TEXTILE INDUSTRY IN TANZANIA

Introduction
The United Republic of Tanzania borders the Indian Ocean to the east, and has land borders
with eight countries: (anti-clockwise from the north) Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, the
Democratic Republic of Congo (across Lake Tanganyika), Zambia, Malawi and
Mozambique. The country includes Zanzibar (consisting of the main island Unguja, plus
Pemba and other smaller islands). Tanzania is a relatively large country in east Africa; it is
the 23rd largest country by area in the world and the 13th largest in Africa. the estimated
Population is 58.01 Million people, ranking 25th in the world. The main towns include
Dodoma (capital, pop. 410,956), Dar es Salaam (commercial and administrative centre,
4.8m), Mwanza (706,453), Zanzibar Town (501,459), Arusha (416,442), Mbeya (385,729),
Morogoro (305,840), Tanga (221,127), Kigoma (215,458), Songea (203,309), Moshi
(184,292), Tabora (160,608), Iringa (151,315), Musoma (134,327), Sumbawanga (124,204),
Shinyanga (103,795), Mtwara (100,626) and Kasulu (67,704), according to internet sources.

Macroeconomic Overview of Tanzania

Real GDP growth was an estimated 6.7% in 2018, down from 7.1% in 2017. The services
sector was the main contributor to GDP (39.3%). Private investment was the main demand-
side contributor (63.9%). The external sector stymied economic growth as the current
account deficit increased (despite the real depreciation of the Tanzanian shilling), due to a
higher volume of imports in 2018 than in 2017. The increase is due largely to increased
imports of transport equipment, building and construction materials, industrial raw materials,

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and petroleum products for large public investment projects, such as the Standard Gauge
Railway. The import bill also increased as a result of the rise in the price of key commodities,
such as crude oil.

The fiscal deficit increased to an estimated 3.9% of GDP in 2018, due to increased capital
spending on infrastructure projects. Public debt increased to an estimated 39.3% of GDP in
2018 from 38.2% in 2017. External debt accounted for about 74.9% of total public debt in
2018. The risk of debt distress remains low because public external debt, at 34.5% of GDP,
is mostly concessional. Monetary policy was more accommodative in 2018 than in 2017.
This increased domestic liquidity and reduced lending rates, leading to greater private credit
supply. Due to improved food supply, inflation eased to an estimated 3.5% in 2018. The
medium-term outlook is positive, with growth projected at 6.6% in both 2019 and 2020,
supported by large infrastructure spending. Headline inflation is projected to marginally
increase to 5.2% in 2019 and 5.1% in 2020 due to increased government spending. But the
positive outlook faces several downside risks: growing private sector concerns about
economic policy uncertainty and increased domestic arrears that could derail the
government’s fiscal consolidation and harm the private sector.

Key economic development challenges include slow progress towards inclusive growth,
infrastructure bottlenecks, and vulnerability to climate change. Poverty and income
inequality remain high despite high economic growth. Infrastructure bottlenecks are most
notable in the transport and energy sectors. Reliance on rain-fed agriculture has exposed
farmers to income shocks. And inefficient public enterprises present a fiscal risk. One of the
development challenges on the social front is youth unemployment, which increased to 7.3%
in 2016, compared with 5.7% in 2012. Key opportunities include peace and political stability,
abundant natural resources, a strategic geographic location, and immense development
potential for tourism. The Export Zone Processing Agency established in 2008 to accelerate
manufacturing exports and help the country achieve structural transformation has helped
attract close to $1 billion in foreign direct investment and revive the manufacturing sector
into one of the fastest growing in Africa.

Overview of the Textile Industry

Tanzania's textile sector has passed through various stages since independence to date, from
a period where most of the textile industries were owned by the government to the period
where private companies are the main owners. Since the independence of Tanzania in 1961,
it has invested heavily in textile industry, so that it could satisfy the demand of the market in
terms of clothes and cotton growing in Tanzania. According to the Ministry of Industry and
Trade 2004 report on Status of Textile Industries in Tanzania, 50 textile industries were
established by the year 2002 by the government and private companies. However, 23 (46%)
of the established industries are operating. The industries are involved in dyeing, spinning,
wearing, printing khanga and Kitenge, bed sheets, garments, knitting woven blankets and
socks.

