Tanzania’s export surge is anchored by gold, with tourism and services bolstering the economy.
Gold Drives Tanzania’s Export Growth
Tanzania’s external trade performance has shown notable strength, led by sharp increases in gold export receipts and supported by rising services receipts. According to recent data, total exports of goods and services increased significantly year-on-year, with gold export values posting substantial gains.
Trade dynamics to neighboring South Africa have come under particular focus, with analysts pointing to gold as the primary driver of increased exports toward that market. These insights provide context to the composition of trade flows and their interpretation in broader export statistics.
Record Gold Export Receipts
Latest central bank reporting shows Tanzania’s gold export receipts reached record levels in the most recent full accounting period. The value of gold exports climbed by a substantial percentage compared to the prior year, driven by elevated global gold prices and robust output. Gold exports to South Africa nearly doubled from an average of about $1.145 million in 2020 to roughly $2.293 million by 2024. This performance helped anchor the overall rise in export earnings. In parallel, service exports, tourism in particular, contributed positively to total receipts.
“The increase really is gold. There has been some growth in other products like coffee, but gold is absolutely dominant. SA brings in a lot of gold from other African states to refine and very often to store here on their behalf.” Donald MacKay, Chief Executive Officer of XA Global Trade Advisors said in a recent interview.
MacKay said a significant share of Tanzania’s gold exports is shipped to South Africa in unprocessed form, where it is refined and stored before being sold on to international buyers. He added that a similar pattern previously influenced South Africa’s trade figures with the United States, as gold held in South African vaults on behalf of other countries was later re-exported.
Commenting on regional trade arrangements, MacKay noted that the Southern African Development Community Free Trade Protocol has had limited impact on gold exports, though it may have played a role in supporting growth in other industries.
“For gold, it makes no difference,” he said. “But for products like apparel, which would normally face duties of around 45%, duty-free access under the Southern African Development Community could certainly have helped.”
Tourism and Services On the Rise
Increased visitor arrivals have bolstered tourism receipts, which constitute a meaningful portion of services earnings. Tanzania recorded 2.14 million foreign tourists in 2024, an increase of 18.5 per cent from the previous year. This upturn in tourism has brought in USD 3.9 billion in tourism revenue, largely from European travellers. As service exports grow, they help broaden Tanzania’s export mix and reduce reliance on commodity exports alone.
Exports of services also made a meaningful contribution to overall export growth in the year ending November 2025, with total services receipts rising by 9.3% to USD 7,387.5 million compared with the prior year. This increase was supported by higher earnings from transportation services, with travel receipts growing in line with tourist arrivals, and transport earnings, primarily from freight on transit goods, expanding by 37.3% to USD 2,772.4 million.
A Shifting External Sector
Taken together, the data underlines a clear shift in Tanzania’s external sector, with gold exports providing scale and stability while tourism and services add breadth and resilience. The structure of gold trade with South Africa highlights the importance of regional value chains, even where processing and storage take place beyond national borders. At the same time, rising services receipts point to a more balanced export profile, reducing reliance on a single commodity. As Tanzania’s export base continues to evolve, the interaction between commodities, services, and regional trade frameworks will remain central to sustaining growth and strengthening the country’s position within intra-African trade.
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