CSO Week 2025 Kicks Off with Reflections on Vision 2050

Arusha, 1st June 2025. CSO Week officially opens this Monday 2nd June at Mount Meru Hotel in Arusha with an exciting agenda on what will take Tanzania to upper-middle class status in 2050. The week-long event will run until Friday, 6th June, 2025. With the theme ‘Pathways to Progress,’ CSO Week 2025 reflects civil society's commitment to align vision 2050 with action and to build bold partnerships to ensure that progress is not just promised, but delivered to all Tanzanians.

Speaking during a media briefing in Arusha, CPA Mercy Sila, Foundation for Civil Society (FCS) chair and President of the Tanzania Women Chamber of commerce (TWCC) spoke about the CSO week being FCS’s flagship event and how the event is a vital pathway of realising the future that FCS whats to see.

‘’FCS envisions a Tanzania where empowered, resilient, and responsible citizens realize socio-economic justice and enjoy an improved quality of life. The CSO Week contributes directly to efforts that move Tanzania’s development agenda forward by promoting inclusive engagement and meaningful partnerships. As we host the seventh edition in 2025, we reaffirm our belief that systemic challenges can only be addressed through multistakeholder collective action,’’ she added.

Justice Rutenge, Executive Director, Foundation for Civil Society, expressed his enthusiasm for reflections on vision 2050 in light that civil society have collaborated and contributed to Tanzania Vision 2050 through ministerial engagements.

‘’The CSO week conversation will offer a forward outlook on the role of culture and human capital in achieving Tanzania's Vision 2050, exploring how values, education, skills, and national identity shape the country's long-term development trajectory; and the needed investments and partnerships to nurture an empowered, ethical, and capable citizenry prepared to drive inclusive and sustainable progress,'' he said.

Also speaking at the press conference was Ismail Biro, Deputy Director at Tanzania Bora, a member of the Steering Committee and Country Director highlighted the vital role of partnerships in driving inclusive development. In his closing remarks, Mr Biro shared how different partners came together to support more youth to attend CSO Week 2025 following the overwhelming number of applications that the Vodacom Youth Changemakers program received.

‘We reached out to our steering committee members and partners to support us in getting more youth to attend CSO Week. Wajibika, with funding from the FCDO and the Embassy of Switzerland in Tanzania, volunteered to support 13 youth with disabilities to take part in this year’s event. MS TCDC, a key partner, generously supported the accommodation of 60 youth participants,’ he shared. Mr. Biro also announced NMB Bank as a new partner supporting the CSO Week 2025.

Also speaking to the press in Arusha, Sandra Oswald, Corporate Affairs Manager at Vodacom Tanzania Foundation (VTF) shared her excitement about partnering with CSO Week for a second year in a row and powering the youth changemakers program that supports exceptional youth from all over Tanzania to participate in CSO Week.

In the two years of our partnership with CSO Week, we have been amazed by the level of drive Tanzanian youth have to solve community challenges, to be heard and included in conversations regarding their futures. We are supporting 100 youth under the Vodacom Young Changemakers Program for CSO Week 2025. Youth participation in national level conversations such as CSO Week are vital to inclusive development,’ shared Sandra.

Ms. Oswald also spoke about Vodacom Tanzania’s community engagement event during CSO Week, a Digital and Financial Readiness bootcamp for 200 Women Entrepreneurs. On his part, Dickson Senzi, Senior Manager; External Affairs, Communications and Reputation at Stanbic Bank Tanzania said that the bank has organized an outreach on community-driven financial literacy efforts and inclusive banking models in Karatu as well as a Fincafe at CSO week 2025 at Mt Meru providing financial advice to CSOs to support their financial sustainability.

CSO Week 2025 is supported by development partners such as the European Union, Ford Foundation, Wilde Ganzen, TradeMark Africa, UK International Development, the Embassy of Switzerland in Tanzania and GIZ.