Dar es Salaam. As Tanzania accelerates its transition toward a fully-fledged digital economy, the government is shifting its focus to a critical untapped resource: grassroots youth innovators.
At the heart of this new strategy is the establishment of a national database designed to identify, register, and support ICT talent across the country—a move experts believe will fundamentally fast-track the nation's digital transformation.
The government, through the ICT Commission (ICTC), has acknowledged that the digital economy is not built solely by large corporations, but by thousands of small, agile start-ups and individual innovators who create solutions for real-life challenges.
With emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), data analytics and robotics gaining traction, the need to systematically nurture local talent has never been more urgent.
Speaking to The Citizen, yesterday, few days after the 9th Tanzania Annual ICT Conference (TAIC-2026) held in Dar es Salaam, Deputy Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Information, Communication and Information Technology, Mr Nicholaus Mkapa, said the government was committed to creating an enabling environment for youth-led innovation.
“Our focus is on strengthening participation and sustainable competition among local ICT companies, particularly start-ups,” he said.
“This includes access to capital, mentorship, policy support, data governance, cyber security and skills development for both users and professionals.”
Central to this vision is the planned establishment of a ‘national ICT innovators’ registration and identification system’, which will serve as a comprehensive database of talent, start-ups and digital solutions developed within the country.
According to Mr Mkapa, such a system will allow the government to know “who is doing what, where they are, and what kind of support they need,” thereby shifting policy from guesswork to evidence-based decision-making.
Experts argue that the absence of a centralised innovators’ database has long limited Tanzania’s ability to scale its digital ambitions.
Many talented young developers, particularly those outside major cities, remain invisible to investors, regulators and even potential collaborators.
ICT policy analyst Dr Rehema Kihomo said a national registry could be a game-changer. “Once innovators are mapped, the government can design targeted incentives, whether it is seed funding, tax relief, incubation programmes or public procurement opportunities,” she said.
“It also helps avoid duplication of efforts and ensures innovations respond to national development priorities.” From a planning perspective, the database could support digital acceleration by feeding into education reforms, labour market planning and industrial policy.
For instance, data on skills gaps could inform curriculum updates, while information on promising start-ups could guide government partnerships in areas such as e-health, e-agriculture and digital finance.
The Director General of the ICT Commission, Dr Nkundwe Mwasaga, said the commission’s mandate goes beyond regulation to capacity building, particularly as Tanzania moves towards AI-driven systems.
“Our responsibility is to ensure we identify young talents early, build their capacity and support them to grow,” he said. “The digital economy is built by people. When you see young students already developing robots today, it is clear that with proper nurturing, the future workforce will be highly competitive.”
Dr Mwasaga added that registering innovators is also critical for national digital security and data governance. “You cannot protect what you do not know exists. A proper database helps the country manage standards, ethics and security while still encouraging creativity.”
Beyond governance, economists see grassroots innovation as a direct contributor to job creation and inclusive growth. Digital start-ups often require relatively low capital to scale, yet have high employment and productivity potential, especially for youth.
Digital economy expert Mr Deus Mhando noted that countries that have succeeded in digital transformation invested early in talent ecosystems.
“Supporting innovation from the grassroots is a win-win. The government expands its tax base in the long run, reduces youth unemployment and builds local solutions instead of importing expensive technologies,” he said.
The government has also indicated that the innovators’ database will link with broader digital platforms, including e-commerce systems, to help innovators commercialise their products and reach wider markets.
As Tanzania finalises its Start-ups Policy and strengthens digital infrastructure, the success of the digital economy may ultimately depend on how well it identifies, supports and retains its own talent.
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