Technology Checklist for New Businesses in Zanzibar

In Depth

In Depth

A new business in Zanzibar needs a domain and email in its own name, internet with a backup, a router that keeps customers, staff and tills apart, approved receipting, backups and power protection. This checklist puts them in the right order.

Technology is often left until the week before opening. That is when the wrong router gets bought, the website is registered in the developer's name and the till ends up on the customer Wi-Fi. Fixing these later costs more than getting them right at the start. This guide is for anyone opening a shop, restaurant, office, guesthouse, clinic or agency.

Local conditions to plan around

• Power cuts and surges damage equipment and stop sales. Budget for UPS units and surge protection from day one.
• Internet varies by street. Check which providers serve your exact address before signing a lease, and plan a 4G backup.
• Salt air and humidity near the coast shorten the life of outdoor equipment and connectors.
• Thick coral-stone and concrete walls block Wi-Fi; see Wi-Fi dead zones.
• Stone Town is a UNESCO World Heritage Site; visible changes to building exteriors, such as cameras, antennas and signs, need approval from the conservation authority.
• Spare parts often come from Dar es Salaam, so keep spares of critical items.
• Mobile money (M-Pesa, Mixx by Yas, Airtel Money, HaloPesa and others) is how many customers prefer to pay.

The essentials, in order

1. Domain name and business email

Register your domain (for example .co.tz or .com) in the business's name, with a contact email the business controls. Many businesses discover years later that their domain belongs to a former web developer.

Use email on your own domain, not free webmail, and set up the DNS records that stop your mail being marked as spam or forged: MX (where mail is delivered), SPF (which servers may send for you), DKIM (a signature on outgoing mail) and DMARC (what receivers do with mail that fails those checks). If mail goes missing later, see business email not sending or receiving. Our domains and hosting pages cover the services.

2. Website

Start with a simple, fast site: what you do, where you are, opening hours and how to contact you, including a WhatsApp link. Make sure the business owns the content and the hosting account. What a website costs in Tanzania explains the options, and the website launch checklist helps before you go live.

3. Internet and the business network

• A primary connection (fibre if available) and a backup on a different technology, such as 4G.
• A business-grade router that can run separate networks (VLANs) for staff, customers and payment devices, with firewall rules between them. A home router usually cannot.
• A small managed or PoE switch for the till, office computer, access points and cameras. Our explainer on what a network switch is helps you choose.
• Access points near where people work and sit, rather than one router in a corner. For a larger space, read business Wi-Fi network design.

4. POS and mobile money

• Choose a POS system that records sales, stock and payment method, and that can export your data.
• Keep card terminals and POS tills on their own network, separate from customer Wi-Fi.
• Register for business mobile-money payments with the providers your customers use. Train staff to confirm each payment on the till or the official merchant app before handing over goods, never from an SMS shown on a customer's phone.

5. Electronic receipting

Receipting rules differ between the islands and the mainland, so check which apply to you.

• In Zanzibar, the Zanzibar Revenue Authority (ZRA) runs the Virtual Fiscal Management System (VFMS), which generates receipts and records sales transactions, with a POS application and a taxpayer portal. Since the VFMS Amendment Regulations, 2026 (Legal Notice 106 of 2026), businesses providing accommodation and related hospitality services must use a property management system approved by ZRA, and software suppliers serving them must integrate with the ZRA system.
• On the mainland, the Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) requires approved Electronic Fiscal Devices (EFD) or Virtual Fiscal Devices (VFD) from suppliers on its approved list.

Which system and which taxes apply depends on where you are registered, what you sell and your turnover. Confirm your obligations with ZRA, TRA or a tax adviser before you open, and ask your POS supplier whether it connects to the system you must use, so you do not enter every sale twice.

Note Extrion is not a tax adviser and this is not tax advice. Requirements change; check the official sources.

