 2 billion in cross-sector investment. Electricity demand is growing at 10–15% per year and the World Bank energy compact targets 100% electricity access by 2030. Key investor risks include inconsistent tax enforcement, restrictions on foreign land ownership, post-election political uncertainty, and a partial EU/US ODA freeze reducing concessional financing.

Tanzania's new National Trade Policy (2023 Edition) launched in July 2024 explicitly incentivises local agro-processing and value addition, closing a lucrative gap previously filled by raw-commodity exports. Four new Special Economic Zones opened in late 2025, with agro-processing named among the earliest candidate sectors, and projects inside SEZs benefit from tariff-free exports under AfCFTA and EAC agreements.

Market drivers:

- Government-mandated local processing incentives under the 2024 National Trade Policy replacing raw-commodity export model

- SAGCOT corridor (Mbeya/Iringa) offering reliable rainfall, fertile soils, and pipeline for tea, coffee, and horticulture value chains

- Agriculture projected to attract USD 2 billion in agro-processing FDI by 2030 under Tanzania's Vision 2050 roadmap

Risks:

- Inconsistent application of tax incentives by Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA), which frequently does not recognise TIC/TISEZA certificates in practice

- Foreigners prohibited from owning land in Tanzania, requiring leasehold or joint-venture structures that add legal complexity and cost