Dar es Salaam. Tanzania is stepping up efforts to strengthen its digital defences, as government officials, experts and stakeholders convened in Arusha for the 4th Tanzania Cybersecurity Forum 2025, with calls for stronger governance, inclusive policymaking and multi-stakeholder collaboration.
Themed Empowering Governance for a Sustainable and Inclusive Cyberspace, the forum attracted participants from government, financial institutions, law enforcement, academia and the private sector.
The event, held on April 10, 2025, was organised by the Tanzania ICT Commission and hosted at the Mount Meru Hotel.
Opening the forum, the Director General of the Tanzania ICT Commission, Dr Nkundwe Moses Mwasaga, underscored the need to match the country’s accelerating digital transformation with robust cyber defences.
He said trust is very important in the digital economy. And that the guardians of trust are cyber-security experts, data protection experts and all institutions that deal with consumer protection.
“Once trust is established, everything else falls into place. But when trust breaks down, building a digital economy becomes extremely difficult, and all prior investments risk going to waste,” said Dr Mwasaga.
In his contribution, Saxon Data Protection Commissioner from Germany, Dr Tino Naumann, commended Tanzania’s efforts and shared comparative insights from Europe.
But he said Tanzanian laws should be more forthcoming about information technology (IT) security and data protection.
He noted that the Personal Data Protection (Personal Data Collection and Processing) Regulations, 2023 are not extensive enough on how to detect, handle and report personal data breaches.
“The European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation is very extensive as it provides in detail how to handle and report personal data breaches as well as the obligations of relevant authorities,” Mr Naumann said.
Discussions at the forum also tackled emerging threats and evolving tactics used by cybercriminals.
Ms Esther Lugoe Mengi, Co-Founder and CEO of Serensic Africa, offered a comprehensive look into the escalating threat landscape in Africa, examining the dangers that lie “Behind the Firewall.”
She drew attention to the rise of Ransomware-as-a-Service (RaaS), Double and Triple Extortion and Advanced Evasion Tactics.
Ms Mengi also stressed the growing sophistication of encryption tools used by criminal networks, urging stakeholders to invest in both technological and human capacity to keep pace with the threat.
Representing the Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority (TCRA), Senior ICT Officer Mr Victor Mziray highlighted the advisory framework supporting cybersecurity regulation.
“The Technical Advisory Committee (TAC), comprising eight members from sectors including the Bank of Tanzania, Ministry of Communication and Information Technology and law enforcement authorities, advises TCRA on technical cybersecurity issues,” said Mr Mziray.
On the relationship between data protection and cybersecurity, Mr Abdulrahman Hussein, Head of Cybersecurity Services at Soft-Tech Consultants Ltd, offered a key distinction.
“Data governance defines what needs to be protected; cybersecurity determines how to protect it,” he said, stressing the importance of harmonising regulatory, organisational and technical approaches.
While Tanzania has made strides, experts cautioned that sustaining and improving the country’s cybersecurity posture would require continued investment in systems, talent development, legal frameworks and cross-sectoral coordination.
The country’s standing in the International Telecommunication Union (ITU)’s 2024 Global Cybersecurity Index improved, reflecting this growing focus, but speakers warned that complacency could easily erode these gains.
Financial institutions, frequently targeted in cyberattacks, reiterated their readiness to collaborate on national cyber defence.
Participants noted the critical role of banks in protecting digital transactions and safeguarding public trust in the financial system.