6. Backups

Follow the 3-2-1 idea: three copies of important data, on two different types of storage, with one copy off site (for example in the cloud). Back up accounts, customer records, POS data and documents automatically, and test a restore at least once. Our backup and disaster recovery guide explains the options.

7. Cybersecurity basics

• A unique, strong password for every account, kept in a password manager. Try the password generator.
• Multi-factor authentication on email, banking, hosting and social media.
• Automatic updates on computers and phones.
• A separate account for each staff member; remove access the day someone leaves.
• Staff trained to be suspicious of urgent payment requests and unexpected links.

Run through the cybersecurity checklist once you are set up.

8. CCTV and physical security

Cover the entrance, the till, the stock room and the outside. Keep the recorder locked away and on a UPS, put cameras on their own network, and set up remote viewing safely without opening router ports. Security for shops and offices and viewing CCTV on your phone safely go into detail.

9. Power protection

• A UPS for the ONT, router, switch, main computer, POS and CCTV recorder.
• Surge protection on sensitive equipment.
• An electrician to check earthing and circuits before you plug in.

Warning Do not overload sockets or extension leads, and never work on the mains supply yourself. Use a qualified electrician.

10. Software and accounts

• Use licensed, supported software: an office suite, accounting software, antivirus where appropriate.
• Register every account (Microsoft, Google, hosting, domain, social media) to a business-owned email address, not a member of staff's personal one.
• Write down where each subscription is billed and when it renews.

Phased plan

Before opening (must have): domain and email in your name; internet with backup; a business router with separate networks; POS and mobile-money payments; approved electronic receipting if required; UPS on key equipment; basic CCTV; strong passwords and MFA.

First three months: website live; automatic backups tested; staff accounts and training; alarm or access control if needed.

First year: better Wi-Fi coverage, more cameras, systems that integrate (POS with accounts and stock), and a maintenance arrangement.

Not sure where you are? Take the digital readiness quiz, or plan costs with the IT budget planner.

New business technology checklist

• Check which internet providers serve your address before signing the lease.
• Register the domain in the business's name with a business-controlled contact email.
• Set up business email with MX, SPF, DKIM and DMARC records.
• Launch a simple website and confirm you own the hosting account.
• Install a business-grade router with separate staff, customer and POS networks.
• Arrange a backup internet connection and test the failover.
• Set up POS and mobile-money payments; train staff to verify payments properly.
• Confirm your receipting obligations (ZRA VFMS or TRA EFD/VFD) and use an approved system.
• Turn on automatic backups and test a restore.
• Use a password manager and turn on MFA on every important account.
• Install CCTV at the entrance, till and stock room, with safe remote viewing.
• Put the router, POS, main computer and recorder on a UPS.
• Have an electrician check earthing and circuits.
• Record every account, licence and renewal date in one place.
• In Stone Town, check heritage approval before any external installation.

Common mistakes we see

• Domain and hosting in the developer's name. The business cannot move or renew them without that person.
• Free email addresses for a business. They look less professional and are easier to impersonate.
• A home router for a busy business. It struggles with many users and cannot separate networks.
• Customer Wi-Fi on the same network as the till.
• No UPS. Sales stop and equipment fails with every power cut.
• Backups that have never been tested.
• Shared passwords that nobody changes when staff leave.
• Leaving receipting until after opening.

Relevant Extrion services

• Digital technology management services and managed IT support.
• Technology and digital transformation consultancy if you want help choosing systems before you buy.
• Domains, hosting and website design.
• Network architecture and infrastructure.
• Security auditing and implementation for CCTV and access control.
• Backup and disaster recovery.

The RANS Company Limited office shows a full office set-up Extrion delivered: LAN, fibre, CCTV, IT systems and business applications, systems integration and technology support.

When to call Extrion

If you are opening a business and want the technology done properly from the start, Extrion can plan and install it in one go. See our IT management services or contact us.

This guide is general information. Procedures, product features and firmware change, so check your own equipment's documentation before you start.