Building The Just City in Tanzania: Essays On Urban Housing

Building the
Just City
in Tanzania
Essays on Urban Housing
Tanzania Office
Contents
Foreword iii
About the Authors vi
Governance and institutional framework for ensuring

just access to housing for all 1
1. Introduction 2
2. Laws and regulations relevant to the governance
of the housing sector 3
3. Political developments, trends in housing policy
administration and key actors 5
4. Summary 12
5. Policy implications 15
6. References 17
7. Annex 20
Just access to land for affordable housing in Tanzania 21
1. Introduction 22
2. Urban land use planning in Dar es Salaam 22
3. Urban land access and land use rights 25
4. Persistent Issues in Access to Land and Housing 36
5. Conclusion 37
6. References 39
When housing is more than houses: implications of space-use
intensity for housing policy in Tanzania 46
1. Preface 47
2. Introduction 48
3. The continuum approach to urban informality 48
4. House interviews to reveal“space-use intensity” 51
5. Tanzanian insights on urban formalization 56
6. Key messages for a more effective housing policy 65
7. References 66
8. Annex 71
Just and secure access to adequate and affordable housing 73
1. Introduction 74
2. History of housing inequalities in the
city of Dar es Salaam 75
3. Overview of housing affordability 76
4. Critical Inputs that guarantee access to
affordable and adequate housing 82
5. Growing female-headed households in the city 84
6. Recommendations 85
7. Conclusion 86
8. References 88
A multi-sector approach to housing in urban Tanzania 90
1. Introduction 91
2. Housing the urban poor in Tanzania 91
3. Housing, public services and infrastructure 92
4. A multi-sector approach to housing 94
5. Strategies to apply multi-sector approaches:
an assessment of the Chamazi Housing Project 94
6. Conclusion 97
7. References 99
Financing affordable and adequate housing in Tanzania 100
1. Introduction 101
2. The provider approach (1961 – 1971) 102
3. The enabling approach (1972 – 1985) 103
4. The neo-liberal turn (1986 - 2022) 106
5. Credit availability through housing microfinance 111
6. Conclusions 113
7. Policy recommendations 115
8. References 117
Building the Just City in Tanzania: Essays on Urban Housing
Foreword enon. It is also critical to understand

that, globally, housing is highly com-
modified and financialized. It repro-
By Elisabeth Bollrich duces socio-spatial inequality. The
global housing crisis intersects with
With this collection of papers, the Just national and urban political-econom-
City Platform (JCP) Tanzania—an inde- ic issues, so that situated analyses are
pendent, multidisciplinary coalition of essential to developing solutions that
urban practitioners, trade union and work. Housing deficiencies in Tanza-
civil society organization members, as nia are currently addressed by encour-
well as academia—that has been fa- aging the private market to build—
cilitated since its inception in Febru- sometimes by turning to public-private
ary 2021 by Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung partnerships (PPPs). But there is a need
(FES) Tanzania Office hopes to make a to look beyond growth. Upgrading in-
meaningful contribution to the debates formal settlements is another strategy.
on the complexities of urban housing Are these sustainable solutions? Who
in Tanzania. It is the outcome of a po- actually experiences the housing crisis
litical-economy and discourse analysis in Dar es Salaam? More knowledge is
that helped the Working Group on needed to explore lived experiences
Housing—under the broader Just City of under-housed low-income earners.
Platform—illuminate underlying mech- What about urban planning process-
anisms of housing production and ac- es: do they use public participation?
cess in Tanzania. Besides offering an Are public services coproduced by
introduction to the housing sector in service users and local communities?
Tanzania and providing basic knowl- We wish to argue for a context-spe-
edge of major problems and trends, cific model in Tanzania, where the
the motivation of this collection is to increasing housing need is currently
advance the debate on social justice. met by using informal rental markets.
To this point, we welcomed contribu-
tions that contribute to understand- Chapter 1 by Albert Nyiti explains
ing what choices have been made, the governance and institutional frame-
what patterns emerge and how it works for housing, and it discusses how
shapes the provision of affordable, ad-
these frameworks impact just access
equate, suitable, and secure housing.to housing for all. It begins by looking
at the land and property provisions,
The lack of affordable urban housing which underlie housing provision. A
in Tanzania cannot be ignored. Yet, key contribution is Nyiti’s discussion of
insecure housing is a global phenom- language and why some housing-re-
iii
lated concepts in Kiswahili are difficult Chapter 3 by Maria Carrizosa ex-

to translate. He explores the National amines space-use intensity in informal
Housing Corporation (NHC), the first housing in Dar es Salaam. She demon-
parastatal established after indepen- strates that housing is an indispensable
dence, which underpinned the com- social protection, acting as self-sup-
mitment to provide affordable housing plied social insurance—which is part of
to the poor. While he notes that there the hustle of getting by in the city. Seen
have been efforts to put in place a Na- from that perspective, instead of insist-
tional Housing Policy (NHP) since 2003, ing in binaries and building on the infor-
with the draft policy ready since 2018, mality-as-nuisance discourse, she offers
he demands collective action to bring a differentiated approach that embrac-
housing back on the national agenda. es the back-and-forth movements be-
tween formality and informality—a fact
Chapter 2 by Felician Komu analyses that should be used to re-center the
access to urban land for housing in Dar housing policy to connect housing with
es Salaam and why land access is not a the economic activities it is hosting, as
panacea to the housing problem. While well as services, and social protection.
land-related laws in Tanzania address
social justice on paper, implementation Chapter 4 by Tatu Mtwangi-Lim-
strategies have advanced unworkable bumba centers on just and secure ac-
urban solutions that have exacerbated cess to affordable and adequate hous-
inequality in access to land. He also de- ing for marginalized groups, analyzing
tails how the urban land tenure system, major factors influencing affordability,
typically separated between formal such as access to land and financing.
and informal systems, is much messi- She particularly looks at female-head-
er in reality: with much of the formal ed households in Dar es Salaam, which
housing in a state of exception to these makes housing a largely (and increas-
standards—and with shades of grey ingly so) women’s issue in need of bet-
in between formality and informality. ter integrating and mainstreaming gen-
Another issue is that public space is der in urban planning and the housing
disregarded or privatized, which rais- policy agenda. She shows that a focus
es urgent questions of social spaces on tenants’ welfare is significant, and
for recreation, or parks to combat cli- that the protection of low-income and
mate change, and for disaster mitiga- vulnerable tenants, what might be
tion in the event of flooding or fire. called social housing, are important
strategies for fighting rising inequality
and wealth concentration. Develop-
ing such measures shows that there
is a need to go beyond land tenure.
iv
Chapter 5 by Tim Ndezi, the found- a house, not construction. He describes

ing director of the Centre for Com- how the typical incremental housing
munity Initiatives (CCI), concerns the development in Tanzania is largely fi-
multisectoral approach to housing. nanced by “self-help” financing. This
Infrastructure and services access are offers an entry point for microfinance,
linked to income in Dar es Salaam with but also a special housing fund for
disparities in the availability and afford- loan guarantees. There is certainly a
ability of basic services. Housing loca- need to supply affordable housing and
tion matters and relocation makes lives services together, while taking into
more expensive, for example, through consideration people’s ability to pay.
worse transport access. He also ob-
serves that the law only requires com- FES in partnership with the JCP Working
pensation for structure owners and Group on Housing offers this edition as
landlords, which is why many families an introduction to critically engage with
affected by evictions for development a housing policy for the urban poor in
plans are not compensated. He then Tanzania. It is our wish to conclude
discusses an affordable housing solu- each essay with a range of policy rec-
tion for affected communities in Kur- ommendations to increase awareness
asini, Dar es Salaam. He demonstrates about the disarray of the urban hous-
that the government needs to go being market in Tanzania and improve
yond house ownership and come up planning and investments in housing to
with a community involvement plan. serve the needs of renters—a forgotten
group—and, importantly, vulnerable
Chapter 6 by Tumsifu Jonas Nnk- and lower income groups. We remain
ya concentrates on public financing grateful to the JCP members, who are
of affordable and adequate housing. dedicated to the realization of promot-
From his long experience in civil ser- ing a socially just urbanization in Tanza-
vice, he sees that financing affordable nia. Appreciation goes to Amon Petro
and adequate housing in Tanzania is who committedly convenes the hous-
a daunting task given the low-income ing working group’s meetings. We are
character of most households. Gov- especially grateful to Ryan Thomas who
ernment efforts targeted at mortgage patiently edited the drafts of all chap-
financing—always directed to pro- ters—including cross-checking relevant
moting home ownership—have been data—with all authors and consolidat-
unable to provide access to housing ed the chapters into a readable version.
mortgages for low-income families.
This explains why they need to look for
alternative financing. In addition, mort-
gage lenders prefer to lend for buying
v
About the Authors

Albert Nyiti is an urban planner; currently employed as an assistant research
fellow at the Institute of Human Settlements Studies (IHSS), Ardhi University
in Tanzania. Albert is also a member of the Just City Platform (JCP) Tanzania.
Dr. Felician Komu is a principal researcher in real estate and housing with
Majengo Estate Developers Ltd, Tanzania, and a retired academic from Ardhi
University. Felician is also a member of the Just City Platform (JCP) Tanzania.
Maria Carrizosa is an urban informality researcher, Assistant Director of the

Observatory on Latin America, and university professor at The New School
University and the City College of New York.
Dr. Tatu Mtwangi Limbumba is a senior research fellow at the Institute of

Human Settlements Studies, Ardhi University. She is specialized in housing,
informality and urban poverty. Tatu is a member of the Just City Platform
(JCP) housing working group.
Dr. Tim Ndezi is the founding director of the Centre for Community Initia-
tives (CCI) in Tanzania, a nongovernmental organization affiliated to Slum
Dwellers International (SDI) which empowers communities living in informal
settlements through addressing a range of issues such as housing; water,
sanitation and health; as well as savings and credit. He is also a member of
the Just City Platform (JCP) housing working group.
Prof. Tumsifu Jonas Nnkya is former director of housing at the Ministry of

Lands, Housing and Human Settlements Development in Tanzania. In 2014,
he retired from public service and returned to the university where he had
served from 1980 to 2008. He is the co-founder of the Association of Af-
rican Planning Schools. He is also a member of the Just City Platform (JCP)
housing working group.
vi
1
Governance and
institutional
framework for
ensuring just
access to
housing for all
By Albert Nyiti
Photo: Elisabeth Bollrich
1
1. Introduction The ‘just city’ concept used in the pa-

per draws from Susan Fainstein’s (2008)
This reflective paper seeks to analyze conceptualization of a city that incorpo-
how the governance and institutional rates dignity, diversity and equity, and
framework at both city and national democracy. Dignity means respecting
levels affect and impact the promo- an individual’s or a group’s right to be
tion of justice in access to housing for valued and treated ethically. Equity and
all in Tanzania. The paper explores the diversity are realized when a city’s ben-
housing governance systems, including efits and ideals are shared equally and
available policies, legal frameworks, equitably by all its residents. A city with
and key actors’ roles, interactions and diversity appreciates that democratic
power relations. The study borrows processes may result in the exclusion
concepts from the new institutional of some people; as a result, the city is
theory (North 1990; Peter 2004; March able to put in place safeguards to pre-
and Olsen 2006; Nuhu, 2018). The serve minorities’ rights. Moreover, de-
theory explains institutions through mocracy is displayed in a city where all
reference to both formal and infor- residents make collective decisions in a
mal institutional approaches prevailing manner that respects all citizens’ digni-
in the access and provision of public ty, protects minorities’ rights, and takes
goods, such as housing and services in equity and diversity into account (ibid).
Sub-Sharan African countries (among This paper, therefore, puts in question
others, Kombe and Kreibich 2001; the current governance and institution-
Quaye 2014; Nuhu, 2018; 2019; 2020). al framework by accounting for the
extent to which dignity, diversity and
Furthermore, the new institutional the- equity, and democracy are reflected in
ory takes a governance approach, as access to housing for all in Tanzania.
opposed to only examining government
(Obeng-Oddom, 2017). As document- In current times, attempts to address
ed by Stoker (1998:18), governance urban governance issues have been
entails a “set of institutions and actors highly affected by a shift from a provid-
that are drawn from but also beyond er approach to an enabling approach
government”. It also refers to a net- (Briggs and Mwamfupe, 2000; Nuhu,
work of actors, their roles and respon- 2018). Although the government has
sibilities, the relationship between insti- succeeded to acquire dominant pow-
tutions and exercising authorities, and er over land in the country, local, in-
the distribution of power among them. ternational, and informal actors have
also been on the rise (Kedogo et al.,
2
Governance and institutional framework for ensuring just access to housing for all
2010; Msangi, 2011; Nuhu, 2018). 2. Laws and regulations rele-

The Tanzanian Draft National Hous- vant to the governance of the
ing Policy (2018) points out that the
housing sector
country lacks a legal framework devot-
ed to the development, management,
At the national level, there are sev-
coordination, and implementation of
eral laws that have an impact on the
housing initiatives and programs by
housing sector. Article 24 (1) of the
these diverse actors, to the detriment
Constitution (amended 1977) states
of housing rights protections. This is
that every citizen has the right to own
a warning message that signifies im-
‘property’ and the right to have that
pediments towards dignity, as well as
‘property’ protected in line with the
diversity and equity, for housing access
law. Furthermore, Article 24 (2) states
in Tanzania. Since 2018, the NHP has
that it is illegal to deprive someone of
remained in draft form, awaiting gov-
their ‘property’ for any reason without
ernment approval. Even though there
the authorization of a law that pro-
are efforts towards having an NHP in
vides for just and reasonable compen-
place, this excessive delay in approving
sation. The right to own property may
the draft suggests little commitment
enhance access to housing, but it is
to support housing in the country. De-
not equivalent to the right to housing.
spite these facts, the country possess-
This is because ‘property’ covers a wide
es a number of laws that govern the
range of legal titles that are not nec-
housing sector; most times housing re-
essarily housing. In addition, relying on
lated issues have been lumped togeth-
the right to own property as a justifi-
er with land issues (Kironde, 2021).
cation of the right to housing is an un-
derstatement, because housing is not
The next section discusses the main
just a property but a basic necessity.
laws and regulations that govern the
Other laws that have an impact on the
housing sector, along with their le-
housing sector in Tanzania, apart from
gal impacts. After that, the following
the constitution, include the Urban
section discusses administrative actors
Planning (Space Standards) Regulations
and trends in the enforcement and
of 2018; the Local Government (Urban
implementation of the legal frame-
Authorities) (Development Control)
work. Considerable attention is paid
Regulations of 2008; the Mortgage Fi-
to the various actors’ involvement in
nancing (Special Provisions) Act No.17
housing provision. The final section
of 2008; the Unit Titles Act No. 16 of
concludes the paper with an assess-
2008; and the National Human Settle-
ment of the housing system’s contri-
ments Development Policy of 2000.
bution to making just Tanzanian cities.
3
Respectively, these policies, laws (Amendment) Act (2004); the Urban

and regulations set the ground Planning Act No.6 (2007); the Land
for provision of the following: Acquisition Act Cap 118 (2002); the
Urban Authorities (Rating) Act (1993);
• Guidelines on space stan- the Architect and Quantity Surveyors
dards for laying out housing Registration Act (2016); the Land Reg-
during construction; istration Act (Cap 334 R.E 2002), the
• Responsibilities of the lo- Registration of Documents Act (Cap
cal government authority 117 R.E 2002), the Local Government
to ensure orderly planning (Urban Authorities) (Cap 288) Act
of cities and development 1982; and the Local Government (Dis-
control; trict Authorities) (Cap 287) Act (1982).
• Access to housing finance;
• Enhancing condominium Popular land sector regulations that
housing units’ ownership; have played a role in improving the hous-
and ing sector include the Land (Schemes
• Advocating for adequate of Regularisation) Regulations (L.N. No.
shelter for all. 85 of 2001). The regulations were set to
implement the 1999 Land Act (No. 4 of
It is uncertain whether these provisions 1999 as provided in section 56-60 and
ensure just access to housing for all in 179). Despite putting in place schemes
Tanzania. This is because (i) the provi- of regularization, its operationalization
sions are not directly related to housing was in a vacuum at the beginning (Ma-
and, (ii) despite their presence, 70% of gigi and Majani, 2006). Magina et al,
Tanzania’s urban housing stock is still 2020 argued that initially, regulariza-
in informal areas. The fact that peo- tion was financially supported by the
ple had to seek housing outside the MLHHSD and donor funds in Mwanza
formal system is an indication of an and Dar es Salaam. Later, other urban
unjust framework for housing access authorities implemented the regu-
among urban residents in Tanzania. larization including Dodoma, Moshi,
There are also a number of other laws Tanga, Iringa and Morogoro, using in-
and policies from the land sector that ternal sources. Magina et al, 2020 add-
operate both at national and city lev- ed that despite this purposeful quest,
els that influence the housing sec- the aforementioned urban authorities
tor. These include: The Land Policy of failed to meet the intended objectives.
1995; the Land Use Planning Act No. The regularisation did not achieve sus-
7 and the Land Act No. 4 of 1999; tainability after donors pulled out and
the Village Land Act No. 5 1999/Land the government gradually gave less
4
attention to land related issues in the ment. Implementation of this project is

following years. Another major reason therefore two-sided as far as promot-
for failure was limited community par- ing just access to housing for all in Tan-
ticipation in the regularization process. zania is concerned. On the one hand, it
improves security of tenure on land and
Regularization was stumbling until its housing where the bulk of the urban
re-birth owing to strong political will poor live. On the other hand, the inter-
from the then Minister responsible for vention provides sub-standard or inad-
lands housing and human settlements equate infrastructure and deficient ser-
development, Hon. William Lukuvi vices, which are unjust to people living
(in office from 24th January 2015 to in the project areas. This bitter-sweet
8th January 2022). Seeing the poten- outcome of the Land (Schemes of Reg-
tial in regularization and the land tax ularisation) Regulations (L.N. No. 85
for increasing revenues for the gov- of 2001) has raised questions about
ernment, the Minister advocated for whether it is the right approach to-
Public Private Partnership (PPP) in the wards addressing the informal land
countrywide regularization program and housing issue in the country.
(MLHHSD, 2021). Regularization was
also promoted as improving the provi- 3. Political developments,
sion of basic infrastructure and services trends in housing policy ad-
in the project areas. There is no doubt
ministration and key actors
that land regularization promoted se-
curity of tenure among land and hous-
At the national level, the Ministry of
ing owners (Magina et al, 2020). Not-
Lands, Housing and Human Settle-
withstanding, its implementation has
ments Development (MLHHSD) is the
raised concerns such as little attention
lead institution on matters that con-
paid to infrastructure other than roads
cern housing policies, laws and reg-
(schools, health centers), and open
ulations. However, other key actors
spaces (Magina et al, 2020). Regular-
include: the Ministry of Finance, the
ization also necessitated a review of
Bank of Tanzania, the Ministry of Local
existing town planning standards, for
Government Authorities (PO-RALG),
example, lowering the minimum road
ministries responsible for works, com-
and plot sizes to make them appropri-
munications, energy, water, irrigation;
ate especially to the pro-poor. Despite
and utilities. Other critical government
the above, the project is still seen to
agencies include those responsible for
bear potential of raising property tax-
roads, electricity, water and waste-
es and land rents, which are at present
water as well construction of public
not effectively tapped by the govern-
5
“
buildings (Draft NHP,2018; JCP,2021).

Development of a Na-
The following subsections detail key
tional Housing Policy has
agencies’ roles and responsibilities.
been making snail-slow
progress (and even re-
3.1 Ministry of Lands, Hous-
gress) since 2003. One
ing and Human Settlements
obstacle to overcome has
Development (MLHHSD)
been the argument wheth-
One of the core functions of MLHHSD
is to put in place policies and other in-
stitutional frameworks to support and
er we actually need such
a policy in the light of the
existence of the Nation-
al Human Settlements De-
“
enable citizens in getting access to ad-
velopment Policy of 2000.
equate housing (MLHHSD,2021). The
Just City Platform’s (JCP) political econ-
One of MLHHSD’s requested deliv-
omy analysis on housing uncovered the
erables for preparing the Draft NHP
roles of MLHHSD to include regulating
(2018) entailed providing a justification
urban planning, guiding policy actions,
for its establishment in Tanzania. This
facilitating production of houses, se-
would as a result provide an account
curing tenure, and increasing citizens
that would differentiate it from the
welfare. Among other policies ema-
NHSDP, 2000. The tasked team from
nating from the ministry is the Nation-
the Institute of Human Settlements
al Human Settlements Development
Studies (IHSS), Ardhi University (ARU)
Policy (NHSDP) of 2000, alongside
suggested that there was widespread
the Draft National Housing Policy. Al-
acknowledgement and evidence in
though the NHSDP (2000) advocates
policy documents, practice, and lit-
for adequate shelter for all Tanzanians,
erature that ‘housing’ and ‘human
it does not commit the government to
settlements’ policies were not syn-
achieve specific housing objectives in
onymous. Housing policy defines the
the nation. This partial synergy in the
government’s position underlining its
two policies has for some time been
aspirations to increase the quality and
raising eyebrows. To shed more light
quantity of housing stock for all peo-
on the above perception, the following
ple, or for specific social groups like the
is an extract from an article by Profes-
urban poor or homeless people. Such
sor Lusugga Kironde published in The
a policy would also outline the precise
Citizen Newspaper on 8 July 2021.
tactics and goals that must be met and
strategies to achieve the same. Hu-
man settlements policy, on the other
hand, deals with the totality of a hu-
6
man community environment wheth- combined with the Planning Depart-

er a city, town, or village including the ment and renamed to the Department
entire social, economic, material, or- of Human Settlements, following its
ganizational, spiritual, and cultural el- then relatively small portfolio. Housing
ements that sustain and constitute it. was withering in the department until
Here, the sphere of influence or cov- it was re-established in 2004, owing
erage is much wider and incorporates to some efforts by UN-HABITAT. This
many issues beyond housing, including new housing directorate operated until
transportation, rural-urban linkages, 2019, when it was dissolved and re-ab-
urban agriculture, governance, hier- sorbed into the Human Settlements
archy of settlements, urban form and Development Department. There, it has
structure (IHSS-ARU, unpublished). been reduced further and combined
with property development to form the
Housing was once an issue central to Housing and Property Development
the national agenda (Kironde, 1992). Section. In this institutional self-ab-
The fact that the National Housing sorption, the then-housing directorate
Corporation (NHC) was the first para- had only two units, namely: Housing
statal established in 1962, soon after Finance and Housing Development,
independence, is a vivid example of the and was again the smallest unit at ML-
first commitment to address the hous- HHSD (Kironde, 2021; Nyiti and Genes,
ing issue (Kironde, 2021). The NHC 2022). Moreover, even words that are
was intended to provide affordable found in the approved functions and
housing to poor Tanzanians, despite organization structure of MLHHSD, as
the fact that its role has now shifted approved by the president of URT on
to becoming a government-owned real 29th January 2022 (see Annex 1), em-
estate company (Izar and Limbumba, phasizes land over housing (Figure 1).
2020). It is worth noting, and iron-
ic, that the housing sector has never
found a permanent home, it has been
under different ministries at different
times (Kironde, 2021; Nyiti and Genes,
2022). Before the early 1970s, it was
under the Ministries of Health and Local
Government, before being transferred
to the Ministry of Lands, where it was
renamed to the Ministry of Lands Hous-
ing and Urban Development. In 1992,
the then Department of Housing was
7
Figure 1. Word cloud generated from the organization structure of MLHHSD

indicating land related matters overshadowing housing matters (Source: author)
Another fact that can be derived from settlements’. Housing is directly trans-
Figure 1 is that despite it been derived lated as nyumba, while human settle-
from ‘approved functions’ and ‘orga- ments is translated as makazi. Howev-
nization structure’; functions of the er, regardless of one’s education level
Ministry e.g., physical planning, regu- and profession, the two Swahili terms
larization, mapping, registration, val- are seemingly used to denote the same
uation have been overshadowed with thing. Technically, ‘housing’ has differ-
people positions such as director, com- ent layers of meanings across a variety
missioner, and chief to mention a few. of stakeholders, like real estate agents,
Perhaps this has more to do with ML- land officers, property valuers, town
HHSD organization structure and less planners, architects, quantity survey-
on its approved functions. This study ors, and civil engineers, among others.
therefore calls for a refinement of the Interviews with experts from the land
approved functions and organization and housing sector suggested that,
structure of MLHHSD to one that fits- while some see housing as a basic ne-
in criteria of what it truly represents. cessity to all people, or a human right,
others see it as commodity, or simply
Nyiti and Genes (2022) argue that per- as a functional structure that people
haps this marginalization of the hous- reside in (Nyiti and Genes, 2022). Fur-
ing sector is deeply rooted in the Swa- thermore, the Swahili word nyumba is
hili language. There is controversy from also being used by regular Tanzanians
the language on how to properly inter- to mean ‘house’, ‘shelter’, or ‘build-
pret the terms ‘housing’ and ‘human ing’. The analysis revealed that it is
8
quite common for Tanzanians to call a • Mobilizing resources and

typical ‘commercial building’, nyumba investments in housing for
ya biashara which directly translates to the low and the middle in-
‘house of business’. These confusions come (Draft NHP,2018).
have transcended to the national politi-
cal regime. It seems to have led to a lack The above account is a clear indica-
of appreciation and will by the govern- tion that MLHHSD is central to bring-
ment in giving housing the prominence ing significant transformations in
it deserves as a cornerstone of stan- governance of the nation’s housing
dard of living (Nyiti and Genes, 2022). sector. The analysis however, iden-
tifies major structural and cultural
On the brighter side, once the NHP is setbacks that have propagated the
endorsed, the following are some of the dwindling of the sector. Furthermore,
expected responsibilities of MLHHSD: MLHHSD cannot address promot-
ing just access to housing in isola-
• Decentralizing the functions tion, forming a good framework with
of the Housing Directorate other relevant actors is crucial to the
(now re-absorbed into the positive development of the sector.
Department of Human Set-
tlements) to the zonal offic- 3.2 Structure of housing fi-
es; nance
• Collaborating with the min-
istry responsible for local Access to mortgages has been one of
government to secure es- the burning issues in the housing sec-
tablishment of a housing tor (see Tumsifu Jonas Nnkya in this
section in all local authori- edition). With more than 70% of the
ties; urban housing developed in informal
• Enacting a Housing Act in- settlements, many urban residents
cluding passing of housing do not possess certificates of right of
regulations and other rele- occupancy (CRO). CROs act as collat-
vant regulatory frameworks eral for accessing mortgages, which
to include building codes, implies that, without it, borrowing is
housing guidelines and not an option. Since Tanzania has no
standards; social housing program in place, this
• Promoting and facilitating leaves the fate of affordable housing
investments in housing by in the hands of market forces. The
the public and private sec- market has, over the years, denied the
tors; and low-income groups the right to live
9
in adequate and affordable housing in livery of affordable housing; as well as

