DODOMA, Feb. 20 -- I REMEMBER exactly where I was when I finished reading The Economists assessment of President Samia Suluhu Hassan.

I was sitting in traffic near Kariakoo, watching traders haul sacks of rice and crates of tomatoes across the street, drivers leaning on their horns, the city doing what it always does, moving forward, even when politics feels heavy. That is what struck me most.

The article painted Tanzania as a country sliding toward authoritarian collapse. However, on the ground, life looked far more complicated and far more hopeful. Let us start with the economy, because this is where rhetoric and reality diverge most sharply.

Since Samia took office in 2021, Tanzanias export earnings have risen from roughly 6.4 billi...