Abstract

In 2019, the 3^rd president of the United Republic of Tanzania the late Benjamin William Mkapa released a book named ‘My Life, My Purpose: A Tanzanian President Remembers’ which was published by Mkuki na Nyota Publishers in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. The President Mkapa’s memoir provides a rich narrative of his entire life journey accounting his time before, during and after his presidency, offering readers an insightful reflection on the challenges of African life and leadership practice in post-colonial Africa. The memoir presents both successes and failures, offering valuable lessons for contemporary leaders and younger generations. Covering Mkapa’s personal and professional growth, his leadership in Tanzania, and the challenges and opportunities he faced during his tenure, the book serves as both a personal reflection and a political analysis of the transformation of Tanzania under his leadership and beyond. This article specifically serves to reveal how President Mkapa aced economic diplomacy practice in the Tanzanian economic landscape by extracting the footprints for economic diplomacy practice in Tanzania from the biography review [1].

One of the most significant contributions of Mkapa’s autobiography is his reflections on economic diplomacy, particularly the steps he took to steer Tanzania through significant economic reforms and engage Tanzania with international financial institutions like the IMF and World Bank. It was during his tenure (1995-2005) Tanzania’s political and economic landscape took a new shape including the initiative of putting Tanzanian economic diplomacy practice on the countries frameworks by crafting the country’s foreign policy in 2001 when Mkapa illuminated his strategic thinking in balancing national sovereignty with the demands of global economic forces. Among other things this review glimpsed the structuralformation of economic diplomacy promotion institutions in Tanzania during Mkapa era. The review leaves a few recommendations including urging readers and those interested in understanding African leadership dynamics to put all the lessons learned into actions for more fruitful regional cooperation, and global engagement.

Keywords:Tanzania; President Benjamin William Mkapa; Economic diplomacy; Autobiography; Economic forces