Tanzania: Govt to Issue New IDs for Petty Traders

PLANS are underway by the government to introduce new Identity Cards (IDs) for petty traders that will contain extra information to enable them access services from various institutions including banks.

Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa said the IDs which have been improved will contain a card holder's photograph and some personal details for one's easy identification when seeking services from various institutions.

He said the cards will be out as from April 1 this year, and called upon Regional and District Commissioners to ensure petty traders conduct their businesses peacefully especially at this time where their previous IDs have expired.

The Premier made the revelation in a meeting with petty traders from all regions in the Mainland, financial institutions' leaders, some ministers and government executives in Dar es Salaam on Thursday.

He said that the IDs will contain photograph of a respective petty trader, thus it will not be possible for the same card to be used by another person, adding: "The IDs will last for between two and three years contrary to the previous cards which were valid only for a year. "The government through President John Magufuli has decided to issue the official IDs to enable petty traders to be easily recognised and access important services including financial services," he added.

However, Mr Majaliwa directed petty traders' leaders to ensure they have correct number(s) of petty traders within their jurisdiction so that they become easily accessed and served.

"You should have a database of petty traders to facilitate communication between your federation and government," further said the Premier.

Elaborating, he said petty traders should unite from the grassroots to the national level, noting: "If you form an association, you can be identified and it will be easy for financial institutions to reach you with loans and help you grow."

During the occasion, Mr Majaliwa pledged to continue creating a favorable environment for petty traders countrywide so that they operate without any interference.

In the pledge, he ordered authorities responsible in the construction of market places to see into it that they construct relevant infrastructures, which can accommodate the traders.

"The sector accounts for 27 per cent of the gross domestic product and accumulates a total of 3.1 million entrepreneurs, which is equivalent to 23.4 per cent of the country's workforce. In December 2018, President John Magufuli handed out a total of 670,000 IDs to petty traders, whose business capital does not exceed 4m/-.

Equally, he presented 25,000 IDs to every Regional Commissioner to also issue them to the targeted population in their areas of operations.

Before the exercise, President Magufuli said Tanzania with a population of 55 million people had only 2.2 million people paying taxes in comparison to neighbouring countries, including Kenya.

In his directive, he ordered Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) to ensure taxes are not too high for petty traders to afford, adding that his issued IDs should be formally recognised by officials collecting taxes.