Dar es Salaam Port, Tanzania's main maritime gateway, handled 33.7 million tonnes of cargo in the 2025/26 financial year, up from 27.7 million tonnes in 2024/25, according to the Tanzania Ports Authority (TPA). The increase of six million tonnes represents a 21.7 per cent rise and is particularly significant because the volume had been projected for 2030/31 under the TPA master plan, meaning the port has reached that target six years early.
The surge in cargo movement has prompted the TPA to launch an ambitious infrastructure development programme valued at 16.1 trillion shillings across Dar es Salaam, Tanga and Mtwara ports, alongside inland dry ports and logistics corridors, TPA Director General Plasduce Mbossa said in an interview. The authority plans to mobilise 11.2 trillion shillings through TPA revenues, including revised charges, while 4.9 trillion shillings will come from the private sector via Public-Private Partnership arrangements.
One of the major projects already under way is the construction of oil storage tanks at Dar es Salaam Port, valued at 678.6 billion shillings and funded entirely through TPA domestic sources. Implementation had reached 54.8 per cent as of October 2026, with completion expected in March 2027. Once operational, the facility is expected to reduce the time required to serve oil vessels from an average of 10 days to three days, according to TPA.
Kisiwa Mgao Port in Mtwara, valued at 434.5 billion shillings, is under construction to expand capacity for dry bulk commodities including coal and clinker. Construction began in January 2025 and had reached 53.97 per cent implementation by October 2026, with completion scheduled for January 2028. At Dar es Salaam Port, TPA is preparing for a major expansion involving four proposed container berths expected to increase annual container-handling capacity to 1,350,000 twenty-foot equivalent units.
TPA has also begun preparations for the first phase of Bagamoyo Port, with the authority preparing to procure a consultant and contractor for dredging works on the ship access channel. The authority said that without corresponding investment in port infrastructure, congestion and delays can disrupt supply chains, increase business costs and weaken the competitiveness of Tanzania's trade corridors.
For importers, manufacturers and exporters, sustained underinvestment in port capacity risks delays in receiving goods, difficulty obtaining raw materials on time and missed delivery schedules, which could eventually contribute to higher prices for goods and services.