Tanzania is a democratic republic of over 53 million people, with an average annual gross domestic product growth rate of nearly 7 percent over the past decade. Despite recent economic growth, over 46 percent of the population lives below the extreme poverty threshold of $1.90 a day (2011). Human development indicators, though improving gradually, remain low. It is unlikely that Tanzania will be able to achieve the first Millennium Development Goal—to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger—without significant additional assistance.
Agriculture is the mainstay of the economy, contributing over 30 percent of GDP and employing 67 percent of the labor force, with women contributing more than 70 percent of the labor. USAID enhances agricultural productivity through the expansion of irrigation and market access by reducing transport costs for farm inputs and products, thereby increasing Tanzania’s competitiveness in domestic and regional markets. Through Feed the Future, USAID promotes policies that provide an enabling environment for private sector investment in agriculture, create more consistent market policies, promote gender equity within the sector, improve total productivity, and enable the implementation of key nutritional interventions.
USAID works closely with the Government of Tanzania to implement activities that promote increased trade. USAID’s trade and investment hubs are designed to reinforce regional and bilateral efforts to strengthen Africa's economic competitiveness and assist countries to take greater advantage of the trade opportunities provided by the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) and other global trade initiatives. The trade and investment hub programs include trade capacity building, improvements to the private sector enabling environment, better market access and opportunities, trade facilitation, food security programs, and export promotion support for African products.
Learn more: East Africa Trade and Investment Hub
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