Tanzanian cities, and the hope of coun- deliver social housing in respective local
teracting these issues has been vested authorities and mobilize resources for
in the Draft NHP (2018). The Minis- and promoting investments in housing.
try of Finance and Planning, through
the Central Bank, has been tasked to Despite this important role allocated to
ensure that all interest rates on mort- the LGAs, it is unclear how this can be
gages and housing microfinance are materialized given the current structure
affordable to the majority of urban res- of the housing sector. The question to
idents. The Draft NHP (2018) also ad- be asked here is: how will LGAs col-
vocates for the delivery of social hous- laborate with the central government
ing to cater subsidized rental housing in establishing and institutionalizing a
to low-income earners (see Tatu housing section if the main housing
Mtwangi-Limbumba in this edition). section in the department has been
re-absorbed into another department?
3.3 Local Government Author- This poses a significant systemic chal-
ities (LGAs) lenge and lack of clarity on pre-identi-
fied goals for the development of the
The local government authorities housing sector in the country. Hypo-
(LGAs) are responsible for exercising thetically, ideal traits of this collabora-
orderly planning of cities, ensuring city tion would be: postulating clear roles,
development control, as well as look- responsibilities and power relations
ing after public welfare (JCP, 2021). that do not have overlaps and conflict
The local governments have been of interests between these two levels
struggling to follow through with these of government authorities for effective
responsibilities over the years, because decentralization of the housing sector.
there is no up-to-date housing policy
in place. The Draft NHP (2018) calls 3.4 Public Housing Corpora-
for LGAs to lead its implementation tions
and to coordinate all other stakehold-
ers within their jurisdiction. It further Public housing corporations in Tanzania
proposes local government authorities include the NHC, Watumishi Housing,
to collaborate with the central govern- and Tanzania Building Agency. Despite
ment to: establish and institutionalize public housing corporations being the
a housing section in the local govern- main implementing arm of the govern-
ment authorities; promote and facili- ment in delivering housing, they ac-
tate investments in housing by public count for only 5% of the housing stock
and private sector actors; facilitate de- in Tanzania. In the 1960s, the NHC
10
was constituted to deliver housing for tation. Private sector roles include:
all people in urban areas. However,
the NHC was reconstituted through • Delivery of buildable and af-
Act No. 2 of 1990 to provide hous- fordable land for housing;
ing in Tanzania. In 2005, the Act was • Delivery of housing includ-
amended through (Misc. Amendment) ing affordable housing for
Act No. 2 of 2005 to enable the cor- various income groups;
poration to conduct business on sound • Provision of infrastructure
commercial principles (NHC, 2021). services;
This transformed the corporation into • Production and supply of af-
a completely government owned real fordable building materials;
estate firm, ready to compete in the • Provision of housing sup-
market. One of the major reasons for port services including fi-
this transformation was that the cen- nancial and technical ser-
tral government fell short on their ca- vices; and
pacity to fund NHC operations, as a re- • Collection and dissemi-
sult the corporation needed to be able nation of information on
to generate its own revenue to finance housing.
its activities. With the benefit of stra-
tegically located properties, the NHC The private sector may perform these
mostly produces housing for the mid- roles alone or in partnership with the
dle-high and high-income groups. The public sector as public-private-partner-
cooperation still claims to produce af- ships (PPP). The state has increased its
fordable housing, but most city dwell- reliance on the private sector to pro-
ers cannot afford its housing offerings mote urban development (Izar and
(as elaborated further by Tatu Mtwan- Limbumba, 2020). The private sector
gi-Limbumba in this edition). Perhaps is profit oriented and has been mar-
it is time to start exploring viable op- ginalizing the urban poor, leaving in-
tions for establishing a designated cor- formal housing as the go-to option for
poration that will deal with the devel- them (as elaborated further by Tatu
opment of affordable housing in the Mtwangi-Limbumba in this edition).
country since NHC went commercial.
3.6 Civil Society Organizations
3.5 The Private Sector
Civil society organizations play a signifi-
The draft NHP (2018) expected the cant role in the promotion of just access
private sector to aid in its implemen- to housing for all. This is because they
11
usually advocate on behalf of disadvan- ue chain. These include professionals

taged community members in matters working in land development and de-
related to accessing affordable housing. livery, financial services, infrastructure
Such acts create public awareness and and service provision, building material
mobilize communities on housing re- manufacturing and supply, and techni-
lated issues, such as sanitation. A good cal services. The following are some of
example can be drawn from the Centre universities alongside their specific as-
for Community Initiatives’ (CCI) case sociated research institutes that are rel-
of Chamazi low-cost housing (as cov- evant to the housing sector in Tanzania:
ered by Tim Ndezi in this edition). The
project delivered affordable housing to • Ardhi University-Institute of
tenants that had been displaced from Human Settlements Studies
Kurasini, another neighborhood in Dar and Institute of Building Re-
es Salaam, following the government’s search;
intent to widen the Dar es Salaam port. • University of Dar es Salaam;
• Ardhi Institute Tabora;
3.7 International Agencies • Institute of Rural Develop-
ment Planning Dodoma;
The JCP identified global agendas to • Tanzania Institute of Ac-
be instrumental, in particular the Sus- countancy; and
tainable Development Goals (SDGs), • Institute of Finance Man-
alongside the New Urban Agenda (UN agement.
Habitat 2016). Multilateral and bilateral
development organizations play a cru- 4. Summary
cial role in providing financial and tech-
nical support to the housing sector, es- The following table (Table 1) empha-
pecially placing affordability at the core. sizes the findings and emerging issues
from the institutional framework with a
3.8 Academic and Research special focus on promoting just access
Institutions to housing for all. It highlights gaps in
the institutional framework that need
Academic and research institutions to be addressed to attaining just cities
are essential to the housing industry. in the country. The table also identifies
This is because they can provide both all actors alongside their roles in the
long- and short-term training in the housing sector. The table is then fol-
housing sector. Academic institutions lowed by Figure 2 which is a condensed
train professionals and paraprofession- illustration of the Tanzanian housing in-
als involved in the housing supply val- stitutional framework with a focus on
identified key actors from the study.
12
Category Actor Main Role(s) in Hous- ‘Just City’

ing Gap(s)
Central Govern- 1. MLHHSD Put in place policies No up-to-date
ment (With sup- and other institutional NHP in place
port from frameworks to support
the ministry and enable citizens in Delay of NHP
of finance & getting access to ade- endorsement by
BoT, PO-RALG; quate housing the government
ministries
responsible for Infrastructure and Ser- Decentralizing
works, com- vices provision the functions of
munications, the “Housing
energy, water Directorate” to
& irrigation) the zonal offices
and LGAs
2. Government
Agencies (Util- Affordable rates
ities DAWASA of services to
& TANESCO; the urban poor
TANROADS;
TARURA etc.)
Local 3. LGAs (Cities, Exercising orderly plan- Collaborating
Government Municipalities ning of cities, ensuring with the ML-
Authorities and Townships city development con- HHSD in es-
trol as well as looking tablishing and
after public welfare institutionalizing
a housing sec-
tion which has
already been
reduced
Housing Finance 4. Financial Provision of housing High interest
Institutions finance mortgage inter-
est rates, lack
to no access for
the urban poor
13
Category Actor Main Role(s) in Hous- ‘Just City’

ing Gap(s)
Housing Devel- 5. Public Hous- Housing Construction Transformation
opers ing Corpora- to government
tions Housing Construction, owned real es-
Making and selling of tate companies
building materials and still expect-
6.The Private ed to provide
Sector Affordable housing affordable
construction, advocacy housing
7. Civil Society and lobbying on behalf
Organizations of communities or/and Highly profit
create public awareness oriented
8. Individuals and community mo-
bilization on housing Access to re-
related issues such as sources to
sanitation. implement their
Housing Construction roles
Inadequate
access to afford-
able housing
International 9. Develop- Providing financial and Achieving global
Organizations ment Partners technical support to the agendas in the
housing sector espe- local context
cially in the provision of
affordable housing
Academia 10. Academic Research and training Political influ-
institutions of Housing experts ence in the
research and
practice process
Table 1. Summary of the Tanzanian housing institutional framework and the
gap towards attaining just city status (Source: JCP, 2021)
14
Figure 2. A condensed illustration of the Tanzanian housing institutional

framework
5. Policy implications tional agenda. This study calls for the

endorsement of the NHP by the gov-
The Tanzanian housing sector lacks a ernment that has been a draft since
designated statutory set up in place. 2018. However, enacting a housing
This situation has largely contributed law and passing its relevant regulations
to the unjust access to housing for all. to effect it, and strengthening enforce-
Though housing was one of the first ment at all levels, is only one step to-
issues addressed by the post-colonial ward transforming the housing sector.
government, it has since been mar- A more holistic approach, including sys-
ginalized and left behind on the na- tematic transformations of the housing
15
sector that links theory, practice, and tional framework of the housing sec-
implementation, is key to return hous- tor. In order to kickstart these transfor-
ing on the surface of Tanzania’s gov- mations, MLHHSD should spearhead
ernance and institutional framework. dialogues among all of the key actors
to promote just access to housing for
The study also calls for the refinement all. This quest lies at the core of JCP
of approved functions and organization as it seeks to give housing the promi-
structure of the MLHHSD figure, as ap- nence it deserves in the political, social,
proved by the president of URT on 29th and economic development agenda.
January 2022. As it stands, the provid-
ed figure (Annex 1) has been found to
be more focused on the organization
structure and less on the functions of
MLHHSD. Developing a clearer figure
of the two merged issues of MLHHSD
is advised. Another significant recom-
mendation is on the need to establish
an Affordable Housing Corporation
(AHC) following NHC’s commercial
transformation. This will help facilitate
the gap for promoting just access to
housing in the governance and institu-
tional framework of the housing sector
in Tanzania. It is a little contradictory
instructing NHC to be a fully-fledged
commercial entity on one hand and
still expect the corporation to provide
affordable housing on another hand.
Moreover, there is no doubt that the
regularization project has attempted
to improve tenure security in informal
settlements despite offering little im-
provements to infrastructure. Howev-
er, there are significant impediments
towards achieving just access to hous-
ing at both city and national level. To
address this, major transformations are
needed in the governance and institu-
16
6. References Kironde, J. M. L. (1992). Rent Control

Legislation and the National Housing
Institute of Human Settlements Corporation in Tanzania, 1985-1990,
Studies-Ardhi University. (Unpub- Canadian Journal of African Studies-Vol.
lished). The Importance of and Justifica- 26, No. 2, Taylor & Francis, Ltd., Canada,
tion for a Stand–Alone National Housing https://www.jstor.org/stable/485874
Policy, Ministry of Lands, Housing and Accessed: 20-07-2019 05:40 UTC
Human Settlements Development (ML-
HHSD), Ardhi University, Dar es Salaam. Kironde, J. M. L. (2015). Good gov-
ernance, efficiency and the provision
Izar, Priscila & Limbumba, Tatu of planned land for orderly devel-
Mtwangi (2020): A matter of val- opment in African cities: the case of
ue: assessing the scope and effects of the 20,000 planned land plots proj-
Tanzania’s national housing corpora- ect in Dar es salaam, Tanzania. Cur-
tion’s development strategy on Dar es rent Urban Studies, 3(04), 348–367.
Salaam’s urban neighbourhoods, In-
ternational Journal of Urban Sciences. Kironde, J. M. L. (2021). Available online
on: https://www.thecitizen.co.tz/tanza-
Katundu, M. A., Innocent, M. A. M., nia/news/business/focusing-on-hous-
& Mteti, S. H. (2013). Nature and mag- ing-could-catapult-tanzania-into-high-
nitude of land acquisitions in Tanzania: er-development-levels-3466056,
analysing role of different actors, key Accessed on 15th December 2021.
trends and drivers in land acquisitions,
a paper presented at the international Kombe, W. J. (2005). Land use dynam-
conference on “the political economy ics in peri-urban areas and their impli-
of agricultural policy in Africa” held at cations on the urban growth and form:
the Roodevallei hotel, Pretoria, South the case of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
Africa, from 18 20th march 2013: South Habitat International, 29(1), 113–135.
Africa, Future Agricultures Consortium.
Kombe,W. J., & Kreibich, V. (2001).
Kedogo, J., Sandholz, S. & Ham- Informal land management in Tan-
haber, J. (2010). Good urban gover- zania and the misconception about
nance, actors’ relations and paradigms: its illegality. In ESF/N-Aerus Annual
Lessons from Nairobi, Kenya, and Re- Workshop. “Coping with Informal-
cife, Brazil, good urban governance ity and Illegality in Human Settle-
in Nairobi and Recife, 46th ISOCARP ments in Developing Countries”, May
congress 2010. Nairobi: ISOCARP. 23–26, 2001, Leuven and Brussels.
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Kyessi, A. & Sakijege, T. (2014). For- ban expansion: processes and im-
malizing Property Rights in Informal pacts on livelihoods of peri-urban
Settlements and its Implications on households in Dar es Salaam, Tan-
Poverty Reduction: The Case of Dar es zania. Unpublished Doctoral The-
Salaam, Tanzania. Journal of Business sis. Dar es Salaam: Ardhi University.
and Economics, Academic Star Publish-
ing Company, 5(12), pp. 2353-2371. North, D. (1990). Institutions, insti-
tutional change and economic perfor-
Magina, F.B., Kyessi, A.G., & Kombe, mance. Cambridge: University Press.
J.W. (2020). The Urban Land Nex-
us– Challenges and Opportunities of Nuhu, S., & Mpambije, C. J. (2017).
Regularising Informal Settlements: The Land access and corruption practic-
Case Studies of Dar ed Salaam and es in the peri-urban areas of Tanza-
Mwanza in Tanzania. Journal of African nia: a review of democratic gover-
Real Estate Research, 5(1), pp.32-54. nance theory. Sciences, 5, 282–299.
March, J. G., & Olsen, J. P. (2006). Nyiti, A. & Genes, M. (2022).

Elaborating the “new institutional- Dwindling of the Tanzanian Hous-
ism”. In R. E. Goodin (Ed.), The Oxford ing Sector: Role of the Swahili Lan-
handbook of political institutions (pp. guage. IGLUS Quarterly Vol 8, Issue
3–20). Oxford: Oxford University Press. 2. IGLUS-Quarterly-Vol-8-Issue-2.pdf
MLHHSD. (2021). Available online on: Obeng-Odoom, F. (2017). Ur-

https://www.lands.go.tz/pages/func- ban governance in Africa today: re-
tions, Accessed on 15th December 2021. framing, experiences and lessons.
Growth and Change, 48(1), 4–21.
MLHHSD. (2021). Special Journal on
the Launch of the National Humans Peter, G. B. (2004). Institutional theory
Settlements Regularisation Programme. in political sciences: The intuitionalism.
Continuum United States: New York.
Msangi, D. E. (2011). Land ac-
quisition for urban expansion: pro- URT. (1977). Constitution of the
cess and impacts on livelihoods of United Republic of Tanzania. Dar
peri-urban households. Doctorial Li- es Salaam: Government Printers.
centiate Thesis. Uppsala: Swedish
University of Agricultural Sciences. URT. (1982a). Local Government
(Urban Authorities) Act No. 8. Dar
Msangi, E. D. (2014). Organic ures Salaam: Government Printers.
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Wolff, M. S., Kuch, A., & Chipman,

URT. (1982b). Local Government Au- J. K. (2018). Urban governance in Dar
thorities Act (District Authorities Act No. es salaam: actors, processes and own-
7. Dar es Salaam: Government Printers. ership documentation. Working paper
reference number C-40412-TZA-1.
URT. (1997). Investment Act. Dar
es Salaam: Government Printers.
URT. (1999). Land Act. Dar es

Salaam: Government Printers.
URT. (2001). Land (Schemes of Regulari-

sation) Regulations (L.N. No. 85 of 2001).
Dar es Salaam: Government Printers.
URT. (2007a). Land Use Planning Act.

URT. (2007b). Urban Planning Act.

URT. (2012). Basic facts and figures

on human settlements 2012 Tanzania
Mainland. Dar es Salaam: National Bu-
reau of Statistics, Ministry of Finance.
URT. (2018). Urban Planning

(Space Standards) Regulations. Dar
es Salaam: Government Printers.
Wakuru Magigi and B.B.K. Majani.

(2006). Community involvement in land
regularization for informal settlements
in Tanzania: A strategy for enhancing se-
curity of tenure in residential neighbor-
hoods, Habitat International, Volume
30, Issue 4, 2006, Pages 1066-1081.
19
7. Annex
Annex 1. The approved functions and organization structure of MLHHSD as

approved by the president of URT on 29 January 2022.
20
2
Just access to land
for affordable
housing in
Tanzania
By Felician Komu
21
1. Introduction ban areas, in both formal

and informal arrangements,
Just access to land is an important com- (ii) the extent to which
ponent of the right to adequate hous- their rights and digni-
ing. The land, its planning, and the con- ty are addressed, and
structions on it, are crucial components (iii) whether they are fair-
that determine the supply of housing ly treated in the process.
and, subsequently, social wellbeing It seeks to further estab-
(World Bank 2015). Nevertheless, the lish the ways in which
fact that a household owns a piece of land and housing delivery
land does not mean that it has access to in Dar es Salaam are con-
quality housing. There are a variety of tributing to inequality and
reasons for this, but most important is whether it can be reversed.
the limited access to finance (see Tum-
sifu Jonas NnkyaGENERATIONin this edition). This In the
AND DEVELOPMENT final analysis,
OF CONCEPTUAL PLANS short- and
essay analyzes theUrban
13.1. The dynamics of land
Form and Spatial Developmentlong-term
Concept intervention 13.1.1.mea- The Urban Conce
ownership and Urban housing
places are quality
products of in
pure Tan-
human sures are proposed
innovation, reflecting the uniquely human ability totowards ad- creates a tr
Mono-centrality
transform landscapes to increase the chances of survival of humankind, happiness, and comfort. Centre and few adjacent ar
zania, with aWhat
focus onis not
matters the city
merely thatof Dar
human dressing
es embark
beings the but
on this transformation; challenges
how they carry identified.
City, characterised by a high
it out. The physical patterns, layouts, and structures that make up an urban place are collectively of Dar es Salaam the probl
Salaam, andcalledtheir implications
the urban forThethe
form (Lynch, 1958). current form of Dar es Salaam City is a product of its pattern of the main roads th
growth pattern over the past years. The trend of Dar es Salaam City has been to grow outwards centre and the sprawling na
‘just city’ concept. It seeks
along the current directions to
of theexplain 2. Urban
main corridors as shown in Figure 13.1.land use
As a result, planning
the city
stretches about 100 kilometres between the Mpiji River to the north and beyond the Mzinga River
to the city centre and to oth
regarding the urban form are
in Dar es Salaam
in the south, covering a total land area of 1,630.7 square kilometres, which is about 0.2 per cent
of the entire area of Tanzania mainland (ILRI, 2007). Four major arterial roads, which radiate
i. Achieve an altern
(i) how households and
outwards from the City Centre, form the backbone of the city road network. These are Bagamoyo, determined by the
Morogoro, Nyerere and Kilwa Roads. Much of the expansion of the city has been taking place problem of the Cit
communities obtain access Dar es Salaam is the fifth largest
ii. city
along these radial roads Figure 13.1. This pattern of growth concentrates vehicular traffic on the Transform the prim
radial roads leading to traffic congestion, which is aggravated by the mono-centric character of
to land for housing in ur-
the city. in Africa with an estimated population
iii.
traffic in few roads
Adopting a compa
Figure 13.1: Dar es Salaam – Development along the Main transport corridors 13.1.2. Hierarchy of dec
The neighbourhood centre w
Bagamoyo
public services in the city. Th
and services. Section 13.6.3
The Master plan identifies a
Bagamoyo Road centres. The sub-centres wi
commercial, tertiary and pro
vehicles away from the curr
along an intermediate axis
Morogoro Road urban sub-centres is to cre
periphery to the City Centre
within the metropolitan area
the existing built part of the
centres will also act as new
the City Centre and will help
Nyerere Road The plan is to locate the sub
intersections of major roads
and different activities, like t
To Kimbiji use form of urban growth r
hierarchy of service delivery
To Kongowe
Kilwa road
Direction of development
Figure
Source:1. Dar es
Prepared Salaam
by the Land
2016-2036 Dar esUse Developments
Salaam (Source: Prepared
City Master Plan Consortium
22 by the 2016-2036 Dar es Salaam City Master Plan Consortium)

Dar es Salaam City Master Plan 2016-2036
Just access to land for affordable housing in Tanzania
of 5.3 million which is approximately and poor households, and

30 percent of the country’s 32-million (iii) the spatial density
urban population. The annual urban variations between own-
growth is 5.2 percent (Gardner, Lock- er-occupiers and tenants
wood and Pienaar 2020). The increase (Three City Land Nex-
in population is attributed to rural-ur- us Research Team 2020).
ban migration and urban expansion
that has over the years accelerated the Poor households and tenants are
establishment of new settlements in the more likely to locate in dense settle-
peri-urban areas of the city, mostly to ments and closer to the central busi-
the south (e.g. Pugu and Kigamboni), ness district (CBD), while more afflu-
the west (e.g. Kimara and Kibamba) ent residents locate in sparse locations
and to the north towards Bagamoyo away from CBD. Another important
(e.g. Bunju, Mwabepande, and Mbwe- feature of Dar es Salaam is the con-
ni) (Oates, Gillard, et al.,.2020). Some gestion within a 10-kilometer radius
newcomers to the city have settled in of CBD, vulnerability to floods, and a
unoccupied reserve lands, such as open persistent problem of enforcing phys-
spaces and flood plains in the Msimbazi ical planning development conditions.
River Basin that runs through the cen-
ter of the city. The government’s capac-
The urban planning system in Dar es
ity to implement land use plans for the
Salaam is deeply entrenched in the
orderly planning of the city has been
concept of the master plan (Linda and
low (Huang, et al. 2018). As a result, a
Yang 2019). The gist of the city plan
large part of the city, estimated at 70
is to ensure all areas within the city’s
percent, is occupied by informal set-
boundary are planned including areas
tlements that do not conform to land
already with housing that was devel-
use plans (Nuhu and Kombe 2020). oped without an approved land use
plan and in effect to formalize infor-
The key features of the city are mal settlements. Formalization is per-
formed either by incorporating rural
(i) its organic growth struc- areas into the urban land use plans or
ture with developments through regularization of informal set-
taking place along major tlements within the urban areas. The
transport corridors away implementation of the Master Plan has,
from the central busi- however, not been effective for several
ness district (Figure 1), reasons (Huang, et al. 2018). One rea-
(ii) the segregated neighbor- son is the critical disconnect between
hoods between the affluent national economic plans and work
23
plans of municipalities’ economic de- new immigrants to urban areas who re-
velopment departments. Another dis- sort to setting up more informal settle-
connect exists between land use plans ments (Oates, Gillard, et al. 2020), and
and sectoral plans that govern utilities, marginalization of poor households in
roads, water, and electricity, and this getting access to land and housing.
also hinders master plan implementa-
tion. Other reasons include “unregulat- The current Dar es Salaam City Master
ed informal and unplanned self-built, Plan 2016-2036 (DCMP) envisages a
owner-occupied housing” (Nyyssölä, compact city by setting up five satellite
Kelsall and Ndezi 2021:3). These defi- centers, introduction of 23 new urban
ciencies have exerted pressure on land sub-centers and adoption of green-
use rights and housing in the city, be- ery as new urban feature (Figure 2).
tween the original land settlers and the There are at least four key areas in
.
490000 500000 510000 520000 530000 540000 550000 560000
.000000 .000000 .000000 .000000 .000000 .000000 .000000 .000000
DAR ES SALAAM CITY

To Bagamoyo 2016-2036
Mbweni
PROPOSED LANDUSE
BAGAMOYO MAP
Ferry
.000000
.000000
9270000
9270000
DISTRICT
Rout
Bunju
e
! Secondary Nodes
!
H Urban Sub-Centres
Municipality Boundary
Mabwe Pande
Dar City Boundary
KINONDONI Wazo
!! !! !! !! !! !! !! !
Tegeta
MUNICIPALITY
!! !! !! !! !! !!
!!
!!
KDA Authority
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!!
!! !! !! !! !! !!
Madale Ferry Route

.000000
.000000
9260000
9260000
KIBAHA TOWN First Ring
COUNCIL PANDE
Second Ring
FOREST
INDIAN OCEAN Third Ring
RESERVE Mbezi Juu
Ferry
Fourth Ring
Goba
Route
Fifth Ring
To Morogoro Msakuzi
UBUNGO Makongo Msasani New Secondary Connections
MUNICIPALITY Mwenge Proposed Secondary Roads