In the 1960s and 1970s, Tanzania was able to meet the demand of the market in terms of
clothes. The industries produce adequate clothes and materials for making clothes.
Furthermore, the industries were of the major employers and contributor to GDP. It employed
about 25% of the working force and contributed 25% of GDP in manufacturing sector
(SAILIN LTD (TIB 1996). According to Zuku A (2002), the development of the textile
industry was attributed to the demand and deliberate government policies. Though the textile
industries were able to satisfy the market but it could not meet the demand of some types of
clothes i.e. suits and suiting materials and other specific dress materials. This was due to the
lack of technology of producing them.

From 1980, the economy of the country started to decline. This also affected the textile
industry. The capacity of the sector to produce adequate with good quality garments decline.
At the same time the government continued to restrict the importation of goods including
clothes. This limited the availability of the clothes. As a result, individuals started to print
batik and tie and dye. They were commonly known in Kiswahili as "MAWINGU" because
most of them were on skies colour. The final nail of the coffin of the textile industry was
hammered in 1994/95. The sector collapsed due to poor economy and government policies
emanating from the liberalization policy. According to Zuku, A, (2002) the collapse of the
textile industry was due to inadequate supply of cotton lint, lack of power/power
interruptions, high power tariffs, unfair competition from imports and devaluation of
Tanzania shilling hence difficult to buy spare parts for the machines.

From 1980-1985, Tanzanian's experienced a shortage of goods including clothes. As it has

already been mentioned that local initiatives of producing clothes emerged (batik and tie and
dye) but with a poor quality and also expensive to the extent that not everybody could afford.
Some people (rural areas e.g. Southern part of Tanzania) decided to wear sacks. The sacks
became shirts and skirts or something to wrap-up. In order to fill the gap, some
businessmen/women started to smuggle in used clothes. It is at this time; the used clothes
became important and its status was raised. Despite the fact that textile sector in Tanzania is
still in its infancy, according to Tanzania Cotton Board it still leads the East African countries
in the export of textiles and apparel to the European Union, with annual average exports
worth €14 million over the nine-year period, 2000-2008. However, the leading Eastern and
Southern African country exporters of textiles and apparel to the European Union market are
respectively Mauritius, Madagascar and South Africa, with such export’s worth respectively
€456 million, €229 million, and €170 million. In 2008 on the other hand Tanzania’s textiles
and apparel exports to the USA market amounted to a paltry USA$ 2million compared with
USA$ 340million for Lesotho, US$ 279million for Madagascar, and USA$ 247million for
Kenya.

Figure 1 Cotton Production In Tanzania

 Source: Internet

Challenges faced by Textile Sector

 The importation of cheaper garments became rampant thus affecting negatively the
growth of garments locally made in Tanzania. This was due to increase in the access to
International markets. These from 1980-1985, Tanzanian’s experienced a shortage of
goods including clothes. As it has already been mentioned that local initiatives of
producing clothes emerged (batik and tie and dye) but with a poor quality and also
expensive to the extent that not everybody could afford. It is at this time, the second hand
clothes became important and its status was raised.

