DAR ES SALAAM: Anti-corruption measures in Tanzania have boosted revenue collections in dozens of local government authorities, following reforms aimed at closing leakages and strengthening financial oversight, the country’s anti-graft agency said.
The Prevention and Combating of Corruption Bureau (PCCB) said annual revenue in 40 local authorities rose to 106.4 billion Tanzanian shillings from 97.8 billion shillings in the 2024/25 financial year.
Director General Crispin Francis Chalamila attributed the increase to system reforms introduced after identifying corruption loopholes through detailed institutional reviews.
The bureau developed 3,470 anti-corruption strategies, of which 2,994 — or 86% — have been implemented, he said while presenting a performance report to President Samia Suluhu Hassan.
“Following system analysis, PCCB conducted stakeholder engagements and developed strategies to seal corruption loopholes,” Chalamila said. “Most of these have already been implemented, with the remainder underway.”
The agency’s interventions focused on prevention, public awareness, investigations and prosecutions. Priority sectors included revenue collection, elections and service delivery in health, water, education, land and construction.
Improved oversight also led to the recovery of unpaid withholding taxes that had not been deducted or fully remitted to the Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA), the report said.
In several local authorities, including Iringa and Meatu, taxes linked to public projects had either not been deducted or were only partially remitted. Following PCCB intervention, the outstanding amounts were recovered and submitted to the tax authority.
The report also highlighted the impact of digitisation. In Rombo District Council, the adoption of electronic revenue collection systems doubled collections to 4.4 billion shillings from 2.2 billion shillings a year earlier.
On expenditure monitoring, PCCB tracked 1,864 development projects worth 14.3 trillion shillings in 2024/25, up from 1,773 projects valued at 11.4 trillion shillings the previous year. Of these, 913 projects were flagged for deficiencies, triggering 66 investigations — down from 92 cases a year earlier.
Despite progress, the bureau warned that weak contract management remains a key risk, with recurring issues including payments for incomplete work, failure to deduct taxes, substandard construction and breaches of procurement rules.
“These shortcomings continue to recur, and accounting officers must strengthen supervision,” Chalamila said.
PCCB said it recovered 14.5 billion shillings between July 2024 and June 2025, including both cash and assets. A further 101.8 billion shillings was recovered between July 2025 and February 2026 through ongoing investigations.
The agency completed investigations into 1,030 cases in 2024/25, up from 728 in the previous year. These included 22 high-value corruption cases involving a total of 210.5 billion shillings.
Among the cases cited was a cross-border cybercrime scheme involving cloned bank cards, in which 147.5 billion shillings was fraudulently withdrawn across 11 countries. Authorities said the transactions involved 1,551 cards and 162 companies, with some funds used to pay for services including tourism and transport.
In a separate case, investigators examined the embezzlement of 19.1 billion shillings from NMB Bank Plc in Shinyanga Region, involving borrowers, a collateral manager and bank officials. About 4.2 billion shillings has so far been recovered.
On prosecutions, PCCB handled 1,016 cases during the period and concluded 593. Of these, 483 resulted in convictions, giving a success rate of 81.5%, up from 76% the previous year.
Public awareness of corruption has also risen, reaching 84.6% in 2024 from 77.5% in 2020, driven by nationwide education campaigns that included seminars, public meetings and exhibitions.
Chalamila said the bureau would continue to expand the use of technology, strengthen oversight of public funds and intensify efforts to combat corruption in key service sectors.
“We will continue to ensure that all offenders are brought to justice in accordance with the law,” he said.
