DAR ES SALAAM IS THE MOST IMPORTANT CITY IN TANZANIA IN TERMS OF BOTH GOVERNMENT AND BUSINESS.

Dar es Salaam is the most important city in Tanzania in terms of both government and business. If you look at the city and compare it to the rest of the country it far outranks everywhere else when considering trade, services and manufacturing – this partly due to the fact that large portions of Tanzanian towns and cities dwell in rural areas. 

The Dar es Salaam central business district is made up of four main areas (Kisutu, Kivukoni, Kariakoo and Upanga), all of which add up to mean there are going to be plenty of job vacancies in Dar es Salaam. The city has a large fish market (the Magogoni fish market) which is a large source of employment in the city. 

The Kivrukoni district houses Tanzania’s central bank and the country’s largest stock exchange. This means that the Kivrukoni district has plenty of financial, economic and banking careers in Dar es Salaam.

Even though it has a less dense population compared to the other areas, the Upanga district has a booming construction industry. 

So if your career specialty involves a trade or working in construction, you’ll find plenty of job opportunities in Dar es Salaam – especially in Upanga. One of the reasons for the huge increase in construction in the city in recent years, is thanks to the PSPF Twin Towers. 

The towers have more than 35 storeys are the tallest buildings in the country. Tourists and shoppers alike flock to the Kariakoo district as this is renowned for its excellent shopping areas located on famous streets like Congo street – which is particularly famous for its clothes shops. 

If you work in retail or hospitality, you’ll find something on offer for you here. To add to the rest of this list, Dar es Salaam has a natural harbour on the Indian Ocean, which means the city is the main point for the Tanzanian transportation and logistics industries – especially considering the main railway and several highways start in or near the city. Which means if you’re looking for logistics jobs in Dar es Salaam, you shouldn’t have trouble finding them.

Life in the city

Before Dar es Salaam became the major economic hub it is today, it was called Mzizima – which means healthy town in Kiswahili, in the 19th century and was a small fishing village. In the 1860s, the Sultan of Zanzibar, Majid bin Said started to build a new city very close to Mzizima and called it Dar es Salaam. Not long after the sultan’s death, the city started to decline, but was soon revived in 1887 when the German East Africa established a station there. The city changed hands after World War I to the British and then became an important part of the new Tanzania after independence. The city experienced rapid growth after WWII, thanks to the significance of the harbour to the country. Visitors to the city will notice that it has some beautiful islands and spectacular botanical gardens.The Dar es Salaam Marine Reserve is only a day trip away from the city and is a popular site for snorkeling and swimming. The city is also home to two of the five museums which make up the National Museum of Tanzania – the two museums are the National Museum proper and the Village Museum.

Dar es Salaam is serviced by the Julius Nyerere International Airport, which is in fact the main airport in Tanzania. The city is also connected to Kigoma thanks to Tanzania Railways which operate the central line here. However, most of the transport in the city is done by the dala dala (minibus), which is a cheap option but can also be quite dangerous. Whatever Dar es Salaam lacks in transportation infrastructure it makes up for that in terms of education. The city is in fact the educational centre of Tanzania, this is mostly due ot the fact that the city is home to many educational institutions, including the University of Dar es Salaam which is the oldest and 2nd largest public university in the country.Cost of living in Dar es Salaam is more expensive than most other cities in Tanzania, the important numbers you need to know about are:

    Inexpensive meal: $5.22

    Basic utilities: $111.18 per month

    1 bedroom apartment (city centre): $787.78 per month on average

    1 bedroom apartment (outside of centre): $573.68 per month on average

    Average after tax monthly salary: $644.27

Career prospects in Dar es Salaam

If you’re looking to move to Dar es Salaam you won’t be disappointed with the types of careers on offer in the city. If you specialise in the logistics and transportation industry, you’ll find plenty of job opportunities in Dar es Salaam. Not only that, but there is also demand for accountants and finance professionals, especially considering the city is the financial hub of Tanzania. Whatever kind of career you’re after, you’ll find something in Dar es Salaam.