Main Road
.000000
.000000
Mbezi UDSM Sinza

Kimara
9250000
9250000
Kiluvya Kibamba
Ubungo Secondary Roads
Saranga Tandale
Msigani Tertiary Roads
Kwembe Kigogo CBD Railway Line â â Powerline
Kifuru Kimanga LANDUSE
Tabata Kigamboni
Kinyerezi Consolidated Low Density
Segerea
Vingunguti Consolidation Process
Mburani Urban Redevelopment
Pugu Kipawa Kiwalani Gezaulole
To Dodoma TandikaAzimio Residential Community Units
.000000
.000000
Ukonga
9240000
9240000
JNIA Commercial
Kibada Institution
KIBAHA Pugu Kajiungeni
Kitunda TEMEKE Light Industry
DISTRICT Dege Eco Village
MUNICIPALITY Heavy Industry
Proposed Industrial Areas
Mbagala
Airstrip Reserve
To Zambia Chamazi Kongowe Somangila Gomvu Airport
Dar Zoo
.000000
.000000
9230000
9230000
Buyuni Port
Msongola
Mbande Golf Course
Chanika Oxidation Pond
Tundwi Songani Quarry
ILALA Kimbiji
MUNICIPALITY Dumpsite
KISARAWE KIGAMBONI DAWASA Borehole

Area of Tourism Development
DISTRICT MUNICIPALITY
Environment Protection Areas
.000000
.000000
Salt Pan
9220000
9220000
Mangrooves
MKURANGA Open Space
DISTRICT Urban Greenery
Playground
Pemba Mnazi
Forest
Indian Ocean
Buyuni MINISTRY OF LANDS HOUSING
AND HUMAN SETTLEMENTS
.000000
.000000
DEVELOPMENT
9210000
9210000
!
CONSORTIUM : DODI MOSS SRL
AFRI-ARCH ASSOCIATES
Q CONSULT LTD
BURO HAPPOLD LTD
DATE SEPTEMBER: 2016
0 2.5 5 10
Copyright:(c) 2014 Esri
Km
490000 500000 510000 520000 530000 540000 550000 560000
.000000 .000000 .000000 .000000 .000000 .000000 .000000 .000000
Figure 2 Current Dar es Salaam City Master Plan 2016-2036 (DCMP)
24
the DCMP that appear to address 3. Urban land access

‘just city’ matters for Dar es Salaam. and land use rights
These are: Urban land access is governed by a se-
ries of land use laws and rights in the
• Addressing infill and densi- Tanzanian constitution and subsequent
fication of existing planned regulations. Land use rights—which
areas to optimize utilization refer to the uninterrupted rights by an
of existing infrastructural individual or group of individuals to
facilities and social services; occupy, use, and make earnings from
• Regularization of the in- the land (United Republic of Tanzania
formal settlements, to 1999)—are protected by the Land Act
include consolidation in No. 4 of 1999, the Urban Planning Act
the formal settlements No. 7 of 2007, and subsequent regula-
with the aim of improving tions made under these. In the planned
and capturing land val- areas of the city, land use rights are se-
ues in prime, formal areas; cured by a land ownership certificates
• Transformation of basic or land titles, which can be granted
roads from radial pattern in three multiples of 33 years with a
to concentric patterns and maximum granted term of 99 years.
introduction of two major
ring roads that is hoped The Land Act No 4 of 1999 however,
will stimulate extensive ex- recognizes the existence of the informal
pansion of the city; and land holding system, ironically, the cus-
• Setting up several sub-ur- tomary right of occupancy. Land own-
ban centers as devel- ership in unplanned areas is deemed by
opment magnets with- the law to be under customary tenures
in the city (Figure 2). and, since customary tenures are based
on traditions that may not be found in
If implemented, Dar es Salaam city the cosmopolitan contexts of the urban
planners hope a more intensive use settlement, a quasi-customary mode,
of land will be achieved, which may in or informal tenure, is presumed by
the long run balance housing demand the law. Through upgrading schemes
and supply, promote waste manage- in cities like Dar es Salaam, Mwanza,
ment facilities, and improve infrastruc- and Mbeya, landowners in unplanned
ture that may lead to better housing. areas have been granted temporary
rights to land in the form of ‘residen-
25
tial licenses’. Residential licenses were

(77%) who own land in urban areas
introduced in 2004 as a fast-tracking occupy it on informal arrangements.
measure (Tenga and Mramba 2014). Some of this land is already declared to
This is the smallest category of land be a planning area, but considered in-
ownership with only 220,000 issued as formal because it has not yet been sur-
of 2021 in Dar es Salaam, usually for a veyed and titled. Other land is informal
term of 5 years that can be renewed. because it is in peri-urban areas that are
characteristically village land held under
Land rights in urban areas are adminis- customary norms (Rasmussen 2013)1.
tered through a well-defined hierarchi-
cal system that recognizes formal and There are several reasons to explain
informal ownership rights as shown why such a large majority occupy land
in Figure 3 further explained below. informally. Foremost is the rapid urban-
ization, currently averaging at 5.2%
Urban land tenure is split between for- per annum for the city of Dar es Sa-
mal and informal systems. Formal ten- laam, against capacity deficits of urban
ure is held by only a small fraction (23%) planning authorities and low infrastruc-
of urban landowners (Wolff, Kuch and ture investments (Worrall, et al. 2017).
Chipman 2018), while the majority
Figure 2. Institutional Setup - Land Tenure Urban Tanzania

(Source: Own Illustration)
1
In 2003, the Government of Tanzania entered in partnership with Hernando de Soto’s Peruvi-
an Institute of Liberal Democracy (ILD) with financial facilitation from Government of Norway
that set up the Property and Business Formalization Programme (in Swahili MKURIBITA)
26
It is also attributed to the failure of pushing low income households to less

the formal sector to provide land for attractive neighborhoods (John, et al.
housing new immigrants. Within the 2020). Benefits enjoyed by a landown-
old urban areas, gentrification process- er in a formal area are ideally better
es that have taken place, accelerating compared to those of a landowner in
intensification of land uses, exerting informal area as summed up in Table 1
pressure on existing infrastructure, and
Issue Formal Context Informal Context
Use Conditions Classified and defined to a Undefined, may be

group and use class (Urban negatively impacted
Planning Act), Protection by externalities from
against non-complementary neighbors
uses and nuisance
Sufficiently adequate Potential overcrowd-
ing
Planning Standards Defined setback (unoccupied Undefined, congest-
open area); densities and mate- ed
rials specification; quality stan- Self-designed, self-
dards built, largely local
and inferior materials
Definite construction time pe- Incremental, over a
riod (36 months as per Urban long time
Planning (Building) Regulation
S.17 (1-3) of 2018)
Security of Tenure Definite, clear land ownership Not definite, absence
(Right of Occupancy for 33, 66, of title (may have
or 99 years) residence license —
temporary up to 5
years)
Collaterality Long-term loans with commer- Not readily accepted
cial banks, financial institution as collateral
Surety and similar guarantees Few mortgages limit-
ed to microfinance or
saving groups (SAC-
COS, Coops)
27
Issue Formal Context Informal Context
Infrastructure Defined and mandatory con- Undefined, poorly

nections to water, electricity serviced
and sewer
Quality Defined standards, sizes, and Undefined, largely on
levels of services in buildings household’s income
capability
Marketability Active land markets Not transparent
Expropriation Limited opportunities for re-ac- Easy expropriation —

quisition either due to urban
expansion or other
public interest
Adjudication Availability of judicial systems Arbitration possible
to resolve land ownership and with local (Mtaa)
land use disputes leaders but often can
be prejudiced against
a party that is not
ordinarily resident in
the area.
Source: Own illustration; from various sources
3.1 Dynamics of access to for- under jurisdiction of a UPA, which ar-

mal land ranges acquisition of the land, com-
pensating original landowners for the
In principle, access to urban land takes land and crops. Land use planning is
place in three ways—by a grant from carried out before the acquisition while
the respective urban planning author- cadastre surveying is done after com-
ity (UPA), direct purchase, or through pensation payments based on the plan
inheritance. Each of these modes has to be followed with allocation at a fee.
its own procedures and challenges. A The original owners of the land would
grant of land is made for urban land normally be considered in the alloca-
in the formal tenure system. Under this tion processes and granted a land title
mode, the Minister of Lands will have to that plot of land allocated. Each allo-
declared an area to be a planning area. cation is subsequently registered by the
Such an area is subsequently placed Registrar of Titles and granted a certifi-
28
cate of land title for a term that should produce surveyed plots. These plots
not exceed 99 years . Where the original are then advertised for sale to those in
term is less than 99 years, it is possible need. Unlike in the grant access pro-
to seek renewal not to exceed 99 years2. cess, prospective landowners pay to
buy the land and the fees as outlined
A successful applicant for a grant of above for an allocation. The majority of
land would be required to pay fees households buy land from individuals
that include a premium, which is a in informal land markets characterized
percentage of assessed land value, a by the unregulated size of land parcels,
registration fee computed as a per- which Nyakamwe, Lupala and Mchome
centage of annual land rent, cadastral (2022) observed has led to over-
(survey) fees, the cost of preparing a crowding and choked infrastructure.
certificate (a sum), deed plan fee (sum) Access to land by inheritance is com-
and a stamp duty3. Conversely, a buy- mon in both planned and unplanned
er of land in informal settlement who areas. In effect, inheritance of land and
wishes to register the land, pays similar property rights is governed by Tanza-
fees in addition to the purchase price. nian inheritance law, the Probate and
Land access by grant lost its promi- Administration of Estates Act Cap 352
nence with the growing gaps between of 1963, customary or tribal laws, or
demand and supply of surveyed plots Islamic laws on succession. These laws
in the last two decades (2000-2020). have been blamed for being gender
discriminatory favoring male admin-
Access by direct purchase characterizes istrators and heirs, excluding women
the current land markets in the country. from property and land inheritance
Most land seekers access land through (Ezer 2006; USAID 2016). There is limit-
land market operations, both for the ed information on how many of urban
few plots placed on the mar- landowners have
ket by urban authorities and Box 1: Women have particular diffi- accessed their
from private individuals. In- culties securing and retaining urban lands through in-
housing, a problem made more acute
spired by the pilot ‘20,000 by a housing crisis. Laws and practices heritance. Often,
Plots Delivery Project’ of are discriminatory relating to inheri- children of de-
2002-3, urban authorities tance, ownership, mortgage, and di- ceased parents
borrow money from the Min- vorce (USAID 2016). jointly occupy
istry of Lands, acquire and the land (Box 1).
2
Section 32 (1) & (2) of Land Act No. 4 of 1999
3
Different municipalities have different charge rates. In 2021, typical cost for a grant of a plot
of 400 square meters in the city would cost an applicant on average TZS 180,000 (US$80)
and in addition he will have to pay an annual rent of TZS 36,000 ($16)
29
3.2 Securing property rights in

informal land market The second arrangement is where land
purchase is executed by a registered at-
In the informal land markets there are torney. This is an ideal arrangement as
two possible arrangements to secure it assures security of tenure. Under this
the land. The first is a sales agreement. arrangement, it is still possible for the
The land transfer may be executed by a parties to bring in the subward leaders
subward (Mtaa)4 executive officer or by and neighbors as witnesses. The fees
a legal counsel. Most land transactions charged are normally higher than in
for affordable land by a household in the sales agreement executed by the
urban areas take place at respective Mitaa leaders6 and only a few land
local government office, often Mtaa buyers use attorneys in land purchases.
government level. Each of the parties
will have (a) witness(es) who attest by Although sales agreements, whether
signing on a prepared sale agreement certified by Mitaa leaders or an attor-
form, normally in Swahili. The Mtaa ney, protects the purchasers’ interest,
government will demand up to 10 per they are usually not accepted in further
cent of the transactions as fees for transactions such as a pledge for a loan.
registering the land5. Neighbors play More secure is the registration of the
an important role in recognizing land land through the district land officer. If
ownership and boundaries. Good re- the land was already titled7, the rights of
lations with neighbors are thus crucial the purchaser will be secured by process-
in informal arrangements. In case of ing a land ownership transfer through
a subsequent dispute, the purchas- the respective district land officer.
er may choose to appeal to the Mtaa
leader who will present the matter to It is possible for a land purchaser to ap-
the subward lands committee. An ag- ply for the titling of the purchased land
grieved person may appeal to the ward through the local government (ward) to
lands and housing tribunal, or to a the respective urban planning authori-
magistrate court if not satisfied with ty. This procedure normally takes a long
the Mtaa Lands Committee decision. time, is tedious in terms of the differ-
4
The Swahili word, ‘mtaa’ literally means ‘street’, and is used for the Subward level of govern-
ment. The plural form of mtaa is mitaa.
5
Land legislation is quiet on this requirement but the 10 per cent charge is normal practice
around the country
6
With local leaders, there is more room for negotiating on the amounts to be remitted to the
local government, which may not be the case with a legal counsel.
7
It is possible to find titled land within unplanned area.
30
ent stages that the application must go Scheme (SUS) 1972-76, which sought
through, and it is expensive8. In instanc- to improve housing areas through in-
es of regularization and formalization, frastructure provision and registration
the procedure for documenting land of house owners. Unlike the SCS, few-
ownership rights is less complex, as it er households were displaced, which
seeks to register land in the shortest could be argued as being a positive
time possible and at a low cost through move. Nevertheless, the scheme was
adoption of appropriate technology. not sustainable. Instead, it led to fur-
ther expansion, consolidation and
3.3 Failed strategies in easing emergence of new unplanned settle-
access to land for housing ment, while the infrastructure provid-
ed was left to deteriorate and some
The overriding policy objective has been of the widened footpaths in the up-
‘home ownership’ which translates to graded areas were later sold as build-
easing access to land. It is expected that ing plots, further congesting the up-
individual households are able to create graded areas (Kironde 2015). The third
their own housing. The other objective program, which ran parallel with the
was to improve housing quality in ur- Squatter Upgrading Scheme, focused
ban areas. During the last 60 years, on new urban areas, aiming to pro-
there were at least five strategic inter- duce serviced and surveyed plots. This
ventions (programs or projects) that was the National Sites and Service Proj-
addressed access to land for housing. ect (NSSP) implemented during 1976–
1984. With a clear target population, it
The earliest two programs focused was more effective in providing access
more on housing quality than housing to land for a larger population than the
access. These were the Slum Clearance previous two schemes (SCS and SUS).
Schemes (SCS) of 1962-1972, which
sought to rid urban areas of derelict In the implementation, however, the
housing units. The SCS did not have NSSP lacked foresight on the important
significant impact on the housing stock land market dynamics which favor the
size. To the contrary, the SCS impov- rich over the poor. Kironde (1991:29)
erished the poor further, a majority of made an interesting remark that the
whom were living in the cleared slums NSSP’s small plots meant for the poor
(Gulyani and Debomy 2002). This was in Sinza, Dar es Salaam, had been “hi-
followed by the Squatter Upgrading jaked” by the rich. There is evidence
8
An individual will need to seek for planning consent, organize land use planning of the land
if there is no urban plan scheme, organize cadaster and titling.
31
to show in all NSSP project areas, the savings account with the THB, a piece
initially planned housing areas for the of land9, and the ability to contribute
low-income households were subse- at least 5 percent of the cost of the
quently sold by the original benefi- house to be built either in cash, labor,
ciaries of the land allocation (Kironde or building materials. Apart from the
1991). It is unquestionable that most loan, THB offered technical assistance
of the current homeowners in NSSP during construction (Yona 1979). THB
project areas are middle- and high-in- performance in terms of mobilizing lo-
come households who bought the land cal savings and loans was considered
from poor beneficiary groups. This has significant in the first five years of its ex-
been the experience, not only with the istence (1973-1978), but with high rate
NSSP, but also with other subsequent of defaulters, the Bank failed, was of-
schemes (Box 2 and 3) (Regina, Ma- ficially declared bankrupt and liquidat-
gina and Kemwita 2019). ed in 1995
NSSP projections had been Box 2“…The government started the process of ( K i ro n d e ,
to produce 19,000 plots be- allocating free surveyed plots in 2011 to at least et al.
tween 1977 and 1981, but 1,004 Dar es Salaam victims, whose houses were 2003).
flooded…but the relocates sold off and returned
due to several factors, in- to Msimbazi...” (The Citizen 2016).
cluding red tape, only 30% These ear-
of these were allocated by ly strate-
1981 (Banyikwa 1989). gies were
Box 3“…Even the small proportion of low-income character-
It is interesting to note that families who did manage to access a plot have ized by a
mostly chosen to sell their land for profit and have
a housing finance scheme since returned to the informal settlements and haz- top-down
which was in place along- ardous settings from which they were relocated in approach
side the National Sites and the first place…” (Oates, Gillard, et al., Secure and with little
Service Projects also failed equal access to land for all: Lessons on land gover- p a r t i c i -
for similar reasons (see also nance and climate resilience from Dar es Salaam, pation of
Tanzania. 2020)
Tumsifu Jonas Nnkya in this house-
edition). The now-defunct holds and
Tanzania Housing Bank (THB) mobilized communities. Ultimately, the govern-
savings among its prospective borrow- ment failed to produce enough plots
ers, both in urban and rural areas for to meet the demand. As a result, in-
housing development. To qualify for a formal housing construction expanded
construction loan, a prospecting home- on unplanned land in Dar es Salaam.
owner would be required to have a
9
A proof of ownership was by attestation by local leaders or certificate of land title.
32
The fourth strategy was the 20,000 Plot An evaluation of the criticisms indi-
Delivery Project—a pilot project in Dar cates critics were over-optimistic about
es Salaam funded with a loan from the the project outcomes. The number of
Ministry of Finance to the Ministry of plots delivered was considered too lit-
Lands (Oates, Gillard, et al., Secure and tle to alleviate the critical shortage of
equal access to land for all: Lessons on surveyed urban plots (Oates, Gillard,
land governance and climate resilience et al., 2020). In the context of project
from Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. 2020). beneficiaries, the critics contend that
The plan was for the government to ac- the project increased poverty among
quire land in peri-urban areas, prepare those whose land was acquired, ex-
land use plans, survey and advertise for cluded low-income households, and
the sale of plots, and allocate the plots generally contributed towards the
through an application process. Own- growing problem of social polarization
ers of subdivided land were eligible for (Lusugga-Kironde 2015; Oates, et al.
at least one of the plots created from 2020). Critics also argue project sites
their land. A total of 40,000 plots were in Dar es Salaam—including Bunju and
delivered in the pilot project in Dar es Mbweni, to the north of the city, and
Salaam by 2010, and an additional Toangoma to the south are now pop-
18,590 were delivered in towns outside ular middle-income to high-end hous-
of Dar es Salaam. The plot sizes ranged ing areas. Additionally, the large plot
from 700 to 1,200 square meters (Lu- sizes have encouraged proliferation of
sugga-Kironde 2015). It was lauded as non-housing developments mainly pri-
one of excellent innovations ever un- vate schools and social halls. The gov-
dertaken by the Ministry of Lands and ernment through the Ministry of Lands
Human Settlement Development with has also been annoyed by the imple-
a view of easing the chronic shortage mentation of the project wary about
of plots in the city of Dar es Salaam and land speculation by those who were
slowing down growth of unplanned allocated land and who had not devel-
areas, control land speculation as well oped it for over twenty years (Box 4).
as combating corruption in land sec-
tor (Singano 2016). The
project was replicated in Box 4. “The Ministry of Lands, Housing and Settlement development
has issued a 60-day ultimatum for owners of the undeveloped plots
several upcountry towns. in the city to initiate construction project. If they fail to do so, they
would risk ownership as the titles will be revoked. The PS, in her
Notwithstanding these statement dated Tuesday June 5, said the plots in question are total-
achievements, the proj- ing to 40,000 that were sold to private individuals, institutions and
companies between 2002 and 2008.” (Citizen 2018)
ect has been criticized by
a number of researchers.
33
While most of the criticisms may seem through satellite images and individual
to be correct, there are important les- plots of land and housing were adju-
sons learnt from the implementation of dicated and registered. The RLP was
the 20,000 Plots Project. For the first implemented in two phases, 2004-
time, it became evident there was ca- 2006 and 2007-2015 (Wolff, Kuch and
pacity within the government to plan, Chipman 2018). During the first phase
survey and title large number of plots of the RLP mapping outpaced license
of land within a given time frame. Thus, granting—220,000 properties were
with a pre-financing arrangement and mapped, but only 61,000 owners were
determination, local authorities are identified and issued with residential li-
able to positively increase supply of cense by 2007. The cost of obtaining
surveyed plots and address the thorny a residential license in 2007 was set at
problem of informal land development. TZS 5,000 ($2) per plot. By the end of
the second phase, in 2015, a total of
The fifth program towards easing ac- 760,092 residential licenses had been
cess to land was the “Comprehensive granted throughout the country, out
Urban Land Property Register for Eco- of which 16,138 were in Dar es Sa-
nomic Empowerment of Residents in laam (Kusiluka and Chiwambo 2019).
Unplanned Settlements in Dar es Sa-
laam Project”, in short, the Residen- The six and a more pragmatic and
tial License Project (RLP). The RLP was promising program is the Program
introduced as a fast-tracking proce- for Planning, Surveying and Titling of
dure to recognize land rights owned Land in Tanzania (PSTL). Unlike pre-
by households under informal tenure vious programs, the 10-year PSTL
in urban areas through regularization engaged private sector land-based
provisions of the Land Act No. 4 of professionals to work with local com-
1999 (sections 56-60). The RLP grants munities and municipalities10 to carry
temporary rights for a 5-year renew- out land titling processes. In coopera-
able term. Residential licenses are infe- tion with municipal councils, registered
rior to the ‘Certificate of Title’ (‘Right private land use planning and sur-
of Occupancy’). It was envisaged that veying firms are required to identify
RLP holders would at some time in fu- and acquire land for the purpose of
ture undergo the full process of up- producing titled urban plots (Nuhu
grading to a ‘Certificate of Title’. Un- and Kombe 2020). A total of 26 land
der the RLP, an area would be mapped use planning firms and 43 surveying
Dar es Salaam is actually a regional government with five separate municipalities: Ilala,
10
Kinondoni Temeke, Kigamboni, and Ubungo.
34
firms had been registered for the city example, by December 2020, a total
of Dar es Salaam by December 2021. of 20,752 Certificates of Titles were
yet to be collected by the respective
The number of general and detailed landowners in Dar es Salaam. This had
land use planning schemes dramatically already been echoed by the Minister
increased, by an average of 120,000 per of Lands in a national speech on 2nd
year, across the nation between 2015 September 2018 (Daily News 2018).
and 2021. Between 2013 and 2021, a Deducing from local press reports and
total of 1,638,062 plots had been iden- interviews, the reasons for the hesita-
tified and were at different stages of the tion revolve around what landowners
titling process. Out of these 643,685 perceive as high charges in land title
had undergone the entire procedures. processing vis a vis premium payment,
The average annual plot produc- building permits, taxes, and land rents.
tion over 8 years period was 204,000 It is also possible that landowners are
compared with 7,500 by the other not cognizant of the benefits associ-
schemes. The PSTL also enhanced reve- ated with registration of their lands.
nues from the land registration (Box 5). Other challenges with the implemen-
tation of the PSTL
However, Box 5. “According to the Director of Human Settlements scheme are underper-
the PSTL Development in the Ministry of Lands, if a landowner paid formance and private
TZS 120,000 for the surveying and registration of one plot,
was faced the 643,685 plots completed would fetch the government firms over-charging
with sev- a colossal sum of TZS 77.24 billion.” (Kayera 2021) landowners. Conse-
eral chal- quently, the govern-
lenges re- ment intervened by
lated to (i) the low rate of landowners introducing a maximum charge for
not completing procedures to obtain the entire process11, removed three
their land titles through the regular- firms from the list of service providers
ization schemes; (ii) hesitation by land- for malpractice, suspended nine, and
owners in informal settlements to have issued strong warnings to 43, while
their land lots planned and surveyed; 15 were arraigned for possible court
and (iii) landowners who have not action (Ministry of Lands 2021). The
bothered to collect their Certificates only possible explanation for the un-
of Titles (Nuhu and Kombe, 2021). For expected underperformance could be
11
Firms were charging for one plot (planning, surveying and beacon planting, titling) between
TZS 250,000 and 350,000. In a public announcement on 17th August 2021 (reported by a
daily ‘ Habari leo), the Minister for Lands set the upper limit to TZS 150,000 and at the same
time announcing an agreement had been reached by the NMB Bank Plc to the effect that the
Bank was willing to advance landowners up to TZS 130,000 to pay for the titling process of
their lands.
35
subject of squatting. Examples in Dar

