The Latest

TitTok Overtakes WhatsApp for Popularity in Tanzania in Q2 2023, Mobile Money Subscriptions Up by +6.5%

July 27, 2023
2 minute read
TikTok Tanzania use June 2023

The Tanzania Communication Regulatory Authority (TCRA) has recently released its Communication Statistics for Q2 2023 which provide information on the performance of the telecom sector.

Telecom Subscriptions

TCRA indicates that in June 2023 the number of telecom subscriptions (all active SIM cards) reached 64.1 million.

On average, this is an increase of 1.5% from April to June 2023 compared to an average increase of 0.59% in every month of the last quarter.

Tanzania Investment Guide 2026 Free Edition

Mobile subscriptions represented 99.87% of all subscriptions.

The fourth quarter of 2022/2023 saw a significant increase in subscriptions compared to the third quarter which had an additional 1.6 million SM cards compared to 2.2 million additional SIM cards for this quarter.

The reason for the increase is associated with the re-registration of barred SIM cards of the last quarter because of not being verified. The increase might also be associated with increased use of digital services.

None of the six mobile operators active in Tanzania has a market share greater than 35% which is a minimum significant level. “This signifies that there is healthy competition among the operators in the telecommunication sub-sector,” TCRA explains.

Mobile Operators Subscriptions Market Shares

Tanzania Mobile Operators Subscriptions Market Shares Q2 2023

Mobile Money Subscriptions

Mobile money subscription has increased from 44.4 million accounts in the quarter ending March 2023 to 47.3 million accounts in June 2023 (+6.5%).

TanzaniaInvest Capital Markets Report Banner

Vodacom has the larger market share of 36% of mobile money accounts in the market, followed by Tigo with 31%, Airtel with 22%, Halotel with 8%, and TTCL with 3%.

Mobile money transactions reached 420,675,884 in June 2023.

In this report, TCRA did not disclose the value of mobile money transactions, which reached TZS 140.9 trillion in 2022.

Mobile Money Operators Market Share June 2023

Tanzania Mobile Money Operators Market Share June 2023

Internet Subscriptions

Total internet subscriptions reached 34,045,384 in June 20233 from 33,090,834 in March 2023.

Mobile wireless accounted for 99.7% of all internet subscriptions, followed by fixed wired, and fixed wireless.

Tanzania Internet Subscriptions 2018-June 2023

Social Media Use

During the quarter ending June 2023, the service that used more bandwidth (in GBs) was YouTube with a total of 50.18 million GBs because video streaming services consumed more bandwidth than other services.

The second was Facebook with 49.49 million GBs mostly due to video services.

Third was the video hosting service TikTok with 33.57 million GBs.

In Q1 2023, WhatsApp was the 3rd social media that used the most bandwidth, followed by TikTok.

Total Bandwidth (in GB) Used in Social Media in Q2 2023

Want to know more about Telecoms in Tanzania? Our free overview of the Tanzania Business and Investment Guide 2026 covers Telecoms, plus key sectors and investment opportunities. The complete 141-page edition includes policies, taxation, key regulations, full macroeconomic data, and sources, and is also available at no cost upon completion of a short form.

Download Free OverviewGet the Full Edition for Free
Tweet
Share
Share
Share
Related Posts
Read More

Tanzanian Delegation Visits Agribusiness, AI, Data Centre and Railway Facilities on Day Two of EU–Tanzania Roadshow in Italy

On 2 October, Tanzanian agribusiness and digital delegations visited facilities in Emilia-Romagna during the EU–Tanzania roadshow’s Italian leg. On the second day of the EU–Tanzania roadshow in Italy, the agribusiness delegation visited Apofruit–Almaverde, Martini Group and Unitec to examine post-harvest handling and cold storage, livestock and food operations, and fruit sorting, grading and training. A separate group led by Deputy Minister Pius Chaya visited the University of Bologna, DAMA Tecnopolo and Bologna San Donato to learn about artificial intelligence, Industry 4.0, supercomputing, data centres and railway testing.
EU–Tanzania Investment and Business Forum 2026–2027 roadshow opening at Cesena Fiera, with blue Global Gateway and TanzaniaInvest branding
Read More

EU–Tanzania Roadshow Continues in Italy With Rice, Cashew, Coffee and Renewable Energy Investment Pitches in Cesena

At the Cesena stop of the EU–Tanzania roadshow, Tanzanian agencies presented investment opportunities in rice, cashew and coffee processing, renewable energy, power transmission and digital infrastructure. Italy’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs cited USD 8.6 billion in foreign investment registered in Tanzania in the last year, up 56%, while EU and Italian institutions outlined grants, guarantees, export credit and blended finance.
EU-Tanzania Roadshow 2026-2027 Helsinki day 2 critical minerals visit
Read More

Tanzanian Delegation Visits EU’s Only Nickel Smelter, Metso Research Center, and Nokia on Day Two of EU-Tanzania Roadshow in Finland

On 29 September 2026, the second day of the EU-Tanzania roadshow in Finland, the Tanzanian delegation visited Metso's Pori Research Center, where around 180 experts work on mineral processing, hydrometallurgy, battery materials, and smelting, and Boliden's Harjavalta site, home to the only nickel smelter in the EU. The digital track included visits to Nokia, the Finnish Information Security Cluster, and technology company Gofore, with talks on digital sovereignty, digital public infrastructure, and Tanzania's move to a cashless economy.
EU-Tanzania Investment & Business Forum 2026-2027 Helsinki day 1
Read More

EU–Tanzania Roadshow Opens in Helsinki With Mineral and Digital Investment Pitches

At the EU-Tanzania roadshow in Helsinki, the EU and Finland said they want to invest in Tanzania's critical minerals and digital economy, backed by a new EUR 156 million EU package and by Finnish financiers Finnvera and Finnfund, which confirmed they are open to Tanzanian deals. Tanzania offered European companies entry into graphite, nickel and rare earths processing, including at a former gold mine converted into a mineral processing zone, as well as into data centres, submarine cables and broadband, backed by TZS 7 trillion in planned public spending.

Want to know more about investing in Tanzania? Our free overview of the Tanzania Business and Investment Guide 2026 covers the economy, key sectors and investment opportunities. The complete 141-page edition, which includes policies, taxation, key regulations, full macroeconomic data and sources, is also available at no cost upon completion of a short form.

Download Free Overview Get the Full Edition for Free