On June 26th, 2024, Tanzania’s National Assembly overwhelmingly approved the national budget for the fiscal year 2024/2025, with 362 out of 383 Members of Parliament voting in favor of it.
The comprehensive budget, amounting to TZS 49.35 trillion (USD 18.85 billion), marks an 11.2% increase from the previous year, driven by a combination of factors including the depreciation of the Tanzanian shilling, rising interest rates, and the maturation of loans.
A key highlight of this year’s budget is the government’s reforms in the tax structure, fees, levies, and amendment of laws and regulations to improve the business environment. The reforms that have been proposed relating to the industrial sector are in the VAT, excise duty, fees and charges of agencies as well as import duty.
Tanzania’s Finance Minister Mwigulu Nchemba stressed that the budget seeks to create an enabling environment for the private sector while also taking on board various concerns that were raised by lawmakers when debating the budget.
“All views expressed by the Budget Committee, as well as those of individual legislators on the Finance Bill have been considered,” Dr Nchemba stated in Parliament.
The Confederation of Tanzania Industries (CTI), the foremost organization representing the industrial sector in Tanzania, applauded some of the measures while highlighting areas in the budget that risk having a negative impact on industrial development. A full analysis is available here.
The budget execution will start on Monday 1st July 2024.