 Lack of enough skilled labor and management has hindered the development of textile
industries in Tanzania since they have a critical contribution in the production of quality
textiles that have upgraded designs with marketing skills that can demonstrate the
manufacturing capabilities. Low technical skills affect machinery operations and
 service. The quality of manufacturing products could be improved with investment in
research and development activities; yet inadequate resources are allocated to research
and development for various reasons, either because of shortage of financial resources
or ignorance of the role of research and development in the improvement of quality
(upgrading), efficiency and market expansion. Hence there is a serious need to develop
skills in the clothing and textile industry clothes. As it has already been mentioned that
local initiatives of producing clothes emerged (batik and tie and dye) but with a poor
quality and also expensive to the extent that not everybody could afford clothes. As it
has already been mentioned that local initiatives of producing clothes emerged (batik
and tie and dye) but with a poor quality and also expensive to the extent that not
everybody could afford.
 Poor economy and government policies emanating from the liberalization policy, the
policy allowed free trade and thus there were a great influx of clothes from other
countries
 The rise of macroeconomic and institutional constraints in Tanzania, these constraints
make Tanzania to be an environment not easy to operate in. The constraints include the
inadequate supply of cotton lint, lack of power/power interruptions, high power tariffs,
unfair competition from imports and devaluation of Tanzania shilling hence difficult to
buy spare parts for the machines.
 According to Keregero (2016) from 1980Keregero -1985, Tanzania experienced a
shortage of goods including clothes resulting in local initiatives of producing local
clothes (batik, tie and dye) but with a poor quality and unaffordable for many. This is
due to lack of appropriate and advanced technology to be used in the textile industry,
resulting to production of low-quality textiles which make people opt for other sources
of textiles outside the country.
 The use of old machines and equipment. Outdated machines and equipment, and the
inability to access timely new technology are revealed by a number of textile firms as a
serious hindrance. Obsolete machinery needs constant costly maintenance and repair,
 which has multiplier effects on the competitiveness of manufactured goods. Although
some manufacturers had made attempts to adopt new technology, several had not been
able to use the state-of-art technology prevailing elsewhere especially in the advanced
world and emerging economies of South East Asia. The solution to this challenge should
come from both the manufacturers and the government through policies that support the
acquisition of new technology, some of the firms have even failed to buy advanced
equipment because of small capital they have.
 Poor Information and Communication Technology. Nowadays, information and communication
technology (ICT) is a prerequisite for any business to function effectively. ICT has made the
convergence of audio-visual and telephones with computer networks possible through a single
inter-phase. There are large economic incentives for using a single unified system for
management, production and distribution. Industries that have not managed to automate their
systems lag behind and are comparatively inefficient. In the current world manual operations
and management are deemed old-fashioned. But because automation requires reasonable human
and financial resources, and may at times entail changes in technology, many manufacturing
enterprises have not undertaken such a radical reformation. This has an adverse effect on the
competitiveness of these firms once they enter international markets where efficiently produced
high-quality goods sell at lower prices.

The Steps taken to revive the textile sector

 Power generation should be expanded to build confidence in the reliability of electricity supply
to manufacturers. Gas and other reliable sources of energy, those not susceptible to weather
changes like hydro-generation, have to be prioritized. Speeding up the implementation of the
national Power Systems Master Plan is of utmost importance for the growth and development of
the manufacturing sector.
 Enhanced investment in science and technology should be given greater weight to stimulate
industrial development. On this front, allocation of more funds to postgraduate education on
 specialized manufacturing programmes such as textile and applied research are a prerequisite.
This will promote knowledge and skills development as well as a wider application of ICT.
 To foster competition in the market, targeted action to control the import of cheap counterfeits
should be put in place and enforced across all types of imported goods.

 Further modification to tax reform is recommended. Tax rates have to be reviewed and
synchronized to reduce multiple procedures, to lower compliance costs, and to eliminate all
nuisance taxes.

Figure 2: The Textile Value Chain of Tanzania

Source:
Internet

 Measures need to be taken to promote the consumption of domestic goods so as to build a

tradition of consuming Tanzanian-made products and thus expand the market for local
articles.

 Monetary policy, and in particular exchange rate management, have to be implemented for
greater price stability. This is necessary for controlling the costs of machinery/equipment and
intermediate inputs procurement.
  Financial reforms have to be continued. Attention needs to be directed on lowering financial
risks in the market to help reduce interest rates. This is pertinent to decreasing the cost of
capital.