(i) Inadequate due dili- es Salaam include vast lands owned
gence in the recruitment by the defunct Tanganyika Packers at
process resulting from Mlongazila, Ubungo Municipality, and
the swiftness required to at Kawe, in Kinondoni Municipality.
get the PSTL started and Some of the Tanganyika Packers land
(ii) Voracity of the has been repossessed by the gov-
firms in pursuit of ernment, such as the present site for
profit maximization and Mlongazila Referral Hospital and the
(iii) Lack of fee charge 711 NHC Satellite City Project in Kawe.
guidelines at the be-
ginning of the PSTL. The lack of local government lands is
a challenge to their role of providing
3.4 Public land access and a green city, parks for recreation, and
management emergency evacuation site for safety
during flooding or fire incidences. Gen-
While private access to land for hous- erally, communal space in urban areas is
ing is vital for the welfare of the so- disregarded. Land banking which is an
ciety, the availability of public land is important tool used in ensuring there is
equally crucial to complement hous- land for large investment in the coun-
ing areas. Local governments require try has not been used for urban area.
land for recreation and social housing
provision. In contrast with central gov- 4. Persistent Issues in Access
ernment establishments and public to Land and Housing
corporations, local authorities in Dar
es Salaam do not have as much land The above analysis shows that, al-
as would have motivated them to de- though the land laws in Tanzania
velop housing. This is not surprising broadly address social justice for all
since during the early years of inde- groups, implementation strategies
pendence in Tanzania, the set up was have advanced unworkable solutions
highly centralized. As a result, central that in turn exacerbated unequal ac-
government bodies had been granted cess to land. Key messages from the
large land parcels for employer housing analysis are that inattention to land
estate and other needs (Materu 1994). speculation and low capacity to im-
Some of the lands owned by public plement policies has constrained pub-
bodies in the cities and towns have lic policy on land access for housing.
stayed undeveloped for a long time,
some have been abandoned and are
36
Inattention to land speculation issue addressed urban sprawl, displacement

has limited the extent to which ‘invis- of population and improving fairness in
ible’ and ‘voiceless’ households access access to land. As a result, the housing
land and housing. This also has effects problem has remained unresolved. It is
on the availability of public land. Na- however true that Government efforts
tional urban policies on inclusiveness in in these directions were laudable but
urban planning and development have were constrained by rapid urbanization,
not been enforced. The earlier policies high levels of unemployment in urban
and schemes during the socialist era areas; and they have met these steep
(1962-1984) did not recognize infor- challenges with inadequate poverty re-
mality of any sort in urban areas. For duction measures and low investment
example, the Slum Clearance Program in infrastructure. Regularization and
of 1962-1972, and the subsequent formalization approaches advocated by
Squatter Upgrading Scheme (SUP), and the Land Act No. 4 of 1999 and Nation-
the National Sites and Service Projects al Land Policy of 1993 have not ade-
(NSSP), opted for redevelopment of the quately addressed the land and housing
areas with limited focus on the out- problem. In the implementation, piece-
comes for the displaced households. meal actions have led to more densifi-
They adopted a top-down approach cation, and degrading urban environ-
which overlooked the aspirations of ment (Izar and Jean-Baptiste 2019).
the households impacted by the result-
ing actions. These schemes failed on
5. Conclusion
three accounts. First, they were ambi-
tious in that they attempted to resolve
Land access for housing in Tanzania is
all housing related challenges for all in-
still faced with three basic problems
come groups within a limited period of
time and with minimal involvement of
(1) Undersupply of
the communities. In the second count
land for housing to meet
they proved to be expensive as they
the fast-growing urban
relied largely on government funding.
population
Finally, they failed as they ended hav-
(2) Persistent increase
ing insignificant impact on the housing
of informal settlements and
problem (Gulyani and Debomy 2002).
low-income housing areas
and
In tandem with the above observa-
(3) Poor condition
tions, it can be argued that past efforts
of infrastructure. In urban
failed due to low capacity in the imple-
areas, access to land is ei-
mentation of policies that would have
37
ther by allocation and pur- gies with insights into the predictable
chase through the Minis- competitiveness among actors in the
try of Lands office, direct land and housing market is to blame
from private landowners, or for inequalities in access. In summa-
through inheritance. ry, easing access to land or granting
Poor households and those free land does not by itself contribute
emigrating to urban areas to improving access to housing for
settle on government re- low-income households who cannot
serve land, like open space afford high construction cost. Just ac-
and hazardous land, out- cess to land for housing is only feasi-
side the formal planning ble with some form of financial sup-
regulations. port to the low-income households.
However, not only poor people settle

in such unplanned and hazard lands.
Demand for land has surpassed sup-
ply because of high urbanization rates
(between 3% and 5% per year), low
investment in production of surveyed
plots, and increasing household in-
comes. Rich and poor compete for
access to land both in formal and in-
formal areas. Landowners in formal ar-
eas enjoy more benefits—especially in
terms of infrastructure and legal land
tenure security—than those in infor-
mal areas. Additional benefits of for-
mal land access include stable collat-
erality, quality neighborhood, less risk
from being expropriated, and well-de-
fined adjudication in case of disputes.
Government measures in the form of
land policy, laws, and regulations over
the last 60 years have moved toward
maintaining fair and just access to land
by all groups and individuals. Howev-
er, the lack of implementation strate-
38
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45
3
When housing is
more than houses:
implications of
space-use intensity for
housing policy in
Tanzania
By Maria Carrizosa
46
When housing is more than houses
1. Preface
This is Neema’s house in the Ubun-

go district of Dar es Salaam (Figure
1). Neema shares the room with a
friend. The house has five other rent-
ed rooms. Neema makes samosas and
other pastries, mixes peppered spices,
and makes soaps, which she sells on
Photo: Maria Carrisoza
the streets. Neema also uses the space

outside of her room in the backyard
to host weekly traditional ceremonies
and dances from her tribe, in which
the whole neighborhood gets involved.
She receives some stipend for it.
Figure 1: Neema’s room in Ubungo,
Dar es Salaam
This is a corner house and facing each street there are commercial activities. Nee-
ma’s samosa shop is next to one selling fried chips. There is also a vegetable stall,
a grocery shop, a cooking gas refill station, and a nail polishing shop (Figure 2).
On the other street there is a sports betting shop with some slot machines. Other
tenants of the house use the shared outside space to raise chickens, make batiki
(dyed cloth), recycle metal parts, and produce juice to sell.
Photos: Maria Carrisoza
Figure 2: Neema making spices next to stored metal (left), shops from tenants (center),
sports betting stall (right)
47
Neema’s house story is far from excep- piate framing for Tanzanian policy. Sec-
tional. The 2016 World Bank’s Measur- ond, to present and discuss evidence of
ing Living Standards in Cities Survey, space-use intensity in informal housing
which is statistically representative of in Dar es Salaam. Third, to discuss in-
both formal and informal areas, re- sights on urban formalization from the
vealed that 80% of Dar es Salaam’s experts of the Tanzanian Just City Plat-
households live in one or two rooms form Housing Working Group. Fourth
(Panman, 2021:237). Evidence that I and last, to advocate for an integrated
will present later estimates that 89.7% approach to housing policy connecting
of the activities taking place in consol- housing with policies on employment,
idated informal settlements in Dar es businesses, community services, and
Salaam remain invisible to municipal social protection.
governments, and yet they provide in-
dispensable urban services, goods, and 3. The continuum approach
social protections that make life in the to urban informality
city possible. Now, if this is how the
majority lives, it is fundamental to have Current thinking about urban infor-
a better understanding of these space- mality disregards the strict binaries—
use dynamics. Housing policy is due for formal versus informal, rich versus
a more granular understanding, recog- poor, North versus South—in favor of
nition, and support, of the realities of a differentiated approach that embrac-
the majority. es the shades of grey in between, the
linkages, the back-and-forth move-
2. Introduction ments between formality and infor-
mality. The initial dualism of traditional
This essay is based on a previous redevelopment economics (Lewis, 1954;
search collaboration between FES and Harris & Todaro,1970; Hart, 1972), that
The New School on The Just City ini- argued that industrialization and eco-
tiative, specifically the working paper: nomic growth would shrink informality
“Urban Informality and the Making of (i.e. unemployment) out of existence, is
African Cities”, published by the Frie- increasingly seen today as an outdat-
drich-Ebert-Stiftung Kenya Office in ed and inaccurate picture of our world
2022. (Jutting & Laiglesia, 2009). The shift in
thinking has been gradual over the last
The paper has four main objectives: fifty years. A very schematic overview
First, to portray the current theoretical of this process summarized in Figure 3
notion of a continuum between infor- below and further elaborated in other
mality and formality, as a more appro- reviews (Moser, 1994; Chen & Carré,
2020; Carrizosa, 2021).
48
Early advocates of a new thinking were neurial approach that promotes de-reg-
structuralist urban theorists with Marx- ularization, microcredit, and land titling
ist undertones. On this view, informal- (De Soto, 2000; IFC, 2017).
ity is a by-product of advanced capi-
talism necessary to support its growth Some years later, Latin American devel-
(Sassen, 1994). Other scholars argued opment economists pushed thinking
that governments can informalize ur- again towards new institutionalism,
ban development to their advantage, arguing that people often voluntarily
what Roy (2009) calls “informality from choose to live and work informally, not
above”. Another prominent view is the because they are excluded from for-
one championed by Herando de Soto, mality, but because informality is more
with a more neoliberal and entrepre- convenient (Perry et al., 2007).
Figure 3: Schematic review of main schools of thought on urban informality

(Carrizosa, 2021)
Each of these ideas brings forth differ- what policymakers think, say, and do is
ent causal explanations for informality, usually contradictory.
with different and often contradict-
ing policy prescriptions to combat it. Against this convoluted background,
So, the panorama of solutions offers a promising new landscape is emerg-
complementary and even opposing ing—one that starts by embracing,
approaches that coexist. Most often, rather than renouncing, complex sys-
policy instruments lag the theoretical tems, variegated circumstances, mixed
advances and are more conservative as statuses. Authors in this landscape talk
compared with the narratives. Across about co-production (Joshi & Moore,
the world and throughout the ideolog- 2004), continuum (Ostrom et al.,
ical spectrum, prejudices about what 2006), grey zones (Yiftachel, 2009),
a modern city should look like gross- linkages (Meagher, 2013), fractures or
ly contradict social justice principles. hinges (Simone, 2010), and constel-
When it comes to urban informality, lations (Barry, 2015), to name a few
terms.
49
This essay embraces the “continuum” The continuum approach becomes in-
term, following the work of Elinor Os- creasingly relevant as we come to grips
trom. The continuum approach dispels with new statistical breakthroughs in
the prejudice that informality is un- international official measurements
structured, disorganized, and chaotic. of informal employment that demon-
It explains that such prejudice is “con- strate that informality is majoritarian
ceptually unsound, empirically weak, across the world. Datasets released by
and has led to policy disasters” (Os- the International Labor Organization
trom et al., 2006). Notably, Ostrom ex- (ILO) reveal that informal employment
plains that forcing formalization onto represents 61.5% of the world’s em-
informal systems often crowds out ployment and 85.8% of jobs in Africa
well-functioning arrangements. This (ILO, 2018). In terms of the built en-
means formalization is not always de- vironment, experts concur that urban
sired and informalization is not always informality accounts for at least 60%
a bad thing. to 80% of the existing urban fabric
of developing countries (Chen et al.,
Policies that work are those that are 2018). Tanzanian experts estimate that
not too far removed from the realities 70% of urban land is occupied by in-
on the ground, but that deploy a “just formal settlements (Komu, 2022) and
right” reach of government. Good that 98% of housing is self-built (Lim-
measures “tailor intervention to the ca- bumba, 2022). Urban informality is
pacity of the structure” (Ostrom et al, the predominant mode of progressive
2006:13), rather than offering blanket city-making today.
solutions that supposedly work every-
where because they worked some- Positive framings of informality in poli-
where. This new approach invites to cy making are rather new. Only recently
think that informal practices that exist have governments adhered to support-
because they work on the ground, and ing informality rather than to fighting it
because they do, they must be learned (ILO, 2015; Kiaga et al., 2020). And de-
from. Labeling informality exclusive- spite these new approaches, prejudices
ly as a problem or disease blocks our against urban informality abound with-
understanding of what is really needed in governments, academia, and in the
by policy and hinders our capacity to streets. But despite its problems, infor-
help these systems evolve and thrive. mality makes cities function and raises
Ultimately, the continuum approach re- people’s well-being. In fact, without in-
quires a more granular knowledge of formal contributions in the form of in-
informal practices, so that policies can come (informal employment), housing
be smarter by getting closer to realities. (informal housing and informal settle-
50
ments or slums), and community ser- that these houses should no longer be
vices (informal care arrangements, in- thought of as houses.
formal water provision, informal waste
recycling activities, and so on), people The following section presents a defini-
would be worse off. Informal service tion of the concept “space-use intensi-
providers guarantee the flow of goods ty” and the visual-based methodology
and services wherever formal conduits employed to document its variables,
do not reach, and in this sense, infor- the “house interviews”. After that, I
mality helps cities function. Because summarize the key findings extracted
African cities do function in a way that from more than 30 house interviews
is not easily legible to urban managers carried out in Dar es Salaam, in compar-
and that is different from what plan- ison with data from Kampala (Uganda),
ners assume and expect. For policy to Dakar (Senegal), and Bogota (Colom-
be smarter at dealing with urban in- bia). Finally, I discuss the implications of
formality, more detailed knowledge of these space-use intensity estimates and
what happens in informal settlements findings for urban policy.
is indispensable.
This essay shares and discusses the 4. House interviews to

findings from qualitative empirical re- reveal “space-use intensity”
search carried out in in Dar es Salaam,
Kampala, and Dakar, documenting Space-use intensity is a concept in-
mixed-use within houses in informal spired by time-use survey techniques
settlements. Some conceptualize this pioneered by feminist economics,
topic as “home-based enterprises” which reveal the true extent of house-
(Tipple, 2014; Chen, 2014) or as “ur- hold multitasking. A brief introduc-
ban livelihoods” (Rakodi & Lloyd-Jones, tion to time-use multitasking lays the
2002; Chen et al., 2016). I have called groundwork for understanding space-
this “space-use intensity,” evoking a use intensity. As Gershuny has demon-
parallel with time-use research, and strated, failing to account for second-
some innovative surveying techniques ary activities, conceals far too many
to document multitasking (Carrizosa, activities (Gershuny, 2009; Gershuny et
2021). I will show, both visually and nu- al, 2020). This time-use research shows
merically, that residential spaces in con- that as much as 12.5% of childcare is
solidated informal settlements host an unaccounted for in time-use surveys
important amount of economic activi- that do not capture multitasking (Ger-
ties and community services in addition shuny, 2009:198). Instead, if multitask-
to their residential uses, to the point
51
ing is considered, then the “total activi- formation is locally available about the
ty participation is increased, as time-use recognized uses of the space. Each lo-
is intensified” (Kenyon, 2010, 45). I cal researcher1 selected the houses to
also draw from Jane Jacobs’ (1969) interview based on two simple criteria.
ideas about mixed-use to define two First, ease of access (rapport), and sec-
key variables of spaces that multitask: ond, that houses deemed locally as typ-
1) granularity (the internal parts within ical or average neighborhoods (not the
an observed unit) and 2) range (a vari- poorest nor the richest, but middle-to-
ety of types of uses). In the concept of low income) in consolidated informal
space-use intensity, granularity refers settlements (defined by Ward (2015) as
to different users within a house (in- old peripheries).
dependent households or independent
businesses); and range refers to 2) dif- Each house interview is documented
ferent uses within a house (residential, with a visual record. The schematic
commercial, industrial / manufacturing, layout of the plot is drawn in a plan
services, and ‘green’ recycling or urban view. Each use receives a color: yel-
agriculture). Space-use intensity data, low for residential, red for commer-
as conceptualized herein, compiles a cial, blue for urban or social services,
detailed count of the discrete uses and purple for industrial or manufacturing,
users within the houses, a tally. and green for recycling, urban agricul-
ture, or livestock. Each colored circle
The method used to capture space- has a letter representing different us-
use intensity data is called the house ers. For each independent household
interview, which aims to interrogate or independent business, a new letter
space itself, via semi-structured inter- is added. The full story of all the ob-
views with residents. The interview- served uses can be read in the legend
er, if allowed, tours each room in the at the right. On the left there is a di-
house taking impromptu photographs agram that summarizes what uses the
of every space. The method uses con- local government records recognize
versation, rough drawings, and photo- (business permits, building licenses,
graphs, to interrogate the space itself. land use maps, and cadaster data). For
The objective is to compile a complete each house interview there is a visual
tally of uses (range) and users (granu- record (Figure 4), and with each visual
larity) in the space. The complete count record, a set of space-use variables can
of observed uses are then compared be extracted (Table 1). The method was
with whatever cadaster or land-use in- employed and refined through applica-
1
Local researcher Imma Kapinga was responsible for conducting the house interviews in Dar
es Salaam between November and December of 2021.
52
tions in 12 interviews in Dar es Salaam The nature of this research is qualita-

(4), Kampala (4), and Dakar (4). For ref- tive, even though it can be summarized
erence, a visual summary of additional quantitatively. The size of the sample is
19 interviews in Bogota, Colombia, is not intended to be statistically repre-
also included to show how the meth- sentative, but they serve as descriptive
odology can adapt to different urban numbers indicative of the extent of in-
realities (Annex 1: Page 70). Additional tensity of use. Furthermore, the estima-
conceptual and methodological details tions have an important argumentative
are available from FES (2021) and Car- power, that could be further explored.
rizosa (2021).
Figure 4: Visual record of observed uses in Neema’s house
53
Space-use inten- Dar es Sa- Kampala Dakar Bogota Total

sity variables laam
n=4 n=4 n=4 n=19 n=31
Observed use units 9.3 4.5 5.5 4.2 5.9
(letters)
Observed uses 4.3 4.5 4.8 3.6 4.3
(colors)
Total count of uses 17.0 14.5 15.8 7.7 13.7
observed
Residential 4.3 3.5 4.0 3.6 3.8
Services 4.3 3.8 4.5 0.9 3.4
Commercial 6.3 4.5 3.3 1.5 3.9

Industrial 1.3 0.8 2.0 1.1 1.3
Green 1.8 2.0 2.0 0.6 1.6
Non-economic 8.5 7.3 8.5 4.5 7.2
Economic 9.3 7.3 7.3 3.2 6.7
Total count of rec- 1.8 2.5 3.0 1.4 2.2

ognized uses*
Invisible uses 15.3 12.0 12.8 6.3 11.6
% Residential 24.7% 21.3% 25.8% 46.3% 29.5%
% Economic 53.0% 47.9% 45.8% 41.6% 47.1%
% Services 26.2% 30.8% 28.3% 12.1% 24.4%
% Visible 10.3% 16.3% 19.9% 18.5% 16.2%
% invisible ** 89.7% 83.8% 80.1% 81.5% 83.8%
*These numbers are estimated, as the investigation on cadaster information

is incomplete
**Calculated using the total count of official uses, as per local government
plans or databases
Table 1: Space-use intensity variables from house interviews comparison of averages
across cities (Source: Author’s own)
54
4.1 Space-use intensity find- findings from houses in consolidated

ings informal settlements in Bogota, Co-
lombia, where services only account for
These findings suggest that what is un- 12% (Carrizosa, 2021). These findings
derstood as a house in Dar es Salaam reveal that informal settlements cannot
holds more than a single household be thought of as residential areas, be-
and more than residential uses alone. cause doing so would invisibilize work,
In fact, residential uses in the described services, capacities, challenges, and
houses are less than 25% of the to- possibilities.
tal uses observed. In other words, the
residential use is merely a quarter of Space-use intensity data is also useful
what is happening in Dar es Salaam for going beyond the claim that the
houses. The economic uses within the just city should include the “urban in-
houses, including commercial, manu- visibles” (FES, 2020). Despite this be-
facturing, recycling, and agriculture, ing a small sample, we can estimate
represent more half of what happens the extent of what the Dar es Salaam
inside these houses: 53%. Finally, ser- government is ignoring at 89.7%. This
vices, like community areas, urban wa- percentage is consistent with estimates
ter and sanitation, and repair shops, from other cities, though it is the high-
account for 26% of the uses. This is a est
high percentage compared to previous
Figure 5 (Table1): Average of total observed uses, comparison by cities (left).

Estimate of invisible uses, comparison by cities (right)
55
4.2 Implications for urban policy 5. Tanzanian insights

The intense use of residential spaces
on urban formalization
proves that houses in Dar es Salaam are
This section of the essay collects in-
for much more than sleeping, in fact,
sights from members of the Just City
their residential use is less than a fourth
Platform Housing Working Group (sup-
of what they accommodate inside. In
ported by Friedrich Ebert Stiftung’s Tan-
houses people work, offer community
zania Office), shared in personal inter-
services, maintain businesses, and save
views conducted between November
for the future. Houses serve as employ-
2021 and May 2022. Together, they
ment, as social protection, and as ser-
cover a breath of expertise: Tumsifu
vice providers. In consolidated informal
Jonas Nnkya, former Director of Hous-
settlements, residents provide for them-
ing, Ministry of Lands, Housing and
selves and their communities whatev-
Human Settlement Development and
er is not provided to them by the city
retired professor from Ardhi University,
governments. Informal neighborhoods
Albert Nyiti, Assistant Research Fellow
and their residents internalize the ser-
at the Institute of Human Settlements
vices they do not receive through for-
Studies (IHSS) at Ardhi University, Feli-
mal channels. In other words, social
cian Komu, real estate expert and Chief
protections and urban services are be-
Editor of AfRES Research Journal; Tatu
ing co-produced by the citizens. People
M. Limbumba, Senior researcher Ar-
are contributing much more to making
dhi University; Tim Ndezi, Director of
life in the city possible than their mu-
the Centre for Community Initiatives
nicipal governments. Rather than label-
(CCI). Also included are valuable in-
ing this state of affairs as good or bad,
sights from Gaston Kikuwi, Chairper-
the point here is to acknowledge the
son of VIBINDO Association of informal
extent of these activities, so that policy
traders of Tanzania, whose analysis of
can be fine-tuned to these realities and
formalization policy in a sister sector
be more effective and just. For policy to
(street vending) speaks directly to hous-
get smarter at supporting people, ex-
ing issues.
perts need to recognize that a house
in an informal settlement is much more
While all these experts’ voices can be
than a place of residence. The next sec-
read directly in this same publication,
tion starts to delve into this.
I assemble and present their ideas in
such a way that helps set the ground to
phrase the short list of policy messag-
es that I deem helpful to better align
56
the center of Tanzanian housing policy made into an engine of the national
with the intensity of informal realities. economy. It generates long upstream
and downstream value chains making it
Housing policy has become a prime contributor to a country’s GDP.
irrelevant within the national More strategically still, the housing sec-
agenda tor has ripple effects in the local econ-
omy. Housing production, be it formal
The Tanzanian experts interviewed elo- or informal, plays this economic role,
quently denounce that national hous- with different levels of legibility, spread,
ing policy is non-existent, and lament and strength. Let one not zoom out of
that the housing sector is so languid view that most of housing production
and incipient in the national portfolio is not formally produced, and so the
as compared with other economic and bulk of the economic impact housing
social agendas. Some condemn that generates is not formal2. This implies
housing is lumped together with land that there is a steady flow of resources
issues (Kironde, 2021), that it is wrong from the informal to the formal, a sort
to confuse the constitutional right to of reverse “trickle down”. Such “trick-
property with the right to housing (Ny- le up” processes are strong, healthy,
iti, 2022), and key regulations get stuck permanent, and long standing. This is
in the pipeline or even reversed (Komu, in fact how most of the tissue of our
2022). Some seem to concur that the cities is made. Small but permanent
national government misunderstands and widespread interventions. Incre-
the power of housing policy to drive mentally becoming better, completing,
the economy and decry the lack of formalizing. If the housing stock and
national leadership and action in the the housing market is mostly self-built
housing sector. (informal), then housing policy should
center itself on these realities, end ex-
A languid housing sector that strug- ploit its possibilities. To do otherwise is
gles to make itself relevant alongside to ensure its irrelevance.
other sectoral policies is disheartening
because housing is probably the one of
the main instruments for growth and
social development an emerging na-
tion has (Carrizosa, 2020). Around the
world, housing construction is often
2
An interesting case that took advantage of the amount of building materials the informal
self-builders consume is “Patrimony Today”, an upgrading program spearheaded by Cemex,
a multinational cement producer (IDB, 2011).
57
Housing policy needs alter- for neighborhood, makazi, shares the

nate housing vocabularies: root word kazi (Figure 4). Commercial
nyumba(ni) and (ma)kazi activities are also merged with residen-
tial in Swahili: “a typical ‘commercial
As a unit of analysis, a “house” is uni- building’ ‘nyumba ya biashara’ which
versal and is never devoid of meaning. directly translates to ‘commercial hous-
But what a house entails in each con- ing’ in English” (Nyiti, 2022). Perhaps
text may differ considerably. To some, more effective working vocabularies
a house is a single room rented out can come from grounded realities and
within a larger structure. To others, it is its research. As Limbumba argues,
a structure with several partitions and concepts like space-use intensity can
no windows, kitchen, or bathroom. It broaden urban planning and manage-
can also be a larger building with sev- ment because “traditional housing sta-
eral rooms for members of various nu- tistics can only get us so far” (Limbum-
clear families and even guests. In other ba, 2022). This reflection on language
cases, it is a plot with ample spaces for is quite profound and ought to be ad-
agricultural crops and livestock. Also, dressed with all its philological rigor.
Tanzanians disregard the difference be- For now, I will just echo the comments
tween housing and settlement, using of Obeng-Odoom (2021), who claims
the Swahili words nyumba and makazi the need to expand the taxonomies
interchangeably (Nyiti, 2022). More im- to think housing beyond the common
portantly still, work and residential uses disciplinary traditions and conventional
are indistinguishable, as the very word theories of value.
Figure 6: Swahili word for settlement is more closely related to

the word work than to house (Author, 2022)
58
Informality is mixed with formality According to Limbumba, the mixture

and appears everywhere of formality and informality is post-co-
lonial. Tanzanian informal settlements
Tanzanian experts acknowledge that -uswahilini- used to be quite distinct
informality does not exist in direct op- from formal ones -uzunguni-, which
position to, nor is isolated from, formal- were planned, where occupied by Eu-
ity. Rather, both are part of a gradient, ropeans, and had larger plots. At first,
a mix. When discussing this mixture in and in many people’s imaginaries, uzu-
“
Dar es Salaam, Nnkya (2021) explains: nguni did not informalize. But current-
ly, informal subdivisions within formal
Our settlements are uzunguni settlements are more and
unique in the sense that more common. She gives the example
they accommodate all class- of Oyster Bay, initially owned by the
es. There is more spatial government, then it passed property to
mixture between different residents, who have been subdividing
incomes, and between for- the plots (Limbumba, 2022). Subdivi-
mal and informal, which do sion is one of the most important pro-
not look that different … in- cesses in the formalization continuum,
settlements for the poor.

