NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Wednesday, July 2, 2014

THE much celebrated economic growth in Tanzania and other African countries that are said to make good progress can only have a meaning if there will be myriad poverty alleviation indicators.

For ordinary citizens, to sense the economic growth which is only being interpreted by economists and the elites, there should be visible improvements in the living standards. Living standards are mainly measured in terms of poverty and hunger.

Probably, that is why developers of the Millennium Development Goals put eradication of hunger and poverty as number eight on their list of 15 areas requiring global attention.

According to the World Bank data of 2013, Tanzania’s economy was growing at 4.9 per cent in 2000 and 6.9 per cent in 2012. A recent report shows that the country is among the fastest growing economies in the East African region, recording 7 per cent rate of growth last year.

It is projected that the economy will grow at the rate of 7.2 per cent this year and will continue growing at an annual average of 7.7 per cent in the medium term. Tanzania has been placed among the 17 fastest countries with growing economies.

Cote d’Ivoire records the highest per cent of its GDP (9.8 per cent) followed by Angola (8.4 per cent), Mozambique (7.5 per cent), Congo DRC, (7.1 per cent) and Ghana (7 per cent).