TANZANIA INVESTMENT CENTRE SIGNS RESEARCH PARTNERSHIP WITH OXFORD BUSINESS GROUP

Hon Charles Mwijage, Minister for Trade, Industry & Development (centre), Mr Clifford Tandari, Executive Director for TIC (right) and Ivana Carapic, Country Director for Oxford Business Group (left) sign an MOU for the global research and consulting firm’s inaugural report on the country’s economy in Dar es Salaam early this week.

Dar es Salaam Tuesday 13 December 2016…. With Africa earmarked as the “next investment destination”, the time is right for Tanzania to highlight its investment opportunities on the international stage and enhance its business climate, Charles John Mwijage, the country’s minister for industry, trade and investment said.

The minister was speaking at the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the Tanzania Investment Centre (TIC) and Oxford Business Group (OBG) for the global research and consulting firm’s inaugural report on the country’s economy.

Under the MOU, the TIC will provide research support to OBG’s in-country team as it begins collecting data for The Report: Tanzania 2017. The report, which will include more than 200 pages of original analysis on Tanzania’s investment and business environment, will be published in 2017.

The research partnership was signed on Tuesday this week at TIC’s offices, in the presence of Mwijage and Clifford Tandari, the centre’s executive director. Both speakers shared their thoughts on the country’s investment climate at the event, while also highlighting the importance of ensuring that investors have access to independent and up-to-date business intelligence.

Based in large part on discussions with private and public sector stakeholders, The Report: Tanzania 2017 will look in detail at both the opportunities and challenges facing foreign investors in the East African Community’s most populous economy. OBG will examine how Tanzania’s stable headline growth – buoyed by recent discoveries of natural gas and efforts by the government to accelerate industrialisation – is expanding the scope for foreign investment in the country.

Welcoming OBG to Tanzania, Mwijage said he was confident that the firm’s report would help raise the country’s profile amongst global investors.

“We recognise the importance of creating an attractive environment for foreign investors and keeping them informed about the openings available in Tanzania,” he said. “Oxford Business Group is highly regarded as a provider of in-depth economic research. I look forward to following the work carried out by its experts and the Tanzania Investment Centre, which I hope will see the opportunities for development highlighted in locations that we have, as yet, been unable to reach.”

Tandari agreed that OBG’s report would play a key part in providing readers farther afield with access to the latest news on Tanzania’s growth story.

“Whereas in the past, we have relied on forums and similar events to update investors on Tanzania’s emerging opportunities, Oxford Business Group’s publication will act as a key channel for communicating data and analysis relating to the country’s economy in both hard copy, digital format and even video clips, enabling the world to see what our leaders have to say,” he said.

Commenting at the signing of the MOU, Ivana Carapic, OBG’s country director in Tanzania, said she looked forward to working with the TIC’s team on what was undoubtedly set to be a “milestone project”.

“Despite starting from a low base, Tanzania is well placed in its bid to attain middle-income status by 2025, having outpaced its neighbours with strong and sustainable economic growth in recent years,” she said. “The Tanzania Investment Centre plays a pivotal role in the national drive to attract investors to this exciting market. I’m delighted that our team and, ultimately, our readers, will benefit from the expert knowledge of its representatives.”

The Report: Tanzania 2017 will be a vital guide to the many facets of the country, including its macroeconomics, infrastructure, banking and other sectoral developments. The publication will also contain interviews with leading representatives. It will be available in print and online. 

About Oxford Business Group

Oxford Business Group (OBG) is a global publishing, research and consultancy firm, which publishes economic intelligence on the markets of Africa, Asia, the Middle East, Latin and Central America and the Caribbean. Through its range of print and online products, OBG offers comprehensive and accurate analysis of macroeconomic and sectoral developments, including banking, capital markets, insurance, energy, transport, industry and telecoms. The Report: Tanzania 2017 will be produced with the TIC and the Ministry of Trade.

The critically acclaimed economic and business reports have become the leading source of business intelligence on developing countries in the regions they cover. OBG's online economic briefings provide up-to-date in-depth analysis on the issues that matter for tens of thousands of subscribers worldwide. OBG's consultancy arm offers tailor-made market intelligence and advice to firms currently operating in these markets and those looking to enter them.