Formal ones have better
“
formal settlements are not
services, but they also have

as I will explain later.
Formalization is not inclusion,

but recognition and support
informal services.
Urban informality has a stigma attached
Nnkya (2021) goes further and assures to it that obstructs learning from it. The
that the “mix actually helps regulariza- idea of taking advantage of it, of mak-
tion policy.” Mixed-income settlements ing the most of its potential, remains
accelerate formalization by providing problematic for both technicians and
more diverse economic environments, welfarists alike. Indeed, stories abound
as higher income neighborhoods de- about formalization projects, programs,
mand locally available products and or policies that, while well-intentioned,
services that can be offered by lower undermine their own purpose. Even
income residents. The mix, then, pro- though their unjust outcomes get en-
motes local markets. This complemen- graved in the minds and hearts of
tarity is seldom exploited by policy, yet those who are aware or old enough
it is as old as urbanization itself (Mum- to remember, the same type of initia-
ford, 1961) and accentuated in bigger tives resurge again later, with slightly
cities (Sassen, 2002). different guises. There is much learn-
59
ing, and some unlearning to be done. government issued the Blueprint Law
For instance, Kikuwi explains that “the (GoT, 2018), removing 200 regulations
biggest challenge to recognition is the to facilitate formalization, including
mindset from the authorities. They see e-registration of businesses, national
informality as a nuisance, as stubborn. e-card, and the like. However, “its im-
They can’t think outside the box, they pact is very minimal …worse than that,
don’t see there is no box! 97% of busi- de-formalization is what they actually
nesses in Tanzania are informal” (Kiku- do. The government is encouraging
wi, 2021). more informality” (Kikuwi, 2021). Not
to mention that the following admin-
When it comes to formalization success istration did not share the same ap-
stories, sectors other than housing have preciation (Komu, 2022). So, Kikuwi
useful lessons. It is now acknowledged (2021) explains, “The purpose of for-
that the most salient are those in waste malization should not be to formalize,
management, which cleverly connect the purpose should be transformation
employment formalization, environ- … transformation from informal to
mental sustainability, and neighbor- formal.” “There are two components
hood services (Bhan, 2019). Tanza- to transformation” he stated. “One is
nia’s trajectory in the formalization of recognition. We need to understand
street-vending makes is illuminating. better who workers and businesses are
Kikuwi, the leader of the VIBINDO So- in terms of gender, age, sector, and
ciety, a member-based organization of why they work in what they do… the
informal manufacturers, traders, and second component is incentives: con-
service providers, explains that a funda- ducive working spaces, finance, social
mental shift is needed because formal- protection, skills’ training, appropriate
ization should not be mere inclusion. technologies, and marketing” (Kikuwi,
The objective of widening the tax base 2021). In short, recognition and incen-
is not a bad policy, per se, but it not tives are prerequisites for effective for-
enough. malization.
When Dar es Salaam issued its 1998 Since there can be no real formalization
master plan, persecution escalated of without recognition, and since recogni-
“informal traders, beating harassing, tion cannot happen without more accu-
confiscating their goods” (Kikuwi, rate knowledge of informality, legibili-
2021). In response, informal business- ty-enhancing efforts are fundamental.
people got organized, not so much These can include censuses, cadasters,
to fight back, but to guarantee rep- enumerations, among others. Legibility
resentation. Twenty years later, the
60
that can lead to recognition can be at- A co-production approach to urban

tained through different channels. For goods, services, and social protections
instance, recent research in Dar es Sa- would reconceptualize public provision,
laam provides substantial evidence that not as a matter of “the-state-does-
informal institutional arrangements are it-all,” or “the-private-sector-does-it-
“are surprisingly effective in securing best”, but as one that welcomes reg-
ownership and addressing transac- ular citizens, especially those who are
tion costs” (Panman, 2021:230). Up majoritarian subjects and objects of
to “75% of informal owner-occupiers government action. Numerous exam-
say they are not at all concerned that ples of synergistic collaboration be-
someone may take their property away tween public and informal stakehold-
from them without their permission.” ers to improve service provision have
(Panman, 2021:233). Leaders from the been documented across different sec-
lowest level of government—subwards tors (Meagher, 2013), such as waste
or mitaa (streets)—serve as witnesses to management (Nzeadibe, 2013; Parra,
transactions. Ward tribunals effectively 2020), water and sanitation (Ahlers et
resolve conflicts, making the informal al., 2014), housing and urban planning
system more functioning than its for- (Watson, 2014), and social protection
mal alternative. If the effectiveness of (Tokman, 2007; Steiler, 2018).
this system were better recognized and
Informal housing arrangements play a
taken advantage of, formalization pro-
cesses would be streamlined. Anoth- social protection role for many people.
er noteworthy example is the online Houses with intense uses, especial-
ly economic uses, offer protection for
platform MyDalali.co.tz, that registers
their residents in times of need, acting
informal real estate brokers (dalalis)
exactly as social insurance (as a source
serving as a control for their integrity,
mapping crowdsourced real estate in-of life insurance in times of death, sev-
erance or unemployment payments,
formation, and facilitating transactions
and the like). It does take some degree
with potential clients. An example of a
of intellectual flexibility to understand
legibility-enhancing effort in the path
that social protections can take many
towards the formalization of the dalali
business. forms, and that some of those forms
can be spatialized, even photographed,
Policy should include people’s if one dares to look close enough. But
co-production of urban ser- at the same time, using their spaces
vices, goods, and social pro- as social protection is just a natural
tections way of getting by in the city, and in
fact, the notion that housing is used
61
as a pension, and old-age security and Despite understandable political con-

fundamental patrimony to leave one’s troversy, substantial public invest-
offspring, is connatural to urban devel- ments in Tanzania inevitably require
opment, a widespread practice of the increased collection by either “wid-
poor (Torres in Carrizosa, 2021) and ening” or “deepening” the tax base.
the well-off too. Thus, the important question to ask is
how knowledge of space-use intensity
Co-production understands, pragmati- relates to taxation. Specifically, how to
cally, that when addressing joint state guarantee it is fair and viable while pre-
and market failures, partnerships are venting it from being exploitative.
the key to achieve effective, on the
ground, scalable success. This is one of It is broadly recognized that African
the reasons why for local governments cities need to capture the benefits of
it is indispensable to recognize infor- its accelerated urbanization and rein-
mal activities – not to erase informality, vest this value for the common good.
but to lay the true baseline from which Among the fiscal policy options, ex-
to build a more just system, to lay pert urban development economists
bare people’s assets, however fragile, deem that “property taxes are fairer
fractioned, or seemingly disorganized and more efficient than other types of
they look on the surface. The intense taxes” (Collier et al., 2018:2). Further,
economic and urban services activities they argue that land and property tax-
happening in consolidated informal es represent “the largest source of un-
settlements should not only be recog- tapped municipal revenue” (Collier et
nized but also supported. Attaining al., 2018:4).
just cities in Tanzania requires support-
ing social infrastructure, co-production Komu (2022) explains how Tanzania
“
can simply mean devolution of respon- had been making good progress at this:
sibility, so it becomes exploitative, and
hence an opportunity for redistribution Arusha was performing
is missed (Chen, 2006). Without a cre- exemplary well, collecting
ative, spatialized, and unbridled sup- as much as $1 million USD.
port structure to help informal service But when the national gov-
provision of goods, services, and social ernment realized this poten-
protections to perform better. tial, it nationalized it. Every-
thing changed in 2016. The
Can formalization of horizon- system became charged via
tal property make taxation the electricity bill for anyone
fair? with a meter, not property
owners. So, this is not a
62
“
property tax, and obviously
ba, 2022). However, subdivisions also

not local revenue! mean that the city is becoming more
compact, denser, and more walkable,
Tanzania’s levying of property taxes all of which are tenets of sustainable
through electricity bills has rightly been urban development. What is import-
deemed both innovative and exploit- ant is that subdivisions are as legible as
ative (Makakala, 2021). Indeed, it has possible. This entails giving mtaa lead-
elements of both. On one side, the sys- ers, who are close to the issues, man-
tem widens collection by fragmenting date to enact urban control when there
the client base, which means cheaper are serious health hazards (Limbumba,
bills that are likelier to be paid. But on 2022).
the other hand, it is unfair that while
the tax is tied to urban buildings, the Discussing taxation is always political-
revenue stream flows away from the ly unpleasant. It can only stop receiv-
city government, which should be using so much backlash if residents and
ing it to service precisely those areas governments understand that taxes are
that are more intensely used. Intensely the cost people pay for the provision of
used areas should be paying more taxes good public goods and services. If peo-
(even if in minuscule fragments) but at ple see high quality goods and services,
the same time they should be receiving taxes would be seen as worthy. The bar
corresponding municipal investments here is quite low in Tanzania. A recent
and maintenance. FES survey to more than 2,000 house-
holds in formal and informal settle-
Another way to approach property tax- ments in Dar es Salaam revealed that:
ation that widens collection while be- “Only about one in ten participants
coming cheaper (hence likelier to be expected the government to provide
paid), is to promote horizontal property them with the service because they
subdivisions. In fact, horizontal proper- paid tax” (FES, 2021:38), of course,
ty laws were invented to encourage af- the lower the income the less people
fordability and ease transactions. Hor- expect (79%), and women expect even
izontal property arrangements, that less than men (FES, 2021:40). Perhaps
is, formal subdivisions, can become a we can read this low baseline optimis-
partner and not a rival of urban formal- tically. If municipal governments give
ization. Limbumba acknowledges that quality infrastructures to those that less
the upgrading of informal settlements expect to receive them, the social con-
often triggers subdivisions, and laments tract will become stronger and health-
this as a contradiction—formalization ier.
triggers more informalization (Limbum-
63
Housing policy needs to re-align housing policy to be effective and just,

with the majority it needs to firmly center itself in the
needs of the majority: it should not shy
The center of the housing policy in the away from embracing informality. Up-
country appears to be misaligned with grading efforts need to be bolder, the
the real needs and possibilities of the servicing of informal settlements needs
majority. Focusing on formal mortgag- to be more widespread and more gen-
es and refinancing of new construc- erous. Aligning the center of housing
tions dismisses the fact only “2.7% of policy with the informal reality should
the urban households can afford the not be seen as unbecoming or unam-
cheapest newly built house” (CAHF, bitious. Coming to grips with the reali-
2021:13). This means there is a mis- ty is not aspiring to less but having the
match between the solutions being of- courage to appreciate the heroic minu-
fered and the problems that abound. tiae city-making efforts of the people
This housing policy, focused on formal and accept them as part of the national
solutions, disregards the real needs and urban identity.
possibilities of the majority. The core
of the challenge is misplaced setting Recentering housing policy in the ma-
aside the fact that 90% residents do jority also means accepting that the
not have trunk sanitation infrastructure legacy of sites-and-services3 programs
(Ndezi, 2022) to prioritize the financing is not one of failure, but one of in-
of new buildings. If 70% of the urban complete success (Owens et al., 2018).
areas are informal (Komu, 2022) (as is Housing experts like who witnessed or
the income of its residents), then why have studied the early post-indepen-
focus the policy primarily on the formal dence policies, like Nnkya, show appre-
minority? When 98% of the housing ciation for what umajaa (‘familyhood’)
stock is self-built (Limbumba, 2022), policies were able to accomplish. This
this is the city. A city already there, that begs the question if what is needed
needs support. Given this reality, hous- today is an urban update of success-
ing policy ought to look very different. ful elements of that national project.
At the time of the Arusha Declaration
The form of housing policy that Tan- Tanzania was 6% urban, but today it
zania needs may contrast with con- is up of 35%, and rapidly accelerat-
ventional expectations. Necessarily, for ing (World Bank, 2022). Now, what if
3
Housing alternative championed by the World Bank in the 70s as an effective slum preven-
tion policy. The model (deployed by Latin America’s CINVA in the late 50s), proposed “the
delivery of incremental housing for the poor through the provision of small-serviced plots,
sometimes with a core unit.” (Owens et al, 2018:260)
64
umajaa principles were to be brought different: less houses, more sup-

up to date with the urban reality of the port infrastructures
country? The ujamaa villages of the late
60s are not what 21st century Tanza- 3) Formalization is elusive with-
nia needs. But the strategies and even out recognition of functioning in-
their main components: “high-density formal arrangements
neighborhoods with a minimum of ini-
tial infrastructure investment, self-built 4) Swahili housing vocabularies
housing, and communally organized should guide policy strategies
markets, cottage industries, and sham-
bas” (PADCO, 1969:53), resonate -if 5) Coproduction of policies means
adapted- with future-proof housing supporting people’s urban service
policy and sustainable urbanization. provision
New instruments must include digital
citizenship, decentralized service pro- 6) Social protection policy can be
vision, microgrids, and circular local most effective if it is spatialized
economies. What was missing then
and cannot be absent any longer: ro- 7) Subdivision can make property
bust urban social and physical infra- taxes be cheaper and broader
structures. At the core of Tanzanian
housing policy there may not be actual All these points share the fundamen-
houses, but its supporting urban ser- tal idea that policy cannot afford to be
vices, social protections, and different so distant from the realities of the ma-
types of infrastructures. jority. Instead, it should tailor itself to
take advantage of informal working ar-
rangements, counter its shortcomings,
6. Key messages for a more and support its capacities.
effective housing policy
In ending, this essay highlights a short

set of principles that Tanzania’s housing
policy would benefit from embracing.
1) Housing policy needs to be re-

centered to align with the major-
ity
2) Housing policy needs to look
65
7. References Chen, M. A. (2014), Informal econ-

omy monitoring study sector report:
Ahlers, R., Cleaver, F., Rusca, M. & Home-based workers, Cambridge, MA:
Schwartz, K. (2014). “Informal space WIEGO.
in the urban waterscape: Disaggrega-
tion and co-production of water ser- Chen, M. A., Roever, S., & Skinner,
vices”. Water Alternatives 7(1) pp 1-14 C. (2016). Urban livelihoods: review-
ing the evidence in support of the new
Barry, M. (2015). Property theory, urban agenda. Editorial in Environment
methods, and the continuum of land and Urbanization Brief- 34 Internation-
rights, Nairobi: UN Habitat al Institute for Environment and Devel-
opment (IIED), pp 1-12. London: Rus-
Bhan, G. (2019). “Notes on a South- sell Press.
ern urban practice”, Environment &
Urbanization, International Institute for Chen, M. A., Kihato, C. W., & Skin-
Environment and Development (IIED), ner, C. (2018). Inclusive public spaces
Sage, pp 11–16. for informal livelihoods: a discussion
paper for urban planners and policy
Carrizosa, M. (2020). “Six Countries makers. Prepared by WIEGO for the
and Twenty Years: A transversal read- Cities Alliance Joint Work Programme
ing of Latin American urban policy”, for Equitable Economic Growth in Cit-
in: Urban Policy in Latin America, Rout- ies. p 17. Manchester: WIEGO Limited.
ledge, Oxford.
Collier, P., Glaeser, E., Venables, T.,
Carrizosa, M. (2021). Working homes: Blake, M. Manwaring, P. (2018).
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8. Annex
Annex 1: Visual plan-view summary of house interviews in Dar es Salaam, Kampala,

and Dakar (FES, 2021)
71
Annex 2: Visual cross-section summary of house interviews in Bogota,

Colombia (Carrizosa, 2021)
72
`
4
Just and secure
access to adequate
and affordable
housing
By Tatu Mtwangi Limbumba
73
1. Introduction ity of services, affordability, habitability;

accessibility; [and] location and cultural
For decades urban planners have been adequacy.”
struggling to find the right balance of
private sector and public sector solu- However, low-income urban residents
tions to housing the urban poor. This is are often unable to access adequate
especially difficult in countries like Tan- housing due to a number of factors.
zania, where informal settlements and
high poverty rates dominate the urban (i) Low-incomes and the
landscape. Informal settlements are of- desire to live in proximity to liveli-
ten self-built by residents themselves hood sources compel them to live
and lack planning that could provide in sub-standard housing often
a long-range vision and coordinate an rental;
incremental urban development ap-
proach. Tanzanian urban authorities (ii) Informal often risky set-
lack the capacity to cope with the rap- tlements accommodate most
id rate of urban population growth, houses that are self-built, self-fi-
though legal frameworks promise the nanced incrementally;
right to own property and access hous-
ing. Despite these promises, the reality (iii) The cost of housing in-
is that many people struggle to access puts such as planned land, hous-
adequate and affordable housing, and ing finance and construction ma-
state-led solutions cannot meet de- terials are unaffordable; and
mand. Given these realities, a mix of
housing providers are needed. (iv) In the absence of social
assistance/protection, vulnerable
Article 24 of the Tanzanian Constitu- groups such as women, the elder-
tion recognizes that every citizen has ly and persons with disability face
the right to own property while the even more hardships in terms of
Draft National Housing Policy (2018:35 access to decent housing.
Draft Policy) envisions, “a well-func-
tioning housing sector that delivers ad- Financial constraints force some to rent
equate and affordable housing for all or build in under-serviced informal or
inhabitants in the urban and the rural precarious locations deprived of ser-
areas.” This Draft Policy (2018:7) de- vices, overcrowded, and in poor condi-
fines adequate housing as, “housing tion. Most urban residents in Tanzania
comprising security of tenure; availabil- (about 70%) live in informal or un-
74
Just and secure access to adequate and affordable housing
planned settlements, either as renters the poor, ensure safety and security,
or owner-occupiers. Informal housing and recognize culture and diversity for
is driven in part by limited supply in ap- overall well-being. All income and so-
propriate locations, high prices of for- cial groups should have their housing
mal land, high construction costs, and needs and preferences met, including
urban poverty. Compared to planned those groups that desire to rent.
and formal areas, between 40% and
80% of all built up residential areas
are informal in Tanzania (Zhang et al, 2. History of housing
2020). As a result, low-income settle- inequalities in the city of
ments often face socio-spatial margin-
Dar es Salaam
alization and inequalities exacerbat-
ed by the absence and inadequacy of
As one of the fastest growing cities
clean water and sanitation in the infor-
in sub-Saharan Africa, Dar es Salaam
mal areas that jeopardize their health
provides a fitting context to showcase
and welfare (Kombe, 2017). Just over
challenges related to urban housing,
50% of households in Dar es Salaam
marginalization, and the development
are serviced with piped water, and the
of just cities. The development of hous-
recent COVID-19 pandemic brought to
ing in Dar es Salaam has been influ-
the fore the service inequalities related
enced by racial segregation initiated
to water, and therefore hygiene.
during the colonial period. Some of the
features that are still apparent today
Women in urban areas are adversely
include spatial separation of races into
affected by the deficits found in infor-
areas for colonists (Uzunguni), traders
mal housing, particularly in their repro-
(Uhindini), and African locals (Uswahil-
ductive role as caregivers and nurtur-
ini) (Brennon and Burton, 2007). High-
ers of their families (see Chant, 2013).
and middle-class neighborhoods occu-
Environmental hazards, like flooded
pied by mostly white immigrants and
roads, can pose further hardships on
transient tourists such as Oyster Bay
poor urban residents, more so than to
and Msasani, are referred to as Uzu-
high-income residents. The conditions
nguni. Other neighborhoods in and
intersect to further spatially marginaliz-
around the Central Business District
ing the poor from enjoying their rights
(CBD), like Upanga and Kisutu, have
to the city. Indeed, beyond affordable
been occupied by government quarters
and adequate housing, cities that as-
and traders, most of whom are Indi-
pire to be just and inclusive need to
ans and other South Asians (Uhindini).
promote spatial planning that supports
Squatter settlements (‘slums’) and un-
jobs and livelihood opportunities for
75
planned neighborhoods occupied by 3. Overview of housing

public servants and the poor, popularly affordability
called Uswahilini, make up the rest of
the city. Access to adequate and affordable
housing in urban areas of Tanzania is
The growth of Uswahilini was a pre- constrained by poverty, and low-in-
cursor to the development of informal comes. While overall the national pov-
housing areas. These areas largely in- erty line has improved, according to
formal; were favored due to affordabili- the Tanzania Household Budget Sur-
ty, socially supportive of livelihoods and vey (HBS, 2018), poverty in urban ar-
continued to harbor the native popu- eas has increased compared to the
lation (Kironde, 1995). While squatter situation in 2012. For example, in the
upgrading and sites and services pro- city of Dar es Salaam, the HBS reports
grams were implemented in the 1970s that the proportion of people living in
to improve the housing; the programs poverty doubled from 1.5 to 3.0 per-
displaced poor, native Africans in Uswa- cent. The numbers indicate the most
hilini areas, and many displaced people vulnerable population whose lives are
went back to their former residential destitute. However, when it comes to
areas due to among other factors the the ability to afford an adequate house
distant locations of the new housing the income levels of most households
(Kironde, 1995). Now, 61 years after in Tanzania appear too low to access
independence and the abolishment of good housing according to Household
racial zoning, the spatial behavior of Budget Survey (2018).
many largely reflects patterns estab-
lished during the colonial era (Smiley, Indeed, the CAHF report (2020) esti-
2013:217). Furthermore, areas such mates that only 2.7% of urban house-
as Msasani and Oyster Bay (Uzunguni) holds in Tanzania can afford a standard,
have limited bus services (daladala), good quality, low-cost house, if the
thus excluding many residents who household were to put aside at least
might otherwise desire to live there. 25% of its income for mortgage pay-
ments. This implies that the remainder
(97.3%) of urban households cannot
afford to obtain a bank loan indicating
a need for micro-finance products (see
Tumsifu Jonas Nnkya in this edition). A
salaried worker needs about 9 times
their annual income to be able to buy
76
the cheapest house by a formal devel- es (Lugalla, 1995, Komu, 2011). Nev-
oper (HMA, 2012). Therefore, it is no ertheless, these were new, low-cost,
surprise that many households resort affordable housing schemes targeting
to self-built, incremental housing that low-income families meant for renting
takes many years to complete or prefer as well as owning through tenant-pur-
rental accommodation, whereby over chase. The houses built were similar to
60% of Dar es Salaam’s residents are the ‘Swahili type’ (Uswahilini) houses
renters (HBS, 2020). popular during that time namely a long
spacious corridor with several rooms on
3.1 Affordable housing pro- the side with a back-door leading onto
vision in Dar es Salaam – the a courtyard where many household ac-
Public Sector tivities are done. The house matched
peoples’ incomes (one could rent a sin-
The key player in public sector hous- gle room from the live-in-landlord), and
ing provision in Tanzania is the Nation- their community values of kin-ship.
al Housing Corporation (NHC). Other
public institutions that provide housing Despite these construction efforts, the
include pension agencies, such as the NHC could not replace the houses that
National Social Security Funds (NSSF), were demolished in the 1970s or meet
and Tanzania Building Agency (TBA). future demand (Kironde, 1995). Fur-
These do not meet the needs of low-in- thermore, slum clearance and demoli-
come households. The NHC was estab- tions resulted in displacement of many
lished in 1962 to provide decent and af- households and disruption of critical
fordable housing, breaking away from livelihoods. The NHC is still the main
the colonial legacy of underserved Af- public institution supplying housing to
rican houses built of traditional materi- the public. However, the capacity, abil-
al. Kironde (1995) describes how slum ity, or interest of NHS to construct low-
houses mostly made of mud-and-pole, cost, affordable housing has decreased
were demolished during the 1960s and over the years to less than 100 units
1970s to give way to modern housing nation-wide between 2007 and 2010
befitting a newly independent nation. (HMS, 2012; Komu, 2011). In addition,
The newly established NHC construct- the NHC has currently undergone insti-
ed about 8272 housing units during tutional reforms that led to an increase
the post-independence period un- in its participation in housing middle-
til 1972 which was only 32 percent and high-income groups, thus exclud-
of planned housing construction to ing a bigger part of the low-income
compensate for the demolished hous- population (Izar and Limbumba, 2020).
77
This is despite its national status as a housing. While there are a variety of
public housing provider. options the reduced government role
in housing provision has resulted in
In 2019, the NHC built 1,164 commer- fewer or no public housing opportuni-
cial and residential properties for sale ties for low-income persons and other
out of which 40% were defined as vulnerable groups particularly women
low-cost affordable housing. Howev- who may face more hardships access-
er, the lowest selling price was TZS 40 ing housing due to among other things
million ($23,720), which is totally unaf- low economic status’, patriarchal atti-
fordable even for a salaried lower-mid- tudes and discriminatory laws and prac-
dle income household (CAHF, 2021). tices. Furthermore, low-incomes often
As the key public provider of housing, compel them to live in environmentally
NHC has changed its vision to that of a poor locations sometimes risky to their
master developer constructing houses family members.
that only salaried middle to high income
earners can afford through mortgage Self-help housing
facilities. While constrained resources
and high building costs is often given About 98% of housing in Dar es Sa-
as a reason by public housing agen- laam is self-built, including both own-
cies like the NHC to exclude low-in- er-occupied and rental properties and
come households as target consumers the building process typically occurs in-
in housing schemes; it is questionable crementally over several years. The self-
because even other prosperous Afri- help housing construction process is
can countries report the same limited flexible. Urban residents (both low and
performance (UN-Habitat, 2011). One middle income) build and design the
may wonder if the challenge is financial style and size with help from local ar-
constraints or a question of putting in tisans (fundis). Houses are constructed
place effective policy environments. growing from a single room to stand-
a-alone detached house mostly based
3.2 Options for affordable and on personal savings. The availability
adequate housing for low-in- and flexibility of affordable land sizes
come groups in informal residential areas, further
supports construction desires for many
Given the constraints mentioned residents.
above, two models of housing have
proliferated in Dar es Salaam—self- Since the government cannot meet
help or self-built housing and rental the demand for affordable housing for
78
urban residents in Dar es Salaam; in- ing mechanisms, and other inputs for
formal housing development and pro- housing development, all at prices and
cesses are largely tolerated (UN-Hab- processes that match the everyday lives
itat, 2010). This tolerant approach of low-income residents.
represents a housing policy shift from
the slum and squatter settlements Despite the prevailing housing practice
clearance agenda that was subse- of self-building and management there
quently followed by better housing are inherent risks in unguided construc-
provision in the 1960s-70s by the NHC. tion residence in informal residential ar-
The moves were also, consistent with eas. The following adverse effects are
global changes in approaches towards known to occur in the city, at individu-
addressing informal housing, where- al, household, or settlement levels:
by the government’s role became that
of an enabler of housing, rather than i. threats to safety of the
a provider. As an ‘enabler’, the gov- residents due to poor environ-
ernment’s policy moves from “direct mental conditions due to lack of
provision of housing by governments critical basic services;
to alternative approaches to housing
development and improvement involv- ii. flooding and destruction
ing all stakeholders (including the pub- of lives and property during heavy
lic, private, academic and civil society rains in cases of severely poor lo-
actors) and, most importantly, people cations;
themselves” (UN-Habitat, 2012:10). As
a result, the shift to self-built housing iii. demolitions and evic-
was encouraged in the spirit of self- tions often to give way to large
help. This has resulted in many urban infrastructural and other urban
residents accessing land for shelter in development projects because
affordable unplanned areas. residents have encroached on
road reserves, or land earmarked
However, the conditions of informal by the government for develop-
settlements have always been wanting. ment;
If adequate and affordable housing is
to be facilitated to develop in Dar es iv. increased hardships to
Salaam, then there needs to be an en- women and children related to
abling policy environment that fosters lack of clean water and proper
supply of affordable land in attrac- sanitation facilities.
tive locations; flexible micro-financ-
79
To date, large cities like Dar es Salaam land close to major roads. These areas
provide much needed livelihood op- meet the basic considerations of many
portunities for many men and especial- low-income people, including afford-
ly women, but urban housing is still a able land prices, work, mobility, acces-
challenge. This is manifested in the per- sibility, and social and kinship connec-
sistent growth of informal settlements tions, which are important for housing
many of which are under-serviced. A decisions among the urban poor in Dar
look at the spatial evolution of infor- es Salaam (Limbumba, 2010; Kironde,
mal housing areas reveals that housing 1995).
in Dar es Salaam was largely developed
on vacant land close to the Central Generally, models of housing are either
Business District, industries, and institu- rental housing or owner-occupier. The
tions that are key employment centers main categories within this typology
(Hakuyu, 1995; Kombe and Kreibich, available for marginalized groups are
2006). Other locations include vacant outlined below:
S/N Adequate and afford- Tenure Remarks

