THE CEO Roundtable of Tanzania (CEOrt), in collaboration with the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and key industry players, is driving a landmark effort to integrate Nature-based Solutions (NbS) across the country’s crucial tourism value chain.

The partnership recently convened a high-level NbS Mainstreaming Workshop in Arusha, bringing together conservation experts, private-sector leaders, research institutions, and public agency representatives committed to strengthening Tanzania’s sustainability and climate-resilience agenda.

The workshop explored how NbS—such as restoring landscapes, protecting watersheds, expanding community-led wildlife conservation, and investing in blue carbon ecosystems—can simultaneously boost Tanzania’s tourism competitiveness and advance Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) standards.

Hawa Urungu, Project Manager at CEOrt, emphasized the essential link between nature and the industry’s success. “Tourism is one of Tanzania’s most nature-dependent industries,” she said. “If we protect nature, we protect our markets. NbS offer a compelling pathway for tourism operators to reduce climate risks, strengthen destination resilience, and meet global sustainability expectations. This is not just an environmental agenda, it is a business competitiveness agenda.”

The initiative is being spearheaded through CEOrt’s Business & Sustainability Pillar, under the RESOLVE NbS Project, which is funded by NORAD and implemented in partnership with IUCN. The project focuses on providing businesses with practical guidance and financial insights to embed NbS into their corporate sustainability and investment decisions.

Experts facilitating the session included Dr. Mike Musgrave of Newt Natural Capital, Dr. Gileard Minja, and Dr. Nyanjige Mayala of Sustainable Tourism Tanzania (STTZ).

Participants highlighted significant emerging opportunities for integrating NbS, including community-Based Conservation Models: Empowering local communities to manage and benefit from wildlife protection, coastal Ecosystem Restoration: Protecting and restoring vital habitats like mangroves and coral reefs, regenerative Agriculture: Adopting sustainable farming practices for hospitality supply chains and eco-Certified Infrastructure: Developing tourism facilities that meet stringent environmental standards.

The discussions underscored that NbS can enhance the visitor experience and unlock new streams of green investment, particularly as global travelers increasingly favour nature-positive destinations.

Despite the strong enthusiasm, stakeholders cited several barriers to scaling up interventions limited incentives for green investments, high upfront investment requirements and fragmented institutional coordination and technical support.

The workshop concluded with a unified call for sustained collaboration among the government, financial institutions, and the private sector. The consensus was that successfully mainstreaming NbS requires aligning financial incentives, expanding green finance instruments and strengthening local capacity.

As Tanzania works toward its long-term development goals and Vision 2050, the CEOrt–IUCN partnership is seen as a strategic lever to secure both ecological integrity and economic prosperity. The momentum generated marks a critical step from mere awareness to practical implementation, ensuring the tourism sector contributes actively to a nature-positive, climate-resilient, and globally competitive economy.