Tanzania’s TZS 14.3 billion (approx. USD 5.4 million) Dodoma mineral testing laboratory is on track for completion in September 2027, the Geological Survey of Tanzania (GST) confirmed during a ministerial inspection.
Minister for Minerals Anthony Mavunde inspected the laboratory under construction in Kizota, Dodoma, on July 15, 2026, and confirmed that work remains on schedule.
The facility is being built by GST at a cost of TZS 14.3 billion (approx. USD 5.4 million).
Construction began after Mavunde laid the foundation stone on August 25, 2025, under an initial 690-day building timeline.
Once operational, the laboratory is expected to be the largest mineral testing facility in East and Central Africa.
It will offer internationally accredited analytical and testing services to both domestic and international clients, reducing Tanzania’s reliance on overseas laboratories for mineral sample analysis.
The project is also designed to address long-standing delays faced by artisanal and small-scale miners (ASM) in accessing timely and reliable sample testing.
According to the GST Chief Executive Officer, Eng. Ally Samaje, construction is progressing well, and the project remains on course for completion in September 2027.
Tanzania’s existing mineral testing capacity includes laboratories run by GST and the Mining Commission in Dar es Salaam, alongside private providers such as the African Minerals and Geosciences Centre (AMGC), SGS, Bureau Veritas, Intertek, and Nesch Minte.
Industry stakeholders say this capacity has not kept pace with growing demand, forcing some mining companies to send samples abroad for testing, which increases costs and delays results.
To expand capacity, the government has also earmarked TZS 20 billion (approx. USD 7.6 million) for two additional mineral research laboratories in Mbeya and Geita, part of a wider plan to decentralize testing services across the country’s mining regions.
The laboratory expansion forms part of Tanzania’s Mining Vision 2030 strategy, under which the government aims to increase detailed geological survey coverage from 16% to 50% of the country and attract greater investment in mineral processing and value addition.
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