[PRESSWIRE] DUBAI, United Arab Emirates – 2026-02-06 — 4 February, 2026
Tanzania is moving ahead with plans to link all of its major seaports and inland ports through an integrated rail network to boost regional trade and attract investment, President Samia Suluhu Hassan said at the World Governments Summit in Dubai.
Speaking during a panel discussion at the summit, Samia said on Monday the government is working to interconnect the ports of Dar es Salaam, Tanga and Mtwara through modern infrastructure, including railways, as part of a broader effort to improve logistics and investor access.
The plan also includes linking ports on Lake Victoria, Lake Tanganyika and Lake Nyasa to strengthen regional economic integration, she said.
“We are trying to connect these ports to other parts of Tanzania by railway so that we can transport goods arriving in Tanzania to neighbouring countries more efficiently,” Samia said.
She said Tanzania has invested heavily in large-scale infrastructure projects, including the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR), which is expected to run about 2,100 kilometres from Dar es Salaam to Burundi, with a later extension planned to the Democratic Republic of Congo.
“We think this is a major route that can be used from Dar es Salaam Port to anywhere in the region,” she said, noting that Tanzania borders eight countries and that transport corridors are central to its connectivity strategy.
Samia said the infrastructure programme has been supported by financing from development partners including the African Development Bank Group, the World Bank, the OPEC Fund, the Abu Dhabi Fund and the Abu Dhabi Export Fund.
She added that Tanzania has also introduced policy, legal and regulatory reforms aimed at making the investment environment more predictable and attractive.
“In principle, the basic infrastructure for investment growth is already laid in Tanzania,” she said.
On Monday evening, Samia also spoke at the launch of the Global Africa Investment Summit (GAIS), held on the sidelines of the World Governments Summit, where she said trust, policy consistency and strong institutions were key to attracting long-term investment into African economies.
“What investors seek today is not only opportunity, but trust — trust in institutions, policy consistency and governments that honour commitments,” she said.
She said Tanzania has made strategic investments in energy, railways, ports and transport infrastructure, alongside establishing special investment zones, special economic zones and a one-stop investment facilitation centre to reduce administrative barriers for investors.
Samia said platforms such as GAIS could help African countries move from fragmented project promotion to structured collaboration aligned with national development priorities and investor expectations.
GAIS is designed to mobilise global capital by converting African sovereign and public assets into bankable investment portfolios that meet international standards for governance, risk management and returns.
Speaking at the launch, Akinwumi Adesina, former president of the African Development Bank and co-founder and executive chairman of GAIS, said Africa’s challenge was not a lack of assets, but weak structures to connect them to global capital.
“The problem is not a lack of assets, but the absence of trusted structures that connect those assets to global capital,” Adesina said, citing weaknesses in project structuring, data availability, governance and high due-diligence costs.
Samia said Tanzania’s participation in GAIS reflected its commitment to engaging in structured partnerships aligned with national development priorities and the expectations of international investors.
Earlier on Monday, Samia held bilateral meetings at the summit aimed at strengthening Tanzania’s strategic partnerships and advancing economic diplomacy, with discussions focused on cooperation aligned with the country’s Vision 2050 development agenda.
– Tanzania is implementing a long-term infrastructure strategy centred on rail, ports, roads, aviation and logistics corridors to position the country as a regional trade gateway for East, Central and Southern Africa.
– The Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) is a flagship project expected to run about 2,100 kilometres from Dar es Salaam to Burundi, with future connections planned to the Democratic Republic of Congo.
– Tanzania borders eight countries and serves as a key maritime access point for several landlocked economies, including Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Zambia and parts of the DRC.
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