NALA CEO Calls for Tanzania Tech Investment and AI Education

In Short

NALA founder and CEO Benjamin Fernandes says Tanzania needs more investment in digital infrastructure, technology education, and youth empowerment. He argues this is key if the country wants to attract more tech investment and build globally competitive startups.

What Happened

Speaking in Dar es Salaam on the sidelines of the Africa50 General Shareholders Meeting, Fernandes said Tanzania has a growing base of young talent. But he believes the ecosystem needs stronger foundations, including better internet and power for digital services, more tech learning in schools, and more support for young founders.

Fernandes also pointed to the rising role of artificial intelligence, which is software that learns patterns from data to help automate tasks or make predictions. He said AI is becoming central to many industries, so schools should treat technology as a core skill for the labour market.

The comments come as NALA positions itself as a large Africa-focused payments player. Fernandes said the company processes more than $10 billion in transactions each year across 16 countries, including Kenya, Rwanda, Ghana, Nigeria, South Africa, Egypt, plus the UK and US. He added that around 60 percent of NALA’s revenue comes from the US market.

On the regulatory side, Fernandes said NALA recently received approval from the Bank of Tanzania to facilitate outward money transfers. That typically means regulated cross-border transfers from Tanzania to other countries. He said the company is preparing services for faster regional trade payments for businesses dealing with Kenya, Uganda, Comoros, and Burundi.

Why It Matters

Tanzania has been pushing to attract more technology investment, but founders still flag basics like reliable connectivity, skills development, and startup support as the biggest bottlenecks.

For fintech, better infrastructure can directly improve payment reliability and speed. Fernandes said the goal is to help traders get paid within five minutes instead of waiting days, which could improve cash flow for SMEs that depend on regional cross-border trade.

His tourism example is also a reminder that digital payments are not only for tech companies. If international visitors can pay local businesses faster and at lower cost, that can lift revenue for hotels, restaurants, and tour operators that serve foreign customers.