 Development of Competitive Quality Yarn Production. Extensive effort should be applied to

improving yarn quality and efficiency. Contract farming should address quality and
contamination problems as the lint enters the production process. Industrialists need
professional guidance to upgrade their production control policies and systems and build the
capacity and skills of technicians to produce better quality product. If this is achieved, then
the yarn could be an attractor for knit fabric producers to manufacture for the garment
industry in Tanzania.

Some Figures
Table 1. List of Textile Technology Supplying Markets to Tanzania (HS Code 8445, Machines for preparing textile fibres; spinning,
doubling or twisting machines and other machinery; Unit: US Dollars and values are in 000)
Imported Imported Imported Imported
Imported
Exporters value in value in value in value in
value in 2018
2014 2015 2016 2017
World 1,308,938 949,980 936,233 959,051 10,00,431
China 409,885 295,969 229,894 218,452 264,480
India 72,413 88,685 68,977 82,679 76,360
Norway 10,932 770 295 2,104 76,132
United States
of America 152,116 68,027 100,105 56,895 68,214
Germany 85,423 55,407 46,494 52,523 66,464
Japan 20,099 21,952 29,103 128,268 48,260
South Africa 84,955 64,553 75,189 51,813 42,801
Turkey 21,647 15,474 10,931 9,121 41,840
Italy 16,761 30,127 28,131 32,433 29,957
United
Kingdom 41,449 30,318 36,980 25,282 29,487
Sweden 28,422 15,272 37,315 13,811 27,063
 United Arab
Emirates 79,500 38,537 37,497 29,710 20,918
Thailand 12,244 10,778 10,984 8,788 16,969
Switzerland 15,657 9,351 4,578 4,002 16,691
Source: https://www.trademap.org/tradestat/Country_SelProductCountry_TS.aspx?nvpm

Table 2 List of Textile Technology Supplying Markets to Tanzania (HS Code 8445, Machines for preparing textile fibres; spinning,
doubling or twisting machines and other machinery; Share in value in Tanzania, United Republic of' s imports)
Imports, % Imports, % Imports, % Imports, % Imports, % in
Exporters
in 2014 in 2015 in 2016 in 2017 2018
World 100 100 100 100 100
China 31.3 31.2 24.6 22.8 26.4
India 5.5 9.3 7.4 8.6 7.6
Norway 0.8 0.1 0 0.2 7.6
United States of
America 11.6 7.2 10.7 5.9 6.8
Germany 6.5 5.8 5 5.5 6.6
Japan 1.5 2.3 3.1 13.4 4.8
South Africa 6.5 6.8 8 5.4 4.3
Turkey 1.7 1.6 1.2 1 4.2
Italy 1.3 3.2 3 3.4 3
United
Kingdom 3.2 3.2 3.9 2.6 2.9
Sweden 2.2 1.6 4 1.4 2.7
United Arab
Emirates 6.1 4.1 4 3.1 2.1
Thailand 0.9 1.1 1.2 0.9 1.7
Switzerland 1.2 1 0.5 0.4 1.7
Source: https://www.trademap.org/tradestat/Country_SelProductCountry_TS.aspx?nvpm

In 2017, the top partner countries from which Tanzania Imports Textiles and Clothing
include China, India, Pakistan, Korea, Rep. and United Arab Emirates.

Table 3 Textiles and Clothing Imports By Country 2017

Partner Name Import (US $ Import Product
Thousand) Share (%)
China 117,661.52 7.82
India 27,219.57 2.33
Pakistan 11,451.42 47.88
Korea, Republic 10,197.41 7.25
United Arab Emirates 9,549.90 1.6
 United States 9,000.48 4.44
Hongkong, China 8,538.73 16.46
Vietnam 7,199.76 24.77
Kenya 6,590.34 3.27
South Africa 6,130.43 3.27
Japan 5,546.02 1.34
Indonesia 3,466.09 2.41
Germany 3,186.16 1.37
Canada 3,179.68 8.01
Turkey 2,936.69 3.77
Poland 2,298.08 4.58
Bangladesh 1,851.74 72.86
Other Asia nes 1,026.51 3.60
United Kingdom 928.33 0.58
Australia 738.45 1.13
Thailand 711.59 0.78
Egypt, Arab Rep 570.37 2.01
Norway 489.46 4.16
Malaysia 474.97 0.26
Singapore 472.87 0.76
Uganda 471.89 1.38
Franca 355.05 0.52
Mauritius 323.27 4.09
Italy 317.61 0.35
Belgium 282.93 0.44
Netherlands 265.40 0.31
Lesotho 247.62 91.15
Source: World Integrated Trade Solution ( WITS, 2017)

