Tanzanians advised to but shares in bouses

Tanzanians have been advised to develop a culture of buying shares on initial public offers (IPOs) if they have to effectively participate to and own the country’s economy. Through IPOs, companies float shares publicly, giving members of the public an opportunity to own the economy. TCCIA Investment PLC Board Chairman Aloys Mwamanga said many Tanzanians were unnecessarily missing opportunities to buy shares and ultimately owning the economy. “Shares are certificates that show your commitment and preparedness to really own the economy,” Mr Mwamanga told the company’s recently organised 12th Annual General Meeting. He said the government under President John Magufuli is determined to have all Tanzanians participating effectively to the economy, the goal that can be realised easily through purchase of shares in public companies. “Share trading plays a critical role towards realising the mid-sized, industrial based economy...many companies raise capitals and invest in big projects through sales of shares,” he explained. Established in 2005, TCCIA Investment started buying shares in NMB Bank, gradually growing its current 28bn/- capital. Apart from NMB, TCCIA Investment has shares in Twiga Cement, Tanzania Cigarette Company, SWISSPORT, CRDB Bank, Simba Cement, Dar es Salaam Commercial Bank (DCB) and Tanzania Breweries Limited, all listed on the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange, Mr Mwamanga said. The firm’s Chief Executive Officer who doubles as the Board Secretary, Mr Donald Kamori described this year’s 12th AGM as a success, saying new shareholders were trained on shares. “We discovered that many people want to see money re maining in hands or banks. They are ignorant on shares, which they see as a new tradition and not appropriate for their money,” Mr Kamori said. He said through annual seminars, the understanding of investments in shares is on the rise and called for more public sensitisation on shares. One shareholder, Ms Salma Mpokonya, conceded that she knew nothing about shares before the seminar, but was now conversant with the concept. “In the past I had wrong notion that only affluent people were eligible to own shares,” she said, urging all Tanzanians to embrace share buying habit for their bright future, economically.