able housing options
1 Shared accommodation Rent free ac- Migrants coming into
with relative or friends commodation the city
2 Single or multi-room rent- Tenant Rents in hard-to-reach
als in informal settlements locations, or of poor
housing are noticeably
cheaper
3 Single or multi-room rent- Tenant Most dominant option
als in planned settlements for low-income groups
4 Detached dwelling in (in- Tenant/home- Often built incremen-
formal) house owner tally to match incomes
and therefore takes
years, some house-
holds compelled to live
in unfinished houses
5 Caretaker in unfinished Rent free Often poor house-
house living for free holds/ laborers who act
as caretakers
Table 1: Options for affordable and adequate housing for low-income groups
Source: Own modification from Tanzania Housing Market Survey, 2012
80
Rental housing Policy of 2000 stated that “Building of

rental housing by public institutions is
Renting comprises individuals or house- an inefficient use of scarce resources.
holds (also called tenants) who pay an Building and selling of houses could
agreed sum of money regularly to a generate more houses” (URT, 2000:
landlord who can be private individual, Section 4.2.2.1-iv: 39). Indeed, the
public or private institution (UN-Habi- practice favored was to allow tenants
tat, 2003). In Dar es Salaam for exam- to stay in public houses such as those
ple, tenants pay an agreed amount of built by NHC with a view to selling of
money (rent) either every month or a the property should a buyer show inter-
lump sum of 6-12 months’ rent. It is est thus further discriminating not only
common to have landlords demand 6 against rental housing development
to 12 months’ rent in advance often but also sitting tenants who cannot
creating hardships for the tenant es- afford to buy the house. Furthermore,
pecially the poor who try to keep up housing finance opportunities largely
with payments. For a long-time, the favor clients who desire to build own
government has knowingly or un- houses at affordable and manageable
knowingly promoted homeownership costs rather than flats or condomini-
subsequently giving rental housing ums (NHSDP, 2018). Even the supply of
a backstage. Since many urban poor land favored single plots that promot-
rents, this has led to the marginaliza- ed homeownership. Yet, over 51% of
tion of tenants (especially the very poor urban residents in Dar es Salaam live
and elderly group) because the govern- in rental housing with the poorest in
ment does not prioritize rental hous- the city choosing to rent close to their
ing and it is mostly left to private sec- workplaces even if the houses are of
tor thus depriving poor social groups poor-quality. Areas with these qualities
such as the women and the elderly to include Magomeni, Suna, Buguruni
their rights to adequate and affordable Mnyamani, and Kigogo. Private small-
housing. Anecdotal evidence indicates scale landlords provide different hous-
that the growing number of homeless ing options for rent in Dar es Salaam
elderly men and women for instance is both in formal and informal housing
testament to the rental or subsidized areas. The rent prices depend on the
(social) housing problem. location, condition and amenities pro-
vided. The following table indicates
To further indicate the states, focus on tenants in Tanzania and the type of ar-
housing ownership at the expense of rangements available.
rental housing development, even the
previous National Human Settlements
81
Type of rental arrange- Tenure inputs or pre-requisites to adequate

ments housing. This paper will discuss finance
and lands since lack of these compo-
Small-scale private house- 42.6
nents have been shown to lead to in-
holds
formal housing.
Private houses rented by 1.5
employer Land
Subsidized government 1.7
housing Land is a critical component and input
Free employer-based 1.2 to housing: without land there is no
housing housing (see Felician Komu in this edi-
Rent-paying in employ- 0.4 tion). The availability of land for hous-
er-based housing ing construction engenders inclusion
particularly if all groups (poor men and
Caretakers living for free 5.0
women) have access to it. Indeed, it is
Owner-occupied 47.6 posited that “access to land remains
one of the most pervasive binding con-
Total 100.0 straints to realizing the right to ade-
quate housing” (UN-Habitat, 2015: 15)
Table 2: Tenants in urban areas The Tanzanian Draft National Housing
Source: National Housing Policy, 2018 Policy (Pg.38) recognizes land as an im-
citing the Housing conditions, household portant component and calls for among
amenities and assets monograph 2015
other things the role of other players
such as the private sector and NGOS in
land supply to engender “fairness for
4. Critical Inputs that citizen access”. The greatest challenge
guarantee access to facing local authorities appears to be
planning, surveying and ensuring the
affordable and adequate
timely allocation of affordable serviced
housing urban land in appropriate locations
(Abwe, 2009). Appropriate locations
The Draft 2018 National Housing Policy translate to land that supports the
defines adequate housing as; housing livelihoods of marginalized groups in
comprising security of tenure; availabil- terms of access to livelihood opportuni-
ity of services, affordability, habitability; ties, transport and basic services. When
accessibility; location and cultural ade- land for housing is in remote locations
quacy (URT, 2018:6). From the above even though it may be affordable, it is
definitions, it is apparent that there are
82
unattractive for low-income residents can use for housing construction and
because transport costs, connectivity to improvement (see Tumsifu Jonas Nnkya
jobs and other economic activities be- in this edition). For example, in 1972
come a challenge (HMS, 2012). Most the government established the Tanza-
of the land in appropriate locations is nia Housing Bank (THB) mandated to
in central locations that are deemed provide loans for housing construction.
high value. The government and other The bank however collapsed in 1995
housing developers often do not use having provided only14,000 mortgag-
this for affordable housing. However es (Komu, 2011). Ever since then there
recent trends show densification proj- has not been an institution for hous-
ects such as the Magomeni high rise af- ing finance and it is only recently that
fordable housing targeted for salaried private banks in Tanzania and an NGO-
civil servants as well as former residents led housing micro-finance institutions
of the cleared houses. (HMFI) are providing loans tailored to
support the incremental process of
Explanations as to why informal settle- housing development done by many
ments and housing grow in Tanzania poor households specifically for hous-
indicate land as an important element ing development (CAHF, 2021:234).
because informal land is available in HMFIs provide loans for land purchase,
negotiable plot sizes thus largely af- housing construction in stages as well
fordable compared to formally planned as housing improvements.
plots. However, some form of planning
is desirable to safeguard public safety Social Housing
and ensure that space is provided for
critical urban services. Densification Social housing is not prominent, but
and use of land in the inner city for necessary to cater for the poorest who
vertical housing development to house cannot afford or have accessing to
the poor or the allocation of planned housing for example the elderly, peo-
plots on the same reduces the spatial ple-living-with HIV-AIDS; women fac-
exclusion of poor urban residents. ing domestic abuse and so on. Social
housing is also a means towards social
Financing protection for individuals who fall into
poverty. In Dar es Salaam, subsidized
Housing finance especially housing housing is provided by institutions such
micro-finance is another critical input as the Social Welfare Department in
to promote access to affordable hous- the Ministry and other charitable or-
ing because it facilitates a portfolio of ganizations and Faith-Based-Organi-
saving schemes that poor households zations. Example of such facilities in-
83
clude MjiMwema for the elderly; SOS in collaboration with the NGOs play a
children villages for safeguarding or- key role in the provision of social hous-
phaned children. However there needs ing. The challenge related to rental and
to be a comprehensive policy to guide social housing development is that it
social or government assisted housing has a negative view among urban res-
so that marginalized communities can idents as it is often related to low-in-
have opportunities to adequate hous- comes thus inability to own a home.
ing. With regards to social housing, it
is a solution that addresses the housing 5. Growing female-headed
needs of marginalized groups and the
households in the city
government including local authorities
have an important role to play. The
The rate of female-headed households
UN-Habitat (2003:6) while acknowl-
is steadily increasing in Dar es Salaam.
edging its ambiguity defines social
In 2012 about 23% of households
“
housing as:
were headed by females (or women).
In 2018, the number has increased to
Housing that is devel-
29% (NBS, 2018). Women’s access to
oped by non−profit making
affordable housing has improved con-
institutions, predominantly
siderably, with many state and non-
for the poor. The institu-
state interventions in housing favoring
tions involved may range
women. For example, the20,000 plot
from educational institu-
delivery project by the Ministry of Lands,
tions, through charities, to
Housing and Human Settlements De-
housing associations and
velopment (MLHHSD) allocated about
cooperatives. However,
32% of the plots to women. Other
sometimes the term is ap-
“
plied to all formal housing
built for poor people, and
sometimes to all kinds of
housing built by non−profit
ongoing formalization and regulariza-
tion projects encourage co-titling—a
process of including in property docu-
ments the female spouse’ name.
organizations
There are several non-governmental
organizations that focus on promoting
The Draft National Housing Policy
women’s access to affordable land and
(2018) highlights the importance of so-
housing, such as Women Advance-
cial housing and calls upon the govern-
ment Trust (WAT)-Human Settlements
ment to provide a framework for the
Trust and its credit facility WAT-Saccos.
delivery of social housing as well as en-
sure that local government authorities
84
The Centre for Community Initiatives 6. Recommendations

(CCI) that enables women tenants to
acquire housing for as little as TZS 4 To promote and ensure access to af-
million (about $2,000), which is lower fordable housing especially for margin-
than average house in Dar es Salaam alized groups, the government cannot
of TZS 40 million (about $23,000). De- abdicate responsibility and leave hous-
spite the various responses, women ing development to non-governmental
still face intersecting challenges espe- actors like private sector developers and
cially in the face of urban poverty due real estate companies who put profit
to multiple roles and identities. Many first. Instead, I argue that the following
female-heads (old and young) tend to actions could be taken to achieve these
have larger families compared to men goals:
(HBS, 2012). They face more liveli-
hood hardships during crisis, such as (i) Lobby for the approval
the COVID-19 pandemic, evictions, of the National Housing Policy
and demolitions. Furthermore, house- (2018) that emphasizes the im-
holds headed by women in Tanzania portance of housing in the coun-
are more likely to be persistently poor try’s social and economic devel-
(Aikeli et al, 2021). Women suffer more opment;
when housing lacks the basic facilities,
such as water, sanitation, and over- (ii) Promote and encourage
all safety and security. Currently, gen- the view of housing as a holistic
der considerations within government and integrated endeavor since
agencies are limited to mainstreaming improvement of housing leads to
gender issues in housing, but they of- improvement of livelihoods;
ten fail to understand how policies af-
fect women’s everyday lives. This can (iii) Creation of platforms or
be achieved through an intersectional forums for a public conversation
approach to gender that, for exam- on housing with key actors to es-
ple, disaggregates data by gender age, tablish networks, build alliances
ability/disability, sexuality, and ethnicity, and garner political will to ad-
since some ethnic groups more than dress the housing agenda;
others discriminate against women.
(iv) By establishing a housing
section in local authorities, the
government in collaboration with
municipalities should encour-
85
age/promote the participation of on those with low or unreliable in-

grassroots actors in housing de- comes, who construct shelter over sev-
velopment since they have inno- eral years. Housing is expensive, and
vative solutions; locations are often poorly suited to ac-
commodate the everyday lives of Dar
(v) Where the government is es Salaam’s residents. As a result, poor
involved in housing development households face social and spatial ex-
it should ensure that it provides clusion, especially those marginalized
policy/regulations and guidelines through intersectional gender identi-
that oblige and support real es- ties. The quality of the physical environ-
tate institutions (e.g. NHC, WHC) ment is poor, often lacking basic ser-
and other private sector housing vices. Furthermore insecurity, poverty,
developers to cater for affordable livelihoods, and income uncertainties
housing (rental or homeowner- often threaten their well-being posing
ship); further hardships.
(vi) Build the political will to

There is need for a more prominent
develop social housing in collab- government role in the provision of
oration with other actors such as housing by visibly creating an enabling
cooperatives, faith-based insti- environment and policy framework
tutions and the local authorities;for housing development, such as tax
and waivers on housing inputs. It should ac-
tively work with local authorities, grass-
(vii) Continue to support but roots actors, and non-government ac-
also guide and regulate commu- tors. Government needs to commit to
nity-led housing and informal set- ensuring that public agencies like the
tlements upgrading programs. NHC develop or provide opportunities
for affordable housing. A government
level framework or institution to guide
7. Conclusion and coordinate these actions is import-
ant.
With over 90% of housing in Dar es
Salaam being self-built, it is no wonder While several responses have been
that some of this housing is unregulat- implemented to address affordability,
ed and constructed in precarious loca- adequacy, and marginalization, more
tions. Self-built housing is promoted needs to be done to ensure that all
through explicit and implicit pressure groups of urban residents have access
to housing options that fit the realities
86
of their housing and livelihoods. For ex-

ample, the noble intentions of CCI to
address displaced tenants in the Kuras-
ini demolition exercise and subsequent
resettlement intervention still focused
on enabling the renters to acquire
homeownership, showing limited con-
sideration for the value of rental mar-
kets to provide for people who struggle
to acquire mortgages. Yet, there is seg-
ment of population, the poorest, who
cannot afford to build or buy a house,
and whose only option is to rent. The
current Draft Policy (2018) promotes
rental housing more so than the pre-
vious National Human Settlements
Development Policy (2009). It also rec-
ognizes that tax incentives, regulatory
reviews, and legislative reviews are key
to promoting rental housing. The Draft
Housing Policy, therefore, calls for the
government to create an enabling en-
vironment and establish an appropriate
regulatory framework for the delivery
of good quality affordable rental hous-
ing. But government should go further
by acknowledging that some subsidy
or social protection mechanisms such
as voluntary contribution schemes that
can later cushion poor people’s likeli-
hood of falling into poverty especially
in times of crisis for example loss of in-
comes among informal workers.
87
8. References Chant, Sylvia (2013). Cities through

a “gender lens”: a golden “urban
Abwe F. G (2009). Access to land for age” for women in the global South?
housing by the urban poor in Tanza- SAGE Publications, 2013. Environment
nia: A case of 20,000 plots project in and Urbanization, Vol. 25, No. 1, April
Dar es Salaam city; Paper presented 2013, pp. 9-29.
at the International Scientific Confer-
ence of Commonwealth Association of Kironde, J. M. L. (1995). The Evolu-
Surveying and Land Economy on Eq- tion of the Land Use Structure of Dar
uitable Access to Land in Africa, June es Salaam 1890-1990: A Study in the
29th-30th, 2009 at White Sands Hotel Effects of Land Policy. Ph.D. Thesis, Uni-
in Dar es Salaam City, Tanzania. www. versity of Nairobi, Kenya.
casle.co.uk.
Kombe, W (2017). Institutional Re-
Aikeli J., Garcés- Urzainqui D. Mda- forms for Urban Land Use Planning
dila K. (2021). Understanding poverty and Management in Sub-Saharan Afri-
dynamics and vulnerability in Tanzania: ca: Evidences, Gaps and Prospects, pro-
2012– 2018, Review of Development fessorial inaugural lecture by Professor
Economics, John Wiley and Sons Ltd, Wilbard Kombe at Ardhi University, Dar
DOI: 10.1111/rode.12829. es Salaam.
Bank of Tanzania (2012). The Tan- Komu F. (2011). Housing Decay and
zania Housing Market Study, Bank of Maintenance: The Case of Public Hous-
Tanzania (BOT), https://www.auhf. ing in Tanzania, PhD Thesis, Royal Insti-
co.za/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/ tute of Technology (KTH), Stockholm,
Day-1am_Mutero_1115_Presenta- Sweden 2011, ISBN 978-91-978692-
tion_CPCS_Tanzania_Housing-Mar- 2-5.
ket_2012-10-03-JM.pdf.
Lugalla, J. (1995). Crisis, urbanization,
Brennan, J.R. and Burton, A. (eds) and urban poverty in Tanzania: A study
(2007). ‘The Emerging Metropolis: A of urban poverty and survival politics,
history of Dar es Salaam, circa 1862- p. 248.
2000’, in Dar es Salaam: histories from
an emerging African metropolis. Dar es National Bureau of Statistics Tan-
Salaam: Nairobi: Mkuki na Nyota Pub- zania (2019). The National Household
lishers; British Institute in Eastern Afri- Budget Survey 2018/19, https://www.
ca, pp. 13–75. nbs.go.tz/index.php/en/census-surveys/
poverty-indicators-statistics/house-
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hold-budget-survey-hbs/653-house- and Figures on Human Settlements,

hold-budget-survey-2017-18-tanzania- 2012 Tanzania Mainland-June 2014.
mainland-final-report
United Republic of Tanzania (2015).
Priscila Izar P. and Limbumba T. Housing Condition, Household Ameni-
M. (2021). A matter of value: assess- ties and Assets Monograph, 2012 Pop-
ing the scope and effects of Tanza- ulation and Housing Census, IV, 2015,
nia’s national housing corporation’s National Bureau of Statistics.
development strategy on Dar es Sa-
laam’s urban neighborhoods, Inter- United Republic of Tanzania (2018).
national Journal of Urban Sciences, The Draft National Housing Policy, Min-
Vol. 25 Issue sup1, 195-217, DOI: istry of Lands, Housing and Human Set-
10.1080/12265934.2020.1810105. tlements Development, Tanzania (Not
yet approved by parliament).
UN-Habitat (2003). The Challenge of
Slums Global Report on Human Settle- United Republic of Tanzania (2020).
ments, Earthscan Publications Ltd Lon- The National Human Settlements Poli-
don and Sterling, VA. cy, Ministry of Lands and Human Settle-
ments, Government Printers, Tanzania,
UN-Habitat (2010). Citywide Action http://www.tzonline.org/pdf/national-
Plan for Upgrading Unplanned and Un- humansettlements.pdf.
serviced Settlement in Dar es Salaam,
Nairobi. World Bank (2020). Tanzania Main-
land Poverty Assessment: Part 1 - Path
UN-Habitat (2012). Enabling Shelter to Poverty Reduction and Pro-Poor
Strategies: Design and Implementa- Growth. World Bank, Washington, DC.
tion Guide for Policymakers Quick Pol-
icy Guide Series - Volume 2United Na- Zhang J, Chen S. S., Gao Q., Shen
tions Human Settlements Programme Q., Kimirei I.A., and Mapunda D. W.
(UN-HABITAT), Nairobi. (2020). Morphological Characteristics
of Informal Settlements and Strate-
UN-Habitat (2015). Housing at the gic Suggestions for Urban Sustainable
centre of the New Urban Agenda, Po- Development in Tanzania: Dar es Sa-
sition Paper, October 2015, United Na- laam, Mwanza, and Kigoma, Sustain-
tions Human Settlements Programme. ability 2020, 12, 3807; doi:10.3390/
su12093807.
United Republic of Tanzania (2014).
United Republic of Tanzania. Basic Facts
89
5
A multi-sector
approach to
housing in urban
Tanzania
By Tim Ndezi
Photo: Stella Stephen
90
A multi-sector approach to housing in urban Tanzania
1. Introduction erment of communities, especially the

urban poor, to acquire affordable hous-
The right to housing is recognized by ing. In all these respects, interventions
many national constitutions, and the in the housing sector would need to
lack of adequate housing can have ad- go beyond single sector interventions.
verse consequences for an individual A multi-sector approach to housing
or a family. Access to adequate, safe, would integrate water and sanitation,
and affordable housing and basic ser- health, and transport. However, achiev-
vices—as enshrined in UN Sustainable ing this is difficult because each sector
Development Goal 11—is essential for is designed to function independently.
social welfare. The Sustainable Devel- So, changes are needed to both poli-
opment Goals (SDGs) aim at universal cies and the institutional framework.
access to housing, safe drinking wa- Finally, resources are needed in typical-
ter, and sanitation facilities, but these ly underfunded sectors to enable col-
are far from being achieved. Improved laborative planning, implementation,
access to basic amenities seems to be and operation and maintenance. In-
concentrated in higher income neigh- deed, this type of collaboration can be
borhoods, or planned settlements, a successful pathway in implementing
while poor households, or informal a strategy for housing provision.
settlements, are considered as lacking
services. Housing inequality is often the
result of market forces, discrimination, 2. Housing the urban
and segregation (Sen, 2004). In devel- poor in Tanzania
oping countries, a number of factors,
including rural-urban migration, in- Dar es Salaam is the major business
creasing urban poverty and inequality, center in Tanzania, with an estimated
insecure tenure, and not least global- population of 5.3 million people. About
ization (Pryce et al, 2009; Yinger, 1998; 70 percent of the population lives in in-
Huang Y. and L. Jiang. 2009) contrib- formal settlements. Rapid growth has
ute to housing inequality. fueled the demand for housing and
other infrastructure, meaning the cur-
Addressing housing inequality in Tan- rent housing supply does not meet the
zania is a challenging endeavor that re- demand. The majority of housing in Dar
quires (i) changes in social perceptions es Salaam is self-built with low income
to consider the housing needs of the associated with a lack of capacity (skills,
urban poor; (ii) policies to address in- equipment, and capital) to implement
equalities; and (iii) economic empow- better housing (see Tatu M. Limbum-
91
ba in this edition). Self-built houses are 3. Housing, public services

often unfinished in absence of finan- and infrastructure
cial resources. Others who could not
build their own houses end up in rental Water
housing, often in informal settlements.
Subsequently, the demand for housing The Dar es Salaam Water and Sani-
has been on the rise for some years. tation Authority (DAWASA), a public
The 2018 draft Housing Policy indicates utility, largely draws its water from the
that there was a deficit of about 1.2 Ruvu River, located about 80 kilometers
million housing units in Tanzania, with from the city center, and serves an es-
Dar es Salaam accounting for over a timated 76 percent of the population
third of this deficit. Moreover, addition- through household water connections
al urban housing needs by 2025 are es- and public water kiosks connected to
timated to be nearly 1.9 million units. the network (Hoffman, 2020). In some
settlements lacking utility provision,
Both the public and private sectors are municipal councils and NGOs have
involved in the supply of housing. While established independent borehole
public authorities produce less, the pri- schemes managed by local communi-
vate sector accounts for a large propor- ties. Sanitation provisions in the city is
tion of the total units built each year. challenging. With less than 12 percent
About 90 percent of the housing stock of the population connected to under-
has been self-built by individuals, often ground sewers, most residents rely on
in areas without adequate infrastruc- pit latrines and septic tanks (Hoffman,
ture services. A substantial number of 2020). This picture clearly demonstrates
Tanzania’s houses are built by informal the acute shortage of water and sani-
developers, in unplanned settlements tation services, particularly in informal
70 percent of the urban population in settlements where most of the urban
Tanzania cities live in densely populated poor reside (Hoffman, 2020).
informal settlements.
Solid waste management
Dar es Salaam has grown in population

and land area, but there have been
minimal efforts to establish sustainable
solid waste management. Even though
there is a waste management depart-
ment at each Dar es Salaam municipal
92
council which is responsible for dealing treating waste in urban areas;