List of Local Textile Sector Players: Work in Progress Expected

Participants
SN Company Name CIty/Location
1 AFRITEX LTD TANGA
2 21st CENTURY TEXTILE MOROGORO MOROGORO
2 GINNING COMPANY MWANZA
 3 MUSOMA TEXTILE MILLS MUSOMA
4 A TO Z TEXTILE MILLS Kisongo area – Arusha
5 SUNFLAG TANZANIA LIMITED Arusha
6 BLANKETS & TEXTILE MANUFACTURERS DAR ES SALAAM
7 KIBOTRADE TEXTILES LTD DAR ES SALAAM
8 NIDA TEXTILE MILLS DAR ES SALAAM
9 AML DAR ES SALAAM
10 CONGLIN &CO. LIMITED DAR ES SALAAM

11 DERMA INTERNATIONAL LIMITED DAR ES SALAAM

12 ELIAS MAGERE ENTERPRISES LTD Musoma, MARA
13 FASHION FABRIC TEXTILE LTD DAR ES SALAAM
14 FOMOKA TRADING AND INDUSTRY CO. LIMITED DAR ES SALAAM
Moshi,
15 GLOBAL SYNTHETICS LTD KILIMANJARO
16 J.V. TEXTILES & GARMENTS LTD DAR ES SALAAM
17 KARIBU TEXTILES MILLS LTD DAR ES SALAAM
18 KILIMANJARO TEXTILES MILLS LTD ARUSHA
19 MASUMIN TEXTILES Songea, RUVUMA
20 MBEYA TEXTILES MILLS MBEYA
21 M.B.TEXTILES LTD ARUSHA
22 MOROGORO POLYSTER TEXTILES LTD MOROGORO
23 MORCO TEXTILES LIMITED DAR ES SALAAM
24 NATIONAL TEXTILES CORPORATION TABORA
25 NEW MWANZA TEXTILES LTD MWANZA
26 NEW MUSOMA TEXTILES Mara, MUSOMA
27 NEW KILIMANJARO TEXTILE MILLS, LTD ARUSHA
28 PABARI TEXTILES DAR ES SALAAM
29 QUALITY TEXTILES DAR ES SALAAM
TANZANIA UNIFORM & CLOTHING CORPORATION
30 LTD DAR ES SALAAM
31 TANZANIA CLOTHING CO. LTD DAR ES SALAAM
32 TANGANYIKA TEXTILE INDUSTRIES LTD DAR ES SALAAM
33 TANZANIA BUSINESS WOMEN’S TEXTILE PRODUCT DAR ES SALAAM
34 TANZANIA KNITWEAR CO. LTD DAR ES SALAAM
35 TANDALE CARPET COOPERATION DAR ES SALAAM
36 TANGAMANO TEXTILE MANUFACTURERS Central, TANGA
37 TEXTILE MANUFACTURERS ASSOCIATION DAR ES SALAAM
38 TEXTILE MANUFACTURERS OF TANZANIA (T) LTD DAR ES SALAAM

Resources:
http://thecommonwealth.org/our-member-countries/united-republic-tanzania

https://www.afdb.org/en/countries/east-africa/tanzania/tanzania-economic-outlook

https://www.trademap.org/tradestat/Country_SelProductCountry_TS.aspx?nvpm

https://wits.worldbank.org/CountryProfile/en/TZA

https://wits.worldbank.org/CountryProfile/en/Country/TZA/Year/LTST/TradeFlow/Export/Par
tner/by-country/Product/50-63_TextCloth