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Deputy Secretary General of the Ministry of Finance, Mr. Elijah Mwandumbya, speaking on behalf of the Secretary General of the Ministry, Dr. Natu El-Maamry Mwamba during the opening of the Bilateral Meeting between the Government of the United Republic of Tanzania and the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany, in Dodoma. |
The governments of Tanzania and the Federal Republic of Germany have commenced formal bilateral negotiations in the Tanzanian capital, with both sides signaling a shift away from fragmented small-scale projects toward strategic, high-impact investments.
The talks, convened at the Mtumba Conference Hall of the Ministry of Finance in Dodoma, have drawn senior technocrats and policymakers from both nations. Their stated objective: to sharpen the focus of cooperation on initiatives that deliver direct benefits to citizens and the national economy.
According to officials familiar with the agenda, the discussions are centered on a cluster of strategic sectors — water and sanitation, health, energy, sustainable use of natural resources and environmental conservation, access to justice, public financial management, and gender equality. The breadth of the agenda reflects an attempt to align German development assistance more tightly with Tanzania's long-term economic ambitions.
Opening the meeting on behalf of the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Finance, Dr. Natu El-Maamry Mwamba, Deputy Permanent Secretary Elijah Mwandumbya framed the negotiations as a continuation of a relationship that predates Tanzania's modern economic reforms.
He traced the partnership to the 1960s and cited the 1975 Framework Agreement as the foundational legal instrument that has governed cooperation between the two states.
"Germany has been a key development partner for Tanzania across multiple sectors, including water, communications, tourism, human development, and social welfare," Mwandumbya said.
The two-day session is designed to allow technical teams from both governments to assess past performance, set priorities, and determine which projects will receive funding and institutional backing over the next two years. Once the experts conclude their deliberations and reach consensus, both governments are expected to move toward formalizing the agreements — including the signing of a new development cooperation accord — with a follow-up round of negotiations already penciled for November 2026.
Dr. Tausi Kida, Permanent Secretary in the President's Office for Planning and Executive Secretary of the National Planning Commission, laid out the economic targets that will frame the negotiations. Tanzania, she said, is positioning itself to become a high-middle-income economy under Vision 2050, with ambitions to expand its economy from an estimated $90 billion today to $1 trillion by mid-century, while raising per capita income to approximately $7,000.
"The country also aims to significantly reduce poverty, eliminate extreme poverty and food poverty, while ensuring sustainable use of resources and environmental protection," Dr. Kida said. "This partnership will contribute to achieving those goals."
The German delegation, led by Joachim Schmitt, Head of the East and Central Africa Division at Germany's Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, indicated that Berlin is recalibrating its approach. Rather than funding disconnected micro-projects, Germany now intends to direct its resources toward areas with the potential to stimulate economic growth, create jobs, and reduce poverty and inequality. Schmitt also underscored Berlin's insistence on safeguarding the rule of law, protecting civic space, and maintaining peace and security as conditions for sustained cooperation.
"Germany wants this cooperation to be more strategic and aligned with Tanzania's development priorities," Schmitt said, adding that German policy now places special emphasis on economic cooperation, private-sector development, and investment — with a deliberate effort to involve both German and Tanzanian companies in development projects.
The negotiations bring together a wide array of Tanzanian institutions, including the Ministry of Finance, the President's Office for Planning and Investment, the Ministry of Constitution and Legal Affairs, and representatives from the Revolutionary Government of Zanzibar. The German side is represented by the Federal Government alongside its development agencies, including KfW and GIZ — the twin engines of German development finance and technical cooperation.