with solid waste, waste management in
informal settlements is inadequate (Lis- • Limited collection points, trans-
ki et al, 2013). Some efforts have been fer stations, and sanitary landfills;
made to improve solid waste manage-
ment by engaging community-based • Shortage of reliable vehicles for
organizations, although such services waste collection, waste haulage,
are now being contracted to the private and dumping of solid and liquid
sector who have the ability to trans- waste; and
port the waste to the dumping site.
The assessment studies undertaken by • Inability of residents to meet re-
Kaseva and Mbuligwe in 2005 indicat- fuse collection costs.
ed that current solid waste generation
in the city was estimated to be 2.425 Transportation
tons per day. The 2005 study also not-
ed that out of this total only 231 tons Current public transport options in Dar
of waste generated is daily collected by es Salaam are provided by mini buses
municipalities and 592 tons of waste is (daladala), motorized rickshaws (bajaj),
collected by the private contractors. It motorcycle taxis (bodaboda), commut-
was further estimated that 134 tons of er trains, and the Kigamboni ferry con-
waste produced daily is recycled (Kase- necting Kigamboni and the City Center.
va and Mbuligwe, 2005). Daladalas hold about 40 passengers
each, and there are approximately
Studies on solid waste management 5,200 privately owned daladala in the
conducted by the Center for Commu- city (Mortan, et al, 2020). Bodabodas
nity Initiatives (CCI) have realized the and bajajis provide on demand trans-
following challenges with solid waste portation within the city. Two commut-
management in informal settlements er trains operate the morning and eve-
(CCI, 2021): ning peak hours, carrying about 5,000
passengers per day. Private vehicles are
• Lack of appropriate waste man- also used on public roads by those who
agement methods for informal can afford to own and maintain them.
settlements between the com-
munity management approaches Access to affordable transport is critical
and the private sector operation; for the urban poor, as it offers a way
out of economic, social, and physical
• Limited awareness of meth- isolation. However, low-income com-
ods of collecting, disposing, and munities are frequently located on the
93
outskirts of cities with poor roads ac- engaged in urban services. The purpose
cess. Many of these roads are not ac- of this is to ensure that these services
cessible by large busses, but may be are available to all settlements. There
accessible to daladalas, bodabodas, are only a few examples of multi-sec-
and bajajis (Mortan et al, 2020). In- tor approaches to housing and infra-
deed, the mobility of the poor is con- structure development in Tanzania. A
strained by a poor road system, lack of multi-sector approach would provide
income, lack of transport options and the necessary framework to ensure
lack of funds to buy and maintain their that the Ministry of Lands, Housing and
own car. To address these challenges, Human Settlement works with other
the Government of Tanzania has initi- ministries and departments to deliver
ated Bus Rapid Transport (BRT). Cur- proper public services. The Ministry of
rently, the BRT has routes from the city Lands should collaborate with the Lo-
center to Mbezi (in the northeast) via cal Government Authorities (LGAs) to
Kimara (central-to-northwest). It also ensure that appropriate and affordable
offers routes through the central, ma- lands are accessible to all. This could be
ture, mixed formal and informal neigh- achieved by ensuring that plots are pro-
borhoods of the city, via a route from vided with secure tenure. A multi-sec-
the CBD to Magomeni and Morocco. tor approach for housing should also
A new route is planned from the city embed considerations of poverty alle-
center to Mbagala in the southeast viation, environmental protection, and
through Magomeni. Despite of these gender equality.
initiatives still many people who have
constructed their houses in the informal
settlements face challenges of mobility 5. Strategies to apply
to reach their homes and businesses. multi-sector approaches: an
assessment of the Chamazi
Housing Project
4. A multi-sector
approach to housing The Chamazi Community Based Hous-
ing Scheme (CCBHS) was initiated in
Addressing housing inequality and ad- 2008 with the overall aim of providing
equate housing will require that the affordable housing for communities in
housing sector engages these oth- the Kurasisni area of Dar es Salaam,
er sectors. Sectors that should be in- whose settlements were demolished
cluded are water (DAWASA), health, as part of the Tanzanian Government
transportation (including TANROADS), port expansion project. The govern-
energy (TANESCO), and NGOs actively
94
ment had a 10-year plan to expand TANESCO provided electricity connec-

the Dar es Salaam port, which involved tion. Among its goals, the scheme in-
evicting people and destroying homes tended to demonstrate effective col-
from surrounding informal settlements laboration and partnership between
in Kurasini. Before their eviction, com- communities, the private sector, NGOs,
munity members formed a community and the government in planning, de-
association, called Tanzania Federation signing, and implementation of af-
of the Urban Poor (TFUP), to find a per- fordable housing schemes. The project
manent solution to provide housing to also intended to support construction
people facing eviction challenges in in- of housing units on land purchased by
formal settlements. This community as- Federation communities in Chamazi.
sociation (“Federation”) started a com- The members of the Federation who
munity savings and loans scheme and purchased the land later formed the
set in motion the search for a location Muungano Housing Cooperatives
to resettle their community. Over time, which is an institutional organ for own-
the association saved enough money ership and management of their land.
to buy a plot of land at Chamazi Ward, Currently, 25 houses are occupied and
located in Temeke municipality. Feder- about 70 houses are at various stag-
ation members include both owners es under construction. The scheme is
(20 percent) and tenants (80 percent). managed by the Muungano Housing
The government is only required by law Cooperatives (MHC) board (CCI, 2014).
to compensate structure owners and
landlords, so many families affected by Key collaborative activities implement-
the eviction had not been compensated at Chamazi include:
ed.
• surveying land (Temeke Mu-
The main actors who initially were in- nicipality and Ministry of Lands,
volved in the CCBHS were: Federation Housing, and Human Settlement
of the urban poor members who later Development (MLHHSD);
formed Muungano Housing Coopera-
tive, Temeke Municipality, the Ministry • developing a land master plan-
of Lands, CCI, Slum Dwellers Interna- ning and housing design (local ar-
tional (SDI), and Homeless Internation- chitects and MLHHSD);
al. Agencies such as DAWASA, TANES-
CO and TANROADS were not present • training and orientation on af-
during the initial stage. But as people fordable housing construction
continued to relocate to the new area, (Tanzania Urban Poor Federation,
95
and technicians); project include the following:
• site preparation and mobiliza- • The majority of informal settlers

tion of materials; are tenants, which means they of-
ten not compensated during relo-
• building housing units; cations. Hence, future relocation
projects should involve tenants
• building the capacity of the in relocation planning and be re-
Muungano Housing Cooperative quired to compensate tenants.
to manage the construction pro-
cesses; and • There is a need to consider af-
fordable rental housing schemes
• improving loan repayment ca- as an alternative to housing own-
pacity. ership.
Key lessons that were leant out of this • Collaboration among actors in
Photo: Stella Stephen
96
the housing sector enabled the • Building collaboration requires

reduction of minimum plot siz- a memorandum of understand-
es from 400 to 125 square me- ing with rules, roles and respon-
ters, so that more housing units sibilities to coordinate all actors.
could be built by the Muungano
Housing Cooperative. This was 6. Conclusion
a request by the Federation and
Muungano Housing Cooperative Addressing housing inequalities in Dar-
to the Ministry of Housing and es-Salaam is a critical challenge. The
Lands. multi-sector approach is proposed here
to address this gap. Many urban poor
• Incremental housing construc- people reside in informal settlements,
tion—phased building over ex- where infrastructure is also poor, lead-
tended timeframes—is a good ing to inadequate housing. In most
way to allow those with low in- of the informal settlements, there is a
comes to build houses. lack of services—including water and
sanitation, solid waste management,
• Use a cooperative approach and transportation. Poor accessibility
which provides an opportunity to of roads in informal settlements leads
collectively own land and jointly to the urban poor spending more time
implement the housing project. travelling for work. Addressing housing
The housing cooperative pools inequality will require that the housing
resources which makes housing sector engages with other sectors. Fail-
more affordable. ure to do so has contributed to inad-
equate and unequal urban housing in
• Livelihoods considerations af- Tanzania.
fect the sustainability of the com-
munity, which means that com- However, drawn from infrastructure
munity economic development is projects where a multi-sector approach
crucial for empowerment. was used, it stands to reason that the
approach is viable for addressing hous-
• However, building a strong col- ing inequality. There are also a num-
laboration across agencies is not ber of critical issues for consideration.
easy. It requires appropriate insti- These include:
tutional frameworks; policies and
trust which allows integration • appropriate institutional frame-
and capacity building of actors to works;
play their role.
97
• policies which could allow for-

mal integration of sectors;
• capacity building of actors to

play their role in an integrated
manner; and
• domestic resources mobiliza-

tion, which could allow partners
and actors to continue working
together during the operation of
the schemes.
Therefore, all actors mentioned includ-

ing the Ministry of Lands and Housing,
the municipality, the housing coopera-
tive, utilities, and NGOs need to criti-
cally observe and examine these factors
for enhancing sustainable multi-sector
approach for addressing inequalities
in housing. There is a need for formal
integration of sectors and actors that
influence housing outcomes in the de-
sign, implementation, and operation
housing projects. This should be fol-
lowed by capacity building of all actors
mentioned above to build new work
routines and balance their powers in
their relationships through Memoran-
da of Understandings (MOUs). Finally,
trust and resource mobilization from all
actors should be established to ensure
sustainability is achieved and monitor-
ing of the initiatives is attained.
98
7. References Nyyssölä, Milla and Kelsall, Tim

and Ndezi, Tim. 2021. Dar es Salaam:
CCI. 2014. Mini-Evaluation for Chamazi City Scoping Study. African Cities Re-
Community Based Housing Scheme. search Consortium [ACRC] https://
Accessed 8/4/2022: https://letsgoto- www.african-cities.org/wp-content/up-
chamazi.files.wordpress.com/2014/04/ loads/2021/12/ACRC_Dar-es-Salaam_
mid-review_final.pdf City-Scoping-Study.pdf
Huang Y. and L. Jiang. 2009. Housing Pryce, Gwilym, and Nigel Sprig-
ings. 2009. “Outlook for UK Housing
Inequality in Transitional Beijing. Inter-
national Journal of Urban and Regional and the Implications for Policy: Are
Research. 33(4): 936-956 We Reaping What We Have Sown?”
International Journal of Housing Mar-
Kaseva, M. E. and Mbuligwe, S. E. kets and Analysis 2(2):145–66. doi:
2005. Appraisal of solid waste collec- 10.1108/17538270910963081.
tion following private sector involve-
ment in Dar es Salaam city, Tanzania. Sen, Amartya (2004). “From Income
UCLAS Dar es Salaam. Inequality to Economic Inequality,” in
C. Michael Henry (ed.) Race, Poverty,
Kombe, W. Jackson. 1995. Formal and Domestic Policy, pp. 59–82, New
and Informal Land Management in Haven and London: Yale University
Tanzania: The Case of Dar-Es-Salaam Press.
City. SPRING Center.
Yhdego, M. 1999. Urban Solid Waste
Ministry of Land, Housing and Hu- Management in Tanzania Issues, Con-
man Settlements Development. cepts and Challenges. Environment
National Housing Policy, Draft Version, Resources Consultancy. Dar es Salaam,
June 2018. Tanzania.
Morten, Melanie, Gharad Bryan, Bi- Yinger, John. 1998. “Evidence on

lal Siddiqi, and Clare Balboni. 2020. Discrimination in Consumer Markets.”
Evaluating the Impacts of the Dar Journal of Economic Perspectives
Es Salaam Bus Rapid Transit System. 12(2):23–40. doi: 10.1257/jep.12.2.23.
2020th ed. International Initiative for
Impact Evaluation (3ie). doi: 10.23846/
DPW1IE110.
99
6
Financing
affordable and
adequate housing
in Tanzania
By Tumsifu Jonas Nnkya
100
1. Introduction cess to and the cost of housing finance.

It is about the price of housing which
Financing affordable and adequate reflects the costs of production and a
housing in Tanzania is a daunting task function of supply and demand in the
given the low-income level of most housing market.
households; increasingly high demand
for affordable and adequate housing This paper provides an account of hous-
as rapid urbanization takes place; and ing finance in Tanzania in a changing
ever rising construction costs leading political and economic context during
to high housing cost. Housing financ- the six decades after independence in
ing as perceived in this paper covers December 1961. Within the changing
more than mortgage finance and hous- context, the government persistently
ing micro-finance. A wider perception pursued policies for financing afford-
of housing finance to include finance able and adequate housing; and pro-
for physical and social infrastructure as moted home ownership. Government
well as access to land is adopted so as efforts in the last decade have put in
to capture initiatives towards financing place an enabling regulatory framework
affordable and adequate housing in the and a market-based mortgage system,
Tanzanian context. This wider concep- including a mortgage liquidity facility
tion of housing finance is also in line to grow a mortgage market, but so far,
with perceiving housing as being more the prevailing market interest rates im-
than a ‘ready-made’ shelter. It includes pede most households to afford hous-
physical and social infrastructure to ening mortgage. However, considering
hance livability and support livelihood affordability as a function of housing
activities in the housing areas. As con- price and financing (mortgage) cost,
ceived by the United Nations Human shortage of affordable housing units is
Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) a real present challenge to the growth
in the Habitat Agenda (UNCHS, 1996), of the mortgage market.
housing adequacy takes into account
affordability1.However, affordability in Self-financing and incremental con-
relation to financing is more than ac- struction dominates housing produc-
1
See the Habitat Agenda, 1996, as quoted also by the National Human Settlements Devel-
opment Policy, 2000, “Adequate shelter, means more than a roof over ones head, it means
adequate privacy, adequate space, physical accessibility, adequate security of tenure, structural
stability and durability, adequate lighting, heating and ventilation, adequate basic infrastruc-
ture such as water, sanitation and waste management facilities, suitable environmental quality
and health related factors and adequate and accessible location with regard to work and basic
facilities, all of which should be available at an affordable cost” (UNCHS, 1996)
101
tion in urban Tanzania in the formal 2005; 2008). The Government estab-
and informal areas where some of the lished National Housing Corporation
houses are multi-family units that pro- through the National Housing Corpo-
vide affordable rental rooms to low-in- ration Act (1962) shortly after indepen-
come households. Government efforts dence as the main provider of urban
to put in place a housing microfinance housing. Financed by the Government,
system apparently appropriate for the the corporation implemented housing
incremental self-built housing have schemes for rental and outright sale
not progressed as expected. If the Sus- or under the tenant-purchase (rent-to-
tainable Development Goal 11 is to be buy) arrangement on land it acquired,
achieved, the government in collab- and serviced for housing development3.
oration with the other housing stake- During this first decade after indepen-
holders needs to do more towards fi- dence, mortgage finance was provided
nancing affordable housing2.This paper by the First Permanent Building Society
provides some perspectives on what (FPBS) registered in Northern Rhodesia
should be done. (i.e. Zambia since 1964), which also op-
erated in other East African countries.
The East African branches of FPBS were
2. The provider approach restructured in 1963 to form the First
(1961 – 1971) Permanent East Africa (FPEA) Ltd., with
the shareholders being the East African
Housing financing after Tanzania’s in- countries of Kenya, Uganda, and Tanza-
dependence in 1961 focused on social nia, and the Commonwealth Develop-
housing, eradication of slums and in- ment Corporation (CDC). In 1968, the
formal settlements, providing for civil Government of Tanzania and the CDC
and households with regular and sta- took over the business of FPEA Ltd. and
ble income who normally may benefit formed a new mortgage finance com-
from a mortgage system (UN-Habitat pany—the Permanent Housing Finance
2
By 2030, the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 11 require the government to ensure ac-
cess for all to adequate, safe and affordable housing and basic services, and upgrade slums.
Access to credit finance at affordable interest rates is key to enabling households and other
stakeholders contribute to achieving SDG 11.
3
The National Housing Corporation (NHC) was re-established by the National housing Corpo-
ration Act, 1990, specifying its new functions as stipulated in part II Section 4 (1) of the Act:
“to provide or facilitate the provision of houses and other buildings for use by members of
the public for residential, business, industrial or other purposes.” (URT, 1990:21). Unlike in the
initial NHC Act, 1962, housing financing does not explicitly appear. However, in line with its
Strategic Plan 2010–2014, the corporation has been serving as a master developer of land for
supplied to other real estate developers (NHC, 2010).
102
Financing affordable and adequate housing in Tanzania
Company (PHFC) Ltd., which was later ings Acquisition Act 1971, which em-
replaced by the Tanzania Housing Bank powered the president to acquire such
(THB). Besides directly funding housing buildings, was amended in 1985 to
construction by NHC, in 1963 the gov- remove the provision that empowered
ernment established a Revolving Hous- the president to acquire buildings and
ing Loan Fund (RHLF) for civil servants 20 years later, in 1991, it was repealed
to finance renovation of their homes. (URT, 1985, 1991). In the intervening
As it will be seen later, the Fund was period, most likely large-scale private
put under the management of THB but sector investments in housing and
hived out when the bank started expe- real estate was stifled, contributing to
riencing problems. The Fund is current- housing shortages, notably for middle-
ly managed by the Ministry of Lands, and high-income households. Nation-
Housing and Human Settlements De- alization of private banks might have
velopment (MLHHSD). contributed to reduced availability of
credit finance as THB became the sole
housing mortgage lender as presented
3. The enabling approach in the next section.
(1972 – 1985)
3.1 Housing credit availabili-
Building on the experiences of the ty under the state-controlled
1960s, housing financing during the mortgage system
1970s and the first half of the 1980s
shifted to an enabling approach ori- The Tanzania Housing Bank (THB) was
ented toward state facilitation and established by the Act of Parliament
targeted self-help. This was the period No. 34 of 1972 and commenced hous-
immediately after adoption of the Aru- ing finance operations in 1973. The
sha Declaration (1967), the blueprint main objectives of THB were: mobi-
for socialist transformation which en- lization of local savings and external
tailed, inter alia, nationalization of the resources for housing development;
major means of production, including promoting housing development by
privately owned banks and financial making technical and financial services
institutions. It also involved national- for owner-occupied housing available;
ization of buildings worth Sh. 100,000 promote the use of local building ma-
(equivalent to US $ 20,000) or more terials to reduce building costs; admin-
unoccupied by the owners4. The Build- ister any special funds placed at the
In 1971, when the Building Acquisition Act was enacted, 1 US $ was equivalent to approxi-
4
mately 5 Shillings.
103
disposal of the bank; and financing Settlements Development. As of June

commercial and industrial buildings for 2014, the Fund had benefited 1,516
carrying out activities related to hous- civil servants. Housing loans ranged
ing. Being a government-owned bank, between Sh. 3 million to 20 million,
shareholders were the Government with an average value of Sh. 5 million;
(46.5 percent share), the National In- available at an interest rate of 3 per-
surance Corporation (NIC, 30.2 percent per annum to be repaid before
cent share), and the National Provident the recipient retired from public service
Fund (NPF, 23.3 percent share). THB (URT, 2013). The small size of the loans
operated two specialized funds: the was partly due to inadequate funds
Special Forces Fund, and the Workers available from the Government and
and Farmers Housing Development low wages for civil servants. The 2010
Fund (WFHDF). It issued two types of Election Manifesto of the ruling Chama
mortgage loans—commercial loans at Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) party provided
9 percent interest rate; and soft loans for transformation of the RHLF to a
at 6 percent interest rate per annum for public servants housing loan guarantee
up to 25 years to help meet the needs scheme (URT, 2010), but that promise
of low-income households. was not implemented.
The WFHDF was established to provide 3.2 Financing new ser-

low interest mortgage loans to work- viced land for housing and in-
ers and farmers in rural and urban formal settlements upgrading
areas, the source of funds being two
percent levy charged on the wage bill As a way of benefiting low- and mid-
of employers with more than 10 em- dle-income households with limited
ployees. By 1991, THB had financed financial resources, in 1972 the Gov-
about 36,000 housing units, but it ernment adopted the sites and services
was facing serious default problems and informal settlement upgrading ap-
that contributed to its official collapse proach. It was put in place to finance
in 1995 when it was declared bank- fully serviced new housing plots with
rupt and liquidated by the Govern- roads and storm water drainage, elec-
ment (World Bank, 1974; UN-Habitat, tricity, water, schools, dispensaries and
2002). Through Staff Circular No. 8 of health centers and markets. The fully
1992 the Revolving Housing Loan Fund serviced sites were allocated to low-in-
(RHLF) for civil servants was hived out come earners, defined as those earning
of THB and from 1993 continued to not more than Sh. 1,000 (equivalent to
operate under the management of the US $ 140) monthly but not less than Sh.
Ministry of Lands, Housing and Human
104
750 (equivalent to US $ 105) monthly do property developers who have since

at the time (World Bank, 1974)5. The redeveloped the bought properties for
serviced plots sites, whose location residential or commercial use or both
were strategically selected to ensure in settlements such as Manzese where
proximity to the upgraded settlements some properties along the main (Moro-
were also allocated to households dis- goro) road have and increasingly being
placed from the upgraded informal redeveloped.
settlements, where space was need-
ed for constructing new infrastructure Infrastructure upgrading attracted in-
and community facilities. Housing im- vestments and prompted land use in-
provement and construction loans at tensification, creating more residential
an annual interest rate of 6 percent and commercial space, making the set-
per annum were made available by the tlements more socially and economical-
Tanzania Housing Bank. The availabil- ly vibrant for the benefit of the inhab-
ity of infrastructure in such areas was itants, most of whom are low-income
expected to stimulate and mobilize households6. Other informal settlement
more housing investments, leading to upgrading projects, aside from those
increased quantity and improved qual- implemented in the 1970s and 1980s
ity of affordable housing. In a way, the include the Hanna Nassif communi-
settlement upgrading schemes directly ty-based settlement upgrading project,
benefited low-income households, but which was implemented in the 1990s
they also benefitted landlords in the to demonstrate a multi-stakeholder
upgraded settlements, who often used partnership in financing infrastructure
improved infrastructure and services to in informal settlements. Similar collab-
increase rents. Landlords also benefit- orative infrastructure financing projects
ed from the increased land value and were implemented in Dar es Salaam
a lack of enforcement of development from 2003 to 2010, during which peri-
control, which allowed some of them to od infrastructure in 31 informal settle-
create more rental space in the upgrad- ments were upgraded during phase one
ed settlements. Some of them, attract- and two of the Community Infrastruc-
ed by the enhanced land and property ture Upgrading Project (CIUP). Financ-
prices, sold their properties to well-to- ing was credit from the World Bank (90
5
In May 1974, when the appraisal of the first phase Sites and Services Project was carried by
the World Bank, 1 US $ was equivalent Sh. 7.14
6
Evaluation of the Sites and Services Schemes in Tanzania shows that the low income benefi-
ciaries were displaced by the middle and high-income households. This happened, partly due
to a lack of corresponding schemes to cater for the housing needs of middle- and high-in-
come earners, while there was also no housing for sale or rental to them (Nnkya, T. 1981).
105
percent), government contribution (5 Housing financing was addressed un-

percent) and beneficiary communities’ der the Second Generation Financial
contribution (5 percent) (URT, 2005). Sector Reform Program (SGFSRP). As
Similar housing infrastructure improve- reform of the banking and financial
ment in formal and informal initiative institutions sector had already taken
is being implemented under the Dar place in the First Generation Finan-
es Salaam Metropolitan Programme cial Sector Reform Program (FGFSRP),
(DMDP) with funding borrowed by the the focus of (SGFSRP) was to create a
Government from the World Bank. private mortgage market and housing
microfinance. The shift towards free
market principles has resulted in in-
4. The neo-liberal turn vestment opportunities and a buoyant
(1986 - 2022) property market. It profoundly altered,
inter alia, the way interest in land is
From 1986 the second phase gov- valued and taken into consideration in
ernment under President Ally Hassan any transaction affecting that interest
Mwinyi, and subsequent governments, as presented in the next section. Sub-
notably the third and fourth phase gov- sequent to the shift in the land policy,
ernments under Presidents Benjamin financing and delivery of land for hous-
Mkapa and Jakaya Kikwete respective- ing changed from the hitherto govern-
ly implemented far reaching economic ment allocation at almost no charge,
reforms and political transformations to selling, so that at least land acqui-
towards market economy and political sition and preparation cost could be
pluralism to replace the hitherto social- recovered. In terms of financing access
ist command economy under one-par- to land for housing, the cost hitherto
ty political system (Maliyamkono and borne by the government, the shift to
Bagwacha, 1990; Msambichaka et the market principles translated to gov-
al., 2015; Mkapa, 2019). Economic ernment passing over access to hous-
reforms started in the first half of the ing land costs to developers, including
1980s with the Structural Adjustment low income households.
Programs (SAP) introduced by the Inter-
national Monetary Fund and the World 4.1 Financing access to un-serviced
Bank. Ultimately, financial liberaliza- land for housing
tion, deregulation, and privatization
led to rapid capital accumulation and In 1995, the Government endorsed the
rent-seeking activities. Some of the pol- first ever comprehensive National Land
icies implemented from 1986 onward Policy. The policy provides a framework
included downsizing the government. for guiding land tenure, administration,
106
and management in the broader mar- the reviewed Mortgage Regulations

ket economy. Among other things, the (URT, 2015)
land policy promotes fundamental prin-
ciples: “to ensure rights of long-stand- Recognizing that housing development
ing occupation or use of land are clari- primarily depends on access to land,
fied and secured by the law; ... to take from 2002 to 2005 the Ministry of Fi-
into account that an interest in land has nance loaned the Ministry of Lands,
value and that value is taken into con- Housing, and Human Settlements De-
sideration in any transaction affecting velopment (MLHSSD) Sh. 8.9 billion to
that interest” (URT, 1995; 1999, p. 20). finance land acquisition, planning and
surveying of the land for housing in Dar
The Land Act No. 4 (Cap. 113) was en- es Salaam under the 20,000 plots proj-
acted by the Parliament in 1999 to pro- ect (see Felician Komu in this edition).
vide legal instruments for implementing The funds were thus used also to com-
the land policy. Sub-Part 2 of the Act pensate land holders whose land was
provides for regularization of interests acquired by the government for the
in land to ensure the landholding rights project. Unlike the new serviced sites
of the occupiers are recognized and schemes implemented in the 1970s
secured. Part 10 provides for mortgag- and allocated by the government to
es, including foreclosure procedures. the targeted low-income households
Through the Mortgage Financing (Spe- as presented earlier, the 20,000 plots
cial Provisions) Act (2008), various sec- project did not target a particular
tions of the Land Act, Cap 113 were group; and plots were sold un-serviced
either repealed or amended to make to would be developers. It was most
the mortgage market work and there- likely assumed that servicing would
fore facilitate housing financing. Also make the plots more expensive and
amended for that purpose are the Land low-income households would afford
Registration Act, Cap. 334 and the Civil to buy the high-density plots (450–600
Procedure Act, Cap. 33, specifically to, square meters). Besides expenses of
among other things, enhance efficient buying the un-serviced plot, the fact
registration and discharge of mortgag- that location of the new un-serviced
es (URT, 2008). The Mortgage Financ- plots happened to be far away from
ing (Special Provisions) Act did put in employment areas would make them
place a level ground for both lenders expensive for low income households
and borrowers so that the rights of to own or rent a house in the new sites.
both would be protected in the law Almost two decades later, housing de-
(URT, 2008). As outlined below, hous- velopment and occupation of finished
ing financing has also benefited from houses has been slow due to lack of,
107
and or inadequate basic infrastructure priate levels of deposits. This, in turn,

