“I can create my own income rather than waiting for employment”
Tanzania’s Business Studies Subject Prepares Youth for the Real World
At Dar es Salaam Secondary School, students are starting to think differently about their future and the world of work. “I can create my own income rather than waiting for employment,” says 13-year-old John. “I know how to start and manage a business. I want to become a tailor.”
John and his classmates are enrolled in Business Studies, a compulsory new subject for lower secondary students introduced by the government of Tanzania in early 2025, with technical support from Educate!.
During the subject’s official launch, President Dr. Samia Suluhu Hassan emphasised how secondary education should equip young people with the skills to engage in today’s labor market and succeed in a changing, competitive world.
Launch of the Education, Training Policy, and Revised Curricula
The curriculum encourages students, like John, to identify community challenges and local needs, such as those related to sanitation or essential services. Learners then design small businesses and projects to address these gaps — turning classroom learning into real-world action. Through interactive, hands-on projects, students not only build business acumen but also transferable skills like problem-solving, communication, negotiation, and teamwork.
Dynamic and universal skills like these play a critical role in helping young people navigate labor markets, whether they pursue self-employment or a career in the formal sector.
In Tanzania, approximately 77% of the population is under 35, and most young people will work within the informal sector. A large percentage of households live in multidimensional poverty, and under- and unemployment for youth create obstacles to self-reliance and economic independence.
Responding to the demographic surge, the government has committed to long-term competency-based curriculum (CBC) reforms — joining other countries across Africa in efforts to align education more closely with the economic realities young people face.
The early design and piloting of Business Studies was a collaborative effort between the Tanzania Institute of Education, government partners, and Educate!. As the subject rolls out nationally, Educate! continues to support implementation under a six-year partnership, working to strengthen systems and ensure the new subject delivers sustained impact for students.
These efforts build on our broader vision: to address the gap between learning and the world of work through government partnership to reach generations of youth at scale.
Alongside government partners, we work to introduce or strengthen an employment-focused subject in secondary education. Educate! began this work over a decade ago in Uganda, where we deliver employment-focused learning directly in 25% of secondary schools, reaching 36,000 students annually. In Rwanda, we’ve partnered with the government to reform the country’s national Entrepreneurship subject, deliver a two-year teacher training model to every school, and build a continuous assessment data system that can sustain transformations in the classroom.
In Tanzania — Africa’s fifth most populous nation — Business Studies marks Educate!’s largest-scale government collaboration yet. Once rolled out nationally, the subject can reach all three million lower secondary students across the country.
Already, the subject is making a meaningful difference. After participating in the subject pilot, 13-year-old Millhonery spotted a gap — and an opportunity — within her local market, and launched a breakfast snack business with her mother. Together, they are generating new income for the family. “We learned how to research what’s missing in the community and turn it into a business idea,” she shares.
For teachers at Dar es Salaam Secondary School the change is clear: “The new methods make students active. They do research, present to their peers, and connect what they learn to real life, ” says Business Studies teacher Seralin Sawa. Headteacher Hoseni Njau adds:
“This subject helps students stand on their own two feet. We have AI replacing people, but even in this changing landscape, our students are prepared.”
– Hoseni Njau, Headteacher, Dar es Salaam Secondary School
As Africa’s surging youth population continues to grow, secondary education represents a high-leverage opportunity to reach young people at scale — at a critical moment before they enter the workforce. Business Studies marks a powerful step toward preparing Tanzania’s youth for the future, and demonstrates what’s possible when classroom learning reflects the real world.