Zanzibar building permit: which body approves a build and what it asks for

Who issues a Zanzibar building permit

Zanzibar's Development Control Unit (DCU) calls itself “the solely Government organ responsible for issuance of building permit in Zanzibar” in a document of 2018 (DCU document, checked on 13 November 2026). It cites section 3 of the Town and Country Planning Act (Cap 85 of 1955) and the Development Control Regulation of 2015. We looked for the official texts of both. We could not find this in official sources on 13 November 2026.

The 2021/2022 budget speech of Zanzibar's Minister of Lands and Housing Development reports the work of Kamisheni ya Ardhi, the Commission for Lands, from July 2020 to March 2021 (budget speech, para. 39, checked on 13 November 2026). In that period, the speech says, the Commission issued “vibali vya ujenzi” (building permits, our translation): 547⁠² in all, 446⁠² in Unguja and 101⁠² in Pemba. The speech does not say which plots or projects they covered. We looked for how the Commission's permits and the DCU's role fit together. We could not find this in official sources on 13 November 2026.

The only detailed official procedure we found applies to a separate group of applicants approved by another agency, so we do not reproduce it. We looked for a procedure for a private plot: the office that receives the application, the drawing list, the fee and the decision period. We could not find this in official sources on 13 November 2026.

What this means for a new build

We do not guess the office. For a private plot, we first ask which office will receive the application, and which form and drawing list it uses today. Only then do the permit drawings take their final shape, as described in architecture and design in Zanzibar.

Permits for public facilities and government buildings

A government framework of November 2025 lists a building permit from the Zanzibar Urban Municipal Council (ZUMC) for public facilities such as markets (BIG-Z framework, checked on 13 November 2026).

Wakala wa Majengo Zanzibar (ZBA, zba.go.tz) was set up by Legal Notice No. 50 of 12 May 2017 (ZBA, checked on 13 November 2026). Its services include “Kuidhinisha michoro ya ujenzi ya Taasisi za Serikali na kutoa vibali vya ujenzi wa majengo ya Serikali”. That is, “to approve the building drawings of government institutions and to issue building permits for government buildings” (our translation).

Government buildings and a private house

ZBA's page covers government buildings, so we would not take a private house or villa there. For a private build, we act on what the receiving office confirms and keep its answer, with the date, in the project file.

Stone Town: approval from the STCDA

The old town has its own authority: the Stone Town Conservation and Development Authority (STCDA). The 2025 framework says planning regulations require all works there to get its approval “before commencement of the works in this area” (BIG-Z framework, checked on 13 November 2026).

A bill gazetted on 15 September 2023 aims to clarify the Authority's jurisdiction over the conservation area (Gazette bill, checked on 13 November 2026). We looked for whether the bill became law. We could not find this in official sources on 13 November 2026. The bill gives the Authority's own Act as No. 4 of 2010, while the 2025 framework gives it as Act No. 3 of 1994 (BIG-Z framework, checked on 13 November 2026).

Good practice guidelines by the Aga Khan Trust for Culture call permission from the STCDA “mandatory” before any building work in Stone Town (AKTC guidelines, checked on 13 November 2026). The copy we read has no date.

Work in the old town, in practice

Before any sketch for a Stone Town building, we read the Good Practice Guidelines and ask the Authority which approvals apply. Nothing starts on site without its approval. Stone Town's buildings are described in our guide to Zanzibar architecture.

Environmental impact assessment: when ZEMA is involved

Environmental approval for new development projects is required under the Zanzibar Environmental Management Act, No. 3 of 2015, the 2025 framework says (BIG-Z framework, checked on 13 November 2026). The certificate comes from the Zanzibar Environmental Management Authority (ZEMA). Projects likely to have a significant impact on the environment go through assessment: screening, scoping, an environmental impact statement and review.

The framework's sector lists come from older guidelines and include infrastructure and tourism development projects. Studies are done by holders of ZEMA's EIA expert certificate (BIG-Z framework, checked on 13 November 2026). We looked for ZEMA's current list of projects that need a full assessment. We could not find this in official sources on 13 November 2026.

How we plan around it

For hotel construction in Zanzibar or another large build, we ask early whether the project falls under screening. We do not write the assessment; the certificate holder does, and each drawing revision goes to that holder too.