Tanzania: Study on the Blue economy concept with focus on employment potential

Project Background

Although Tanzania is one of the fastest growing economies internationally, the country faces the challenge of high youth unemployment. The Employment and Skills for Development in Africa (E4D) regional programme is an initiative funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad), the EU, the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) and private companies, currently operating in seven African countries, including Tanzania. E4D has sought to address the above issues by promoting sustainable employment, higher incomes and better working conditions, combined with strengthening the business capacity of local enterprises. In Tanzania, E4D has recently identified the concept of sustainable blue economy as an area that offers opportunities for sustainable development and high potential for promoting employment. The programme is interested in how the various marine sectors of the Blue Economy can be harnessed to create new employment opportunities, especially for youth and women, while maintaining the health of the sea and local ecosystems.

The study "The Blue Economy in Tanzania with focus of employment potential" aims to analyse the current relevant sectors within the Blue Economy in Tanzania and identify regions and opportunities for promoting employment, especially for VET graduates. While all relevant sectors are considered in this study, the focus is on the three sectors of marine fish farming, seaweed farming and other potential forms of mariculture.

Objectives

The study was based on an extensive literature review, field research and interviews conducted onsite by the COFAD team. The goals of this research were to obtain the following:

1. Identification of international trends within sustainable Blue Economy relating to employment promotion
2. An overview of governmental strategies/priorities relating to the domestic Blue Economy
3. A context analysis of the current sectors within Blue Economy, which are relevant to Tanzania to provide suggestions on the opportunities for livelihood development and to address technological/technical gaps related to sustainability
4. Provide recommendations through an in-depth analysis of the prioritised sectors for areas of environmentally sustainable employment opportunities, skill development and regions for potential intervention

Results

• Extensive literature review conducted by the research team on international and domestic Blue Economy
• Interviews conducted both on site and remotely with private and public stakeholders within the relevant Blue Economy sectors
• Regular meetings and coordination with the E4D and GIZ team
• Presentation of preliminary findings to the client
• Delivery of a final report including all relevant recommendations