and services7. enables the mobilization of funds for
lending, of which deposits are the main
4.2 Housing credit availability un- source. The housing mortgage system
der the market-based mortgage in Tanzania thus combines the market
system economy and the enabling approach,
benefiting from the financial and bank-
Unlike the previous state-controlled ing sector reforms.
mortgage system, the mortgage fi-
nance system established in 2009 is a Determined to build and facilitate mort-
market-based for reasons of avoiding gage and housing financing markets
previous mistakes, but also to ensure in the country, from 2010 the govern-
sustainability. The market-based mort- ment implemented a Housing Finance
gage system is informed by the fact Project (HFP) comprised of three com-
that borrowing for investment in hous- ponents: to develop a mortgage mar-
ing competes with other investments ket; housing microfinance’ and expand
in the financial markets. In this regard, affordable housing supply. The objec-
an optimally functioning mortgage fi- tives of the first and second compo-
nance system should be increasingly nents, which are of direct relevance to
integrated into the larger financial sys- housing financing, were:8 (i) to develop
tem and based on savings mobilization the mortgage finance markets through
and allocation at market interest rate. the provision of medium- and long-
By keeping mortgage interest rates as term liquidity to mortgage lenders; and
close as possible to the market cost of (ii) to develop access to medium-term
funds, it is possible to secure appro- affordable housing microfinance. The
7
Upon recovering the loaned funds through selling of plots, the MLHHSD was allowed by the
Ministry of Finance to use part of the proceeds to finance similar projects in other selected ur-
ban areas and regularize informal settlements in Dar es Salaam and Mwanza. Eventually, nearly
40,000 residential plots were available to the formal land market, making this land delivery the
largest ever supply of land for housing after the sites and services scheme implemented in the
1970s. It was also the first time land for housing was delivered to potential developers at cost
price and more important accompanied by a title deed that could serve as collateral for mort-
gage finance, if all other borrowing conditions demanded by mortgage lenders would be met.
Other activities in the first component of work funded the initial TMRC activities, like pub-
8
lic education on mortgage literacy; reviewing options for moving mortgages down-market;
training and capacity building of primary mortgage lenders; reviewing mortgage regulations;
and supporting a TMRC Bond issuance. The second component of the HFP was on housing
microfinance: -conduct a housing microfinance market study; capacity building in housing mi-
crofinance; and establishment of a Housing Microfinance Fund (HMFF).
108
first component set up the Tanzania further enabling its catalytic role in the
Mortgage Refinance Company (TMRC), growth of the mortgage lending mar-
including its legal framework. The Tan- ket. TMRC has successfully mobilized
zania Mortgage Refinance Company funds from the capital markets by issu-
(TMRC) was incorporated in 2010 as ing corporate bonds in 2018, 2019 and
a non-deposit-taking private financing 2021 in line with its establishment ob-
company designed to support mort- jective and design as a liquidity facility
gage lenders to bridge the gap be- for a market-based mortgage refinanc-
tween short-term deposits and long- ing principle. Meanwhile, through the
term mortgage lending through whole Bank of Tanzania, the government has
sale or secondary market lending. continued to facilitate the company’s
These activities under TMRC are reg- re-financing and pre-financing activi-
ulated by the Bank of Tanzania (BOT) ties with credit sourced from the funds
and Capital Markets and Securities Au- borrowed from the World Bank by the
thority (CMSA). At the time of its incor- Government (TMRC, 2021). TMRC refi-
poration, TMRC had four shareholding nancing and pre-financing is currently
members, but the number of stake- (2022) available to primary mortgage
holders has increased to 17. Until re- lenders at 7.5 percent and 8.5 percent
cently, stakeholders were primary lend- to members and non-members, respec-
ing institutions. As of June 2022, two tively. Prevailing lending interest rates
financial institutions, Shelter Afrique are 15 to 19 percent, depending on
and International Finance Corporation the repayment period, whereby higher
(IFC), have joined TMRC shareholding interest rates are charged for longer re-
from outside Tanzania. The National payment periods. This huge margin, of
Housing Corporation is the only non-fi- 7.5 to 10.5 percent between the cost
nancial institution shareholder. TMRC of funds sourced from TMRC and lend-
commenced operations in 2011 as a ing interest rates, appears to benefit
mortgage refinance company, but as a the primary mortgage lenders, making
way of supporting the growth of the mortgages expensive and unafford-
mortgage market, in 2013 the compa- able.
ny widened scope of its financing fa-
cilitation role to include pre-financing The housing mortgage lending business
primary mortgage lenders. has attracted many banks. Whereas in
2010 only three banks were lending
In June 2016, the company opened up for housing acquisition (Azania Bank,
its financial facilitation to non-member, Commercial Bank of Africa and Stanbic
non-shareholder primary mortgage Bank), by March 2022 there were 32
lenders to expand its customer base, commercial banks financing housing
109
through the mortgage system. Borrow- seeking mortgage loans. Fourth, they
ers are enabled to purchase, construct, extended the loan period for a mort-
or improve their houses with loan terms gage loan from 20 to 25 years. More-
up to 25 years. In 2011, the total lend- over, the Bank of Tanzania has licensed
ing for housing by the mortgage lend- two Credit Reference Bureaus (CRB).
ers was Sh. 76.73 billion, equivalent The CRBs are facilitating primary mort-
to US$ 35.5 million. The outstanding gage lenders’ access and share of po-
mortgage debt as of 30 June 2022 had tential borrowers’ credit information
grown substantially to Sh. 510 billion, during mortgage underwriting, there-
equivalent to US$ 220.49 million. The by avoiding some credit risk.
ratio of outstanding mortgage debt
as a proportion of the Gross Domestic The implementation of these measures
Product (GDP) was 0.35 percent, sig- indicates the government’s determina-
nificantly lower than that of other East tion to effectively play its enabling role
African countries (TMRC, 2021; CAHF, in growing the mortgage lending mar-
2018)9. ket and increasing mortgage afford-
ability so that mortgage finance reach-
The revised Mortgage Finance Regula- es more households. Unaffordable
tions (2015) were intended to enhance interest rates; shortage of affordable
mortgage borrowers’ affordability and and preferred housing type; the fact
grow the mortgage lending market. that potential borrowers would prefer
The revised regulations included four to construct rather than purchasing a
provisions that loosened the mortgage ready-made house while most prima-
lending market. First, they ensured a ry mortgage lenders prefer to lend for
reduced risk weight for computation house purchases rather than for house
of capital adequacy for housing mort- construction; complex and bureau-
gage loans from 100 to 50 percent. cratic procedures involved in selling
This allows each mortgage lender to and processing unit titles for the units
double their lending capacity. Second, that serve as collateral are among the
they raised the loan-to-value ratio (LTV) key challenges inhibiting the desired
for mortgage loans, reducing the re- growth of the mortgage market. The
quired down payment for borrowers. availability of long-term funds through
Third, they allowed acceptance of fixed TMRC and an increasingly improved
deposit, government securities, and mortgage environment have also con-
pension entitlement as equity when tributed to reduced interest rate, from
9
The 2018 Africa Housing Finance Yearbook Showed outstanding mortgage debt as a pro-
portion of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) as follows: Rwanda 1.0 percent; Kenya 3.15
percent; and Uganda 2.5 percent (CAHF, 2018), all of which are many time greater than that
of Tanzania.
110
over 20 percent to between 16 and 19 housing related investment from the

percent but unaffordable to many po- mortgage finance system for various
tential mortgage borrowers. So far, the reasons, including the lack of regular
government has addressed some of the and verified income, as well as a lack of
supply-side obstacles, which have only collateral (UN-Habitat, 2008). My 2006
succeeded in attracting primary mort- study on housing conditions, borrow-
gage lenders to participate in the mort- ing and lending for that group of urban
gage market and helped to somehow residents in three informal settlements
reduce the interest rates, though they in Dar es Salaam shows that house-
remain unaffordable. The government holds self-financed their incrementally
may also wish to consider demand side constructed houses. Sources of finance
measures, like establishing a mortgage were mainly savings, sale of assets, sup-
guarantee scheme or mortgage de- port received from family members, rel-
fault insurance. These tools could be atives and friends. However, it was es-
used to further reduce lending risk and tablished that if institutional loans were
subsequently contribute to lowering available, 87 percent of the households
mortgage lending interest rates and would borrow to finance their house
enhance borrowers’ affordability. construction. Majority of them (77 per-
cent) would borrow sums not exceed-
ing Sh. 10 million, equivalent to US $
5. Credit availability through 8,000 to finance house construction
housing microfinance (Nnkya and Lerise, 2007)10. However,
as majority households (65 per cent)
Housing microfinance addresses a seg- were engaged in the informal sector,
ment of the market that mortgage earning irregular income; and most of
lenders are unwilling to serve - the ap- them had no title deed (44 percent had
proximately 70 percent of the urban a five years residential license); the ap-
residents who build incrementally. This propriate source of institutional credit
group is ineligible for credit finance for would be housing microfinance11
10
The case studies were purposely selected from among the informal settlements ; Mwana-
nyamala, Buguruni and Changrarawe located in the Dar es Salaam City’s three municipalities;
Kinondoni, Ilala and Temeke respectively.
11
UN-Habitat establishes that housing microfinance institutions (MFIs) ofsfer small loans rang-
ing from $1,000 to $5,000 (UN-Habitat, 2008). Loan terms are between one and eight years,
but mostly at the lower end of this range. Security conditions demanded by the lender vary
depending on local circumstances. They may be like those demanded for enterprise loans, such
as group guarantees, para-legal documents to the property, or other non-mortgage collateral.
111
According to the 2015 housing mar- tablished in April 2014 through the
ket study, Tanzania has a relatively Public Finance (Housing Microfinance
well-developed microfinance sector12, Fund Establishment) Order, 2014. The
consisting of both local and interna- HMFF was intended to provide liquidi-
tional microfinance institutions (MFIs)
ty to Housing Microfinance Institutions
(URT, 2015). However, only a few of (HMFIs) for lending with favorable
these provide microfinance products terms to low-income households who
for housing construction or improve- cannot access the traditional mortgage
ment, as well as related housing infra-
loans. The HMFF’s other role would be
structure and services . The existenceto provide technical support to borrow-
of microfinance institutions outside of
ers and build the capacity of MFIs to
the housing market presents enormous manage housing microloans, under-
potential for this strategy to penetrate
write mortgages, and manage risk for
housing lending in the future, though such products. The HMFF was financed
efforts specifically designed to use mi-
under the HFP to the tune of US $18
crofinance in the housing sector are million. Section 8 of the Public Finance
just getting started. (Housing Microfinance Fund Establish-
ment) Order, 2014 provides for other
Microfinance for housing was a com- potential sources of funding; the na-
ponent of the Housing Finance Project tional budget, loans from development
(HFP) through which the government partners and financial institutions,
decided to develop a housing microf- grants, and donations.
inance market, starting with a Hous-
ing Microfinance Fund. The Housing Management of the fund is still under
Micro-Finance Fund (HMFF) was es- the Bank of Tanzania (BOT) though the
12
The existing MFIs fall into three categories: (i) commercial banks (ii) financial institutions li-
censed by the Bank of Tanzania (BOT); and (iii) institutions or organizations that do not re-
quire licensing by BOT. These include non-governmental organizations (NGOs) type and mem-
ber-based organizations such as savings and credit cooperative societies (SACCOs), which are
registered under the Cooperatives Act (2003). Commercial banks offering wholesale and retail
microloans include the National Microfinance Bank (NMB) Plc., CRDB Bank Plc., DCB Bank Plc.,
and Akiba Commercial Bank Ltd. The first two have branches all over the country. The housing
market study established that personal loans taken from banks are used for construction or
improvement of housing. Likewise, some funds borrowed specifically for microenterprises are
also used for housing (URT, 2015).
These include WAT-Human Settlements Trust SACCO, Habitat for Humanity, Victoria SACCO,
Presidential Trust Fund and Gatsby Trust. The last two provide housing microfinance for rural
housing. Another NGO, Centre for Community Initiatives (CCI), do not provide housing micro-
finance services but mobilizes financial resources to support housing for the urban poor house-
holds. CCI is in turn supported by Homeless International and a United Kingdom based NGO.
112
initial idea was to hive it out after the ernment and households in housing
first five years (2014–2019), and func- development has become a convenient
tion as an autonomous Fund under the tradition, which has left housing devel-
Ministry of Finance. As of June 2022, opment concerns diffused in national
the Fund is still being managed by development plans and budgets. Hous-
BOT. Institutionalized microfinance for ing development is under the Ministry
housing is new in this country, and so responsible for land development, a
there is limited technical capacity and sector pervaded by far-reaching land
awareness. The HMFF was expected administration disputes that have dom-
to build hosing microfinance capacity, inated debates in the Parliament and
but it is yet to be seen how much that preoccupied those responsible for the
has taken place. Enhanced capacity is sector at the expense of housing devel-
desperately needed to address the high opment concerns. Consequently, hous-
demand for microfinance in Tanzania. ing receives inadequate attention at
It has been argued that housing micro- policy level, and in the national devel-
finance is a window for the majority of opment planning and budgeting. There
potential homeowners, so deliberate is no doubt that the enabling approach
efforts are needed to make housing is consistent with the requirements of
microfinance work effectively. Micro- the market economy, but this approach
finance for housing represents a busi- overlooks the very low-income house-
ness opportunity for the private sector, holds, who are being compelled to be
particularly for institutions participating homeowners by the home ownership
in microfinance for microenterprises, policy pursued under the enabling ap-
whose scope of lending could be swift- proach. Extent to which the govern-
ly increased with additional technical ment has delivered on its enabling role,
capacity in housing micro-financing. the form enabling has taken and impli-
cations for making affordable housing
available are questions that beg an-
6. Conclusions swers if the Sustainable Development
Goal 11 is to be achieved.
(1) The enabling approach has (2) The self-financed incremen-

placed much of the burden for housing tal housing construction practice rep-
development on the households while resents a huge potential for housing
the government by design remains an microfinance market. The Government
enabler. Now, nearly half a century lat- has taken some steps to support this
er, this relationship between the gov- process; establishment of the Housing
113
Microfinance Fund (HMFF) as a step- shortage driving up the price of hous-

ping stone towards housing microfi- ing. The shortage of housing is also a
nance system is one such supportive result of the subsistence (building pri-
measure. However, the use of the facil- marily for own consumption) housing
ity and progress made towards the end production character of the housing
goal suggests that something is getting market in Tanzania.
in the way of establishing and grow-
ing the housing microfinance system in (4) To make the mortgage loans
Tanzania. This calls for research to iden- benefit low- and middle-income house-
tify impediments which should be ad- holds, banks should consider reducing
dressed to pave the way for this strat- their profit margin and risk premium to
egy (housing microfinance) to flourish. reciprocate the government’s measures
to address the circumstances contribut-
(3) The mortgage loans terms in ing to mortgage lending potential risks
Tanzania do not reflect the govern- as earlier explained. Moreover, the gov-
ment’s efforts to create an enabling ernment subsidized financing through
environment for mortgage lending. TMRC, which has attracted housing
Financial facilitation by the Tanzania mortgage lenders to participate in the
Mortgage Refinance Company (TMRC) lending market, should positively im-
appears to have had limited impact pact the mortgage lending rates. Banks
on mortgage lending interest rates, could also design mortgages to suit the
housing affordability, and the expect- employment and income realities or
ed growth of the housing mortgage and everyday realities of low-income
system in Tanzania. However, longer households, rather than expecting
tenures for mortgage loans offered them to meet the requirements of con-
by banks reduce a borrower’s monthly ventional mortgages.
repayment obligation and so enabling
more borrowers to qualify for the loans (5) The Revolving Housing Loan
based on their incomes. Unaffordable Fund (RHLF) for public servants has
mortgage interest rates have contrib- inadequately benefited the targeted
uted to reduced housing affordability group of beneficiaries due to various
which in turn restrains primary mort- reasons to include limited funds. Trans-
gage lenders’ business, as fewer hous- forming this Fund and similar housing
es are built by real estate developers. funds for selected groups to include the
The few houses being produced cater Presidential Trust Fund into a Housing
only for the middle- and high-income Loan Guarantee Scheme (HLGS) would
earners, leading in turn to a housing be a strategic move to facilitate access
to more credit finance from mortgage
114
and micro-finance lenders at affordable risk. The government needs to build

interest rate. on its investment to facilitate TMRC to
grow into a secondary mortgage mar-
(6) Financing of physical infra- ket. This may entail removing withhold-
structure and social services in informal ing tax on TMRC bond to make it more
settlements has a wider positive impact attractive to investors and enable the
on low-income households. This is be- company to raise sufficient funds from
cause many small investments in incre- the capital markets. TMRC may also
mental housing in these areas add up be publicly supported to issue mort-
to a huge sum and contribute a major- gage-backed securities (MBS) guaran-
ity of housing for low-income house- teed by the government. Such bonds
holds. Settlement upgrading should be would ensure adequate and affordable
among the approaches towards mak- capital for primary mortgage lenders.
ing affordable housing available.
2) Prioritization of infrastructure
provision for improved living conditions,
7. Policy recommendations affordable owner-occupied and rental
housing for low-income households in
Financing affordable housing in Dar es formal and informal settlements: Pri-
Salaam may entail the following: oritization of infrastructure provision
in the existing informal settlements is
1) Building housing microfinance one strategic option for promoting af-
capacity, promoting housing savings fordable housing, as this would com-
schemes, establishing housing loans plement household investments in in-
guarantee scheme, and supporting cremental housing. In the process of
growth of a secondary mortgage mar- facilitating affordable owner-occupied
ket: The government needs to facili- and rental housing, development reg-
tate institutional and technical capacity ulations should be enforced to benefit
building for housing microfinance and tenants but without adversely affecting
ensure growth of the housing micro- landlords’ profitability. In time, some of
finance market to cater for the many the property owners to include land-
houses under incremental construc- lords may become large scale providers
tion. This should go hand-in-hand with of affordable and safe rental housing
deliberate efforts to establish housing and enhance the much-needed capac-
savings schemes, and housing loans ity to implement large scale affordable
guarantee scheme. A housing loan rental housing schemes. Hand in hand,
guarantee scheme would enhance af- the government needs to provide new
fordability by covering lenders default surveyed and serviced sites to facilitate
115
housing construction by households

and real estate developers, and reduce
housing cost. Infrastructure and ser-
vices provision need not be done uni-
formly. It can be differentiated accord-
ing to the affordability of the targeted
group but with provision for upgrading
as both household affordability and
government’s capacity improves.
3) Infrastructure and private sec-

tor financing are needed to address the
increasing demand for housing; reduce
the burden on public sector resources
while benefiting from the operational
efficiency and technology of the private
sector: Incentives to attract the private
sector to invest in housing may include
allocation of serviced land at cost for
the construction of housing at specified
standards and price ranges. Other in-
centives may include waiving the value
added tax on the sale price of housing
sold to targeted groups. The govern-
ment may also encourage public hous-
ing agencies—NHC, Tanzania Building
Agency (TBA) and Watumishi Housing
Company WHC—to enter partnerships
with the private sector. The private sec-
tor may provide elements missing from
the public housing agencies, such as
financial resources, expertise, technol-
ogy, and a culture of efficiency. The
private sector could benefit from in-
creased security of their investments by
working with public agencies.
116
8. References Nnkya, T. (1981) Successes and Fail-

ures of Sites and Services and Squat-
Gardner, D. (2008) Housing Microfi- ter Upgrading in Dar es Salaam, The
nance in South Africa: Status, challeng- Swedish State Building Research, Med-
es and prospects, Fin Mark Trust and delande, Stockholm
HIVOS Foundation
Nnkya, T. (2003) Review of the Squat-
Maliyamkono, T. & Bagwacwa, M. ter Settlement Upgrading Project in
(1990) The Second Economy in Tanza- Tanzania, Working paper prepared for
nia, James Currey, London Press, CIUP
Mkapa, B. (2019) My Life My Purpose; Nnkya, T. and Lerise, F. (2007) Hous-

A Tanzanian President Remembers, ing Conditions, Borrowing and Lending
Mkuki na Nyota Publishers, Dar es Sa- in Informal Settlements in Dar es Sa-
laam laam, AUHF/Cities Alliance/USID
Msambichaka, L, Mduma, J. Sele- Tanzania Mortgage Refinance Com-

jio, O and Mashindano,O (2015) pany (2022) Tanzania Mortgage Up-
How can Tanzania move: From Poverty date, August 22, 2021
to Prosperity, Dar es Salaam University
Press UN-HABITAT (2005) Global Report on
Human Settlements 2005: Financing
Mutagwaba, H. (2002) Establish- Urban Shelter, UN-Habitat, Nairobi
ing a Market-based Housing Finance
System in Tanzania: Challenges and UN-HABITAT (2008) Housing for All,
Opportunities, in Financing Adequate The Challenges of Affordability, Acces-
Shelter for All: Addressing the Housing sibility and Sustainability, UN-Habitat,
Finance Problem in Developing Coun- Nairobi
tries, UN-Habitat, Nairobi
UN-HABITAT (n.d.) Re-establishing Ef-
National Housing Corporation fective Housing Finance Mechanisms
(2010) Mpango Mkakati (2010/11 – in Tanzania: The Potentials and Bottle-
2014/15) necks, UN-Habitat, Nairobi
Nnkya, (2004) The Sustainable Cities United Nations Centre for Human
Programme in Tanzania 1992 – 2003, Settlements (1996) The Habitat Agen-
Documentation for UN-Habitat and da: Goal and Principles, Commitments
UNEP
117
and Global Action United Republic of Tanzania (2015)

Mortgage Finance Regulations for
United Republic of Tanzania (1971) Banks and Financial Institutions
The Building Acquisition Act 1971
United Republic of Tanzania (2017)
United Republic of Tanzania (1990) Progress Report for the Implementation
The National Housing Act, 1990 of the Housing Finance Project (BOT)

Mortgage Finance (Special Provisions)
Act, 2008, Government Printer, Dar es
Salaam

20,000 Plots Project Report

Ilani ya Uchaguzi ya CCM 2010, Dar es
Salaam

Assessment of the Revolving Housing
Loan Fund: Challenges and Opportuni-
ties (Internal Working Report)

Housing Microfinance Fund Concept
Paper (BOT)

Public Servants Housing Scheme: Con-
cept Paper (Internal Working Paper)

Housing Market Study – Tanzania, Final
report
118

Building The Just City in Tanzania: Essays On Urban Housing

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Building the

Governance and institutional framework for ensuring

Foreword enon. It is also critical to understand

lated concepts in Kiswahili are difficult Chapter 3 by Maria Carrizosa ex-

Chapter 5 by Tim Ndezi, the found- a house, not construction. He describes

About the Authors

Maria Carrizosa is an urban informality researcher, Assistant Director of the

Dr. Tatu Mtwangi Limbumba is a senior research fellow at the Institute of

Prof. Tumsifu Jonas Nnkya is former director of housing at the Ministry of

1. Introduction The ‘just city’ concept used in the pa-

2010; Msangi, 2011; Nuhu, 2018). 2. Laws and regulations rele-

Respectively, these policies, laws (Amendment) Act (2004); the Urban

attention to land related issues in the ment. Implementation of this project is

buildings (Draft NHP,2018; JCP,2021).

man community environment wheth- combined with the Planning Depart-

Figure 1. Word cloud generated from the organization structure of MLHHSD

quite common for Tanzanians to call a • Mobilizing resources and

in adequate and affordable housing in livery of affordable housing; as well as

usually advocate on behalf of disadvan- ue chain. These include professionals

Category Actor Main Role(s) in Hous- ‘Just City’

Category Actor Main Role(s) in Hous- ‘Just City’

Figure 2. A condensed illustration of the Tanzanian housing institutional

5. Policy implications tional agenda. This study calls for the

6. References Kironde, J. M. L. (1992). Rent Control

March, J. G., & Olsen, J. P. (2006). Nyiti, A. & Genes, M. (2022).

MLHHSD. (2021). Available online on: Obeng-Odoom, F. (2017). Ur-

Wolff, M. S., Kuch, A., & Chipman,

URT. (1999). Land Act. Dar es

URT. (2001). Land (Schemes of Regulari-

URT. (2007a). Land Use Planning Act.

URT. (2007b). Urban Planning Act.

URT. (2012). Basic facts and figures

URT. (2018). Urban Planning

Wakuru Magigi and B.B.K. Majani.

Annex 1. The approved functions and organization structure of MLHHSD as

1. Introduction ban areas, in both formal

22 by the 2016-2036 Dar es Salaam City Master Plan Consortium)

of 5.3 million which is approximately and poor households, and

DAR ES SALAAM CITY

Madale Ferry Route

MUNICIPALITY Mwenge Proposed Secondary Roads

Mbezi UDSM Sinza

KISARAWE KIGAMBONI DAWASA Borehole

Figure 2 Current Dar es Salaam City Master Plan 2016-2036 (DCMP)

the DCMP that appear to address 3. Urban land access

tial licenses’. Residential licenses were

Figure 2. Institutional Setup - Land Tenure Urban Tanzania

It is also attributed to the failure of pushing low income households to less

Use Conditions Classified and defined to a Undefined, may be

Issue Formal Context Informal Context

Infrastructure Defined and mandatory con- Undefined, poorly

Expropriation Limited opportunities for re-ac- Easy expropriation —

3.1 Dynamics of access to for- under jurisdiction of a UPA, which ar-

3.2 Securing property rights in

Kinondoni Temeke, Kigamboni, and Ubungo.

subject of squatting. Examples in Dar

Inattention to land speculation issue addressed urban sprawl, displacement

However, not only poor people settle