Tanzania, May 6 -- Dar es Salaam. Despite facing an annual housing demand of about 200,000 units per year, the appetite of the privates sector for Tanzania's real estate development remains low.

This, real estate developers say, is due to a number of factors, including the absence of a clear definition of what an affordable housing project entails, financing hurdles, unsupportive policies and difficulties in acquiring land.

In the wake of such challenges, developers now say the government should address the challenges to boost the private sector's interest in meeting the demand.

Currently, only three state-owned institutions are developing affordable houses, which include the National Housing Corporation (NHC), Watumishi Housing Invest...