Tanzania Outlines Mining Sector Priorities for 2025: Resolving Conflicts, Boosting Efficiency, and Supporting Small-Scale Miners

The Citizen newspaper recently conducted an interview with Tanzania’s Minister for Minerals, Anthony Mavunde, where he outlined the government’s key priorities for the mining sector in 2025.

Here are the key priorities mentioned during the interview:

• Resolving Conflicts: The government is working to address disputes between large-scale and small-scale miners, as well as conflicts among small-scale miners over ownership and licensing issues.
• Attracting Investments: Collaboration with the Tanzania Investment Centre (TIC) will focus on creating an enabling environment to attract significant investments into the sector.
• Enhancing Geological Research: Accurate geological data will be provided to miners to facilitate informed decision-making and operations.
• Maximizing Critical Minerals’ Potential: A strategic framework is being finalized to promote value addition, create jobs, and increase revenue from critical minerals.
• Modernizing Mining Methods: Advanced technologies, such as Carbon in Pulp (CIP) plants, are being promoted to enhance production efficiency and sustainability.
• Empowering Small-Scale Miners: Training programs and loans are being provided to support small-scale miners in adopting advanced technologies and boosting their productivity.

During the interview, Mavunde noted that small-scale miners contribute 40% of the sector’s output and emphasized the government’s commitment to empowering them further to ensure equitable benefits.

Tanzania’s Mining Sector

The mining sector is a cornerstone of Tanzania’s economy, contributing 9.0% to government revenue in 2023/24, up from 6.8% in 2022. The government aims to increase this figure to 10% by 2025.

Gold continues to dominate the sector, accounting for over 50% of mineral exports. In 2023, mineral export revenues reached US$ 3.78 billion.