Economy & invest
Tabora is Tanzania's tobacco heartland and its largest honey producer, with 3.4 million people, 64% of its economy in agriculture, and a new railway under construction. The numbers, the sectors and where the opportunities are.
Tabora in numbers
| Population | 3,391,679 at the 2022 census, Tanzania’s third most populous region |
| Councils | Nzega (699,691), Kaliua (678,447), Uyui (562,588), Igunga (546,204), Sikonge (335,686), Tabora Municipal (308,741), Urambo (260,322) |
| Area | The largest region in Tanzania by area, on the central plateau at 1,000–1,500 m |
| Economy | About 64% agriculture; regional GDP TSh 4.7 trillion (2018), 3.7% of the national total |
| Crops | Tobacco, groundnuts, cassava, maize, beans, rice, sunflower, cotton; zebu cattle |
| Forests | Forest reserves cover close to half the region |
| Transport | Central Line junction; Tabora Airport; SGR under construction |
The sectors
Sector
Tobacco
Tanzania is Africa's second-largest tobacco producer and Tabora is where most of it grows.
Sector
Honey and forests
Close to half of Tabora Region is forest reserve, and its miombo woodland makes it Tanzania's largest honey producer.
Sector
Farming and livestock
Maize, groundnuts, cassava, rice and cattle: the food economy behind the tobacco.
Sector
Railway and logistics
Tabora is the junction of the Central Line, and the standard-gauge railway is being built through it: to Mwanza, and from 2026 towards Kigoma.
Invest
Opportunities and who to contact
Where an investor, buyer or partner can add value in Tabora, and who to talk to.