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other two cities. In context of the
industry’s evolution , Arusha clearly came out to be the traditional hub of
hospitality and tourism activity and it was leading the trends in many ways. Dar es Salaam, on the other hand,
appeared to be the ‘up-coming’ center of business activity in these industries. It appeared to be attracting a younger
generation of owners and managers who were more aggressive in seeking out funds and possibly even resources
internationally. Mwanza, on the other hand, was lagging behind in critical aspects of small business operations. For
instance, education of owners and managers appeared to be lower in Mwanza than in other two cities. Because of its
lack of access to an international port of entry, while it supported local purchases of inputs, this did not mean
sourcing the cheapest and highest quality production resources. Access to financing in Mwanza also appeared to be
a constraint for small businesses although this was not absolutely clear. But given observations of the researchers,
there is a higher likelihood of this statement to be true. In context of
development policy factors, such as general
infrastructure and provision of government services, it appeared that Arusha and Dar es Salaam were experiencing a
demand pressure on such services given the higher level of activity in these two cities compared to Mwanza. As for
an overall evaluation of economic impact and performance capability, it certainly appeared that Arusha and Dar es
Salaam had a competitive edge over Mwanza. It appears that entrepreneurial activity in Arusha and Dar es Salaam
probably would have a higher likelihood of success than in Mwanza. While businesses in all three cities are
contributing to local economic linkages, it appears that the pattern of such linkages is dependent upon the industry’s
evolution in that city. The sourcing of local agricultural inputs is higher in Mwanza however transportation links
have been able to strengthen national sourcing of such inputs in the other two cities. Another inference from these
results could be that while public services and enhancement of the general business environment could not be
ignored in Arusha and Dar es Salaam, special emphasis would be required for Mwanza. Finally, in context of
ensuring a sustainable approach to developing hospitality and tourism activity, a strong case could be made to
strengthen the industry activity in Mwanza otherwise most of the tourist pressure will continue to be exerted in the
northern and eastern regions of the country. This study presented a framework within which policy makers could
conduct a comparative assessment amongst three cities to further identify specific gaps in service that support small
businesses. Public policy debate could focus on the reasons to ensure a balanced growth of hospitality and tourism
activity and how small business could play a crucial role. It could also center on how Arusha and Dar es Salaam
found success (and challenges) within an evolving strategy of hospitality and tourism development. A more
proactive approach to strengthen small businesses in Mwanza could learn from past mistakes and successes.
Industry practices could be enhanced if managers from the three cities could more actively participate in discussions
and learning interactions from each other. Each of the cities has something to share with the other two. Given that
private sector organizations are beginning to be active in the industry, it could be useful and prudent that these cities
learn to interact with each other and share best practices. With regard to research, this paper showed that a
comparative assessment could provide important relative measures and assessments of small business activity in
hospitality and tourism. Given the dearth of formal assessment of small businesses and the critical gap in data, this
paper makes important contributions for future research.
