DMG: Revolutionising the maritime sector is not a compromise

The ocean is an essential resource for economic growth, especially for coastal countries. Many sectors rely on the ocean either directly or indi­rectly, such as fishing, transportation, tourism, and marine energy.

This resource significantly con­tributes to global economic growth, particularly for coastal countries. The ocean offers numerous economic opportunities that greatly contribute to social and economic development.

Fishing is one of the most signifi­cant ocean-dependent sectors. The ocean is a habitat for fish and other marine creatures, which are a food source for millions of people world­wide. This helps reduce hunger and creates employment opportunities for many people, especially in devel­oping countries.

The ocean, again, is the main route for global trade. Almost 90 percent of international trade depends on it, with ships being used to transport various goods such as oil, cars, elec­trical equipment, and agricultural products.

Marine tourism is another major source of income for many countries. Coastal tourist cities attract tourists from all over the world. Attractions such as beautiful beaches, water sports, and diving spots rake in for­eign exchange through tourists visit­ing the country.

Tanzania is among the nations blessed with such crucial resources, which have been a significant pillar in contributing to economic growth. This is due to the investment made in the maritime sector.

The Dar es Salaam Merchant Group (DMG) is one of the key players in the maritime sector, positioning itself as one of the local companies excelling in this field, especially in fishing and transportation activities.

Guided by its founding principles, which include adding value to society, setting long-term goals, and ensuring mutual benefits in every area of busi­ness, the DMG has thrived.

The DMG Managing Director, Mr Rayton Kwembe, says the DMG is a Tanzanian-owned company, estab­lished nine years ago, engaged in trad­ing (buying and selling products), consultancy services in various sec­tors, particularly the maritime sector, and marine activities.

Mr Kwembe mentions that in car­rying out those responsibilities, they collaborate with various stakehold­ers, including the government, which has been a major partner.

“We have been working with var­ious institutions, including govern­ment bodies such as the Prime Min­ister’s Office, the Deep Sea Fishing Authority (DSFA), the National Insti­tute of Transport (NIT), the Marine Services Company Limited (MSCL), and the Tanzania Ports Authority (TPA),” says Mr Kwembe.

Designing, construction and ship repair

The DMG Director states that in 2017, the DMG established a marine section tasked with designing, con­struction and ship repair.

“The reason for establishing this section was untapped economic growth opportunities in the maritime sector. However, the government’s strategy to give special attention to this sector, including reviving the Marine Services Company and imple­menting shipbuilding projects, was the primary motivation for entering this field,” said Mr Kwembe.

The DMG is the second local com­pany to have been licensed as a marine contractor in the country. The Direc­tor points out that there are major countries worldwide whose econo­mies have flourished on the back of investments in marine activities, such as South Korea.

The government’s efforts to ensure this sector makes progress and increases its contribution to the econ­omy pushed the DMG to seek part­nerships with stakeholders who have modern technology and expertise in shipbuilding and enter into cooper­ation agreements, enabling them to align with the government’s pace.

Mr Kwembe establishes that this step allowed them to become a trust­ed local company, participating in various state-owned shipbuilding and repair projects.

“Our first project was the construc­tion of the MV Mwanza, where we are the service providers to the main con­tractor by providing local content ser­vices such as hiring of local experts, and local project management servic­es. This was the project that opened doors for us to become known to oth­er stakeholders,” hinted Mr Kwembe.

When they started in 2017, accord­ing to him, they set a goal to become Tanzania’s leading marine contractor with a drive to capture the African market—a goal which is few miles away to become a reality.

“In four years, we have worked with all government institutions that own ships, including the Marine Servic­es Company, which is currently our biggest client. We are now working on three projects with the compa­ny, including the strategic project to revive the historic MV Liem­ba. The government has trusted us with this project, which has already commenced, and we have already received initial payments,” notified Mr Kwembe.

Another project is the repair of a large oil tanker in Mwanza and the refurbishment of a tugboat, contracts of which have already been signed with initial payments having been made. Thus, in terms of repairs, they are working on three projects with the company, according to Mr Kwem­be.

In addition, the DMG has been entrusted with supervision of two projects on building cargo ships on Lake Victoria and Lake Tanganyika, which are being implemented by a Turkish companies. The MD says the company also has worked with the Tanzania Ports Authority (TPA) on five projects.

“We worked with TPA on the repair of a small boat for labor launch (MV Aida Kondo) at the Tanga port and entered into agreements on supply­ing two fibre boats and supplying boat parts for Mtwara and Tanga port. For TEMESA we have been contracted for repairing of ferries including the MV Tanga, MV Kitunda in Lindi, and tMV Kilambo in Mtwara. We have also started building a new ship for Mafia and Nyamisati routes,” clarified further Mr Kwembe.

Investment in modern ship­building technology

On technology, Mr Kwembe shares that they are currently collaborating with the National Institute of Trans­port (NIT) and the Dar es Salaam Maritime Institute (DMI) to recruit graduates and pair them with experts from Korea to gain experience.

“We currently have five experts from these institutes undergoing training from our Korean partners to ensure we have a skilled workforce capable of utilising these technolo­gies. Additionally, we now have our own facilities, one located in Kimbiji and the other in Zanzibar, Mangap­wani,” Mr Kwembe told The Citizen.

Deep sea fishing

The DMG conducted research on the challenges facing many fisher­men in the country in accessing deep-sea fishing and discovered that lack of vessels capable of reaching deep waters and the absence of accurate information about deep-sea fishing remain a pressing concern for fish­ermen.

To address these challenges, the DMG entered into an agreement with the Tanzania Agricultural Develop­ment Bank (TADB), which allocated Sh1 billion to the DMG to begin con­structing modern boats for deep-sea fishing.

“After conducting the research and identifying these challenges, we engaged in discussions with the TADB, which agreed to fund us with Sh1 billion to build four modern fish­ing boats. One boat is complete and expected to begin operations soon, the second is scheduled to start in December, this year, the third in April 2025, and the fourth in October 2025,” elucidated Mr Kwembe. We believe these boats will bring about major transformation in the deep sea fishing Tanzania.

World Maritime Day celebra­tion

As an important stakeholder in the marine sector, the DMG is preparing to celebrate this year’s World Oceans Day by organising two major events.

“We plan to launch our modern fishing boats and make our first trip to deep sea waters. We will also conduct a cleanup of our work areas,” said Mr Kwembe.