Tanzania's Strong Economic Growth Shows Signs of Trickling Down

  

 From left: Presidents Uhuru Kenyatta (Kenya), Paul Kagame (Rwanda) and Yoweri Museveni (Uganda). The three countries together with Tanzania and Burundi plan to launch a monetary union. FILE

press release

Dar es Salaam — Sustained rapid economic growth and concerted efforts around national strategies to alleviate poverty have led to a decline of approximately one percentage point per year in the rate of poverty in the country between 2007 and 2012, constituting the first significant reduction in 20 years.
The latest World Bank 'Tanzania Mainland Poverty Assessment' confirms earlier findings by the
Government's 2012 Household Budget Survey (HBS) that the basic needs poverty rate declined from around 34 percent to 28.2 percent during that period.
"The reduction in poverty is important news that should be applauded," says Philippe Dongier, Country Director for Tanzania, Burundi and Uganda. "But what is more important is for the country to accelerate the trend further so as to address the important challenges that still remain.
The majority of Tanzanians remain close to the poverty line. In fact, more than 70 percent of the population lives on less than US$2 per day. There is a lot of work ahead to improve the living standards of all Tanzanians