Zanzibar contractors registration board: how to check a contractor

The Zanzibar Contractors Registration Board and the CRB

The 2021/2022 budget speech of Zanzibar's Minister of Lands and Housing Development lists “Bodi Usajili Wakandarasi” among the ministry's departments and institutions (our translation). The speech to the House of Representatives states: “Bodi ya Usajili Wakandarasi imeanzishwa kwa Sheria ya Usajili wa Wakandarasi namba 6 ya mwaka 2008” (budget speech, checked on 13 November 2026). That is, the board was established by the Contractors Registration Act No. 6 of 2008 (our translation).

The ministry's budget speech for 2022/2023 names the same Act (budget speech 2022/2023, checked on 13 November 2026). We looked for the text of that Act on the House of Representatives website. We could not find this in official sources on 13 November 2026.

A regulation gazetted on 20 June 2025 names an “officer from the Zanzibar Contractors Registration Board” as a member of a government committee (regulation of 20 June 2025, reg. 23(1)(c), checked on 13 November 2026). It is the newest official source on the board that we found, and this guide uses the English name it gives.

A second body has almost the same name. The Contractors Registration Board at crb.go.tz carries the header of the United Republic of Tanzania (crb.go.tz home page, checked on 13 November 2026). Its introduction says the board “was established by the Contractors Registration Act, Cap 235, (RE) 2002” (board introduction, checked on 13 November 2026).

We looked for an official text of Cap 235 that says whether the Act applies in Zanzibar. We could not find this in official sources on 13 November 2026.

Who the Zanzibar Contractors Registration Board registers and supervises

The 2021/2022 speech explains why the board was set up: “kusimamia kampuni za ujenzi (Wakandarasi) na miradi ya ujenzi inayotekelezwa nchini ili kuzingatia viwango na usalama”. That is, to supervise construction companies and building projects in the country, so that standards and safety are kept (our translation; budget speech, checked on 13 November 2026).

The speech gives the board's figures for July 2020 to March 2021 (budget speech, checked on 13 November 2026). It registered 38⁠⁷ new contractors: 14⁠⁷ foreign, 16⁠⁷ from Tanzania Bara (mainland Tanzania) and eight⁠⁷ from Zanzibar (our translation).

Among the board's plans for 2021/2022, the speech lists a review of building standards for the different classes (madaraja) of contractors (our translation; budget speech, checked on 13 November 2026). The speech does not list the classes. We looked for a list of them in other official sources. We could not find this in official sources on 13 November 2026.

What we ask before work starts

We ask every firm that will work on your site which board registered it, under which Act and with which registration number. From a firm that names the Zanzibar Contractors Registration Board, we also ask for a copy of its registration papers.

How to look up a contractor by registration number in the CRB list

Contractors are listed in a table on the CRB website. Its columns are company name, registration number, managing director, type of contractor, class, category, physical address, postal address and town (contractors table on crb.go.tz, checked on 13 November 2026). There is no column for registration status or an expiry date. An entry also does not show whether the firm is registered with the Zanzibar Contractors Registration Board.

For a search, the site's help page points to the Contractors section (FAQs on crb.go.tz, checked on 13 November 2026). There, it says, “Enter either Company Name or Registration Number or keyword of the Company Name or registration number to Search”. Each row of the table links to a details page for that firm (contractors table, checked on 13 November 2026).

For the register of the Zanzibar Contractors Registration Board, we looked for a similar open search. We could not find this in official sources on 13 November 2026. We could not find whether CRB registration covers Zanzibar in official sources on 13 November 2026.

How we use the table on your project

If a firm we bring onto your site has a CRB entry, we send you a screenshot of it with the date we opened it. We compare the name, type of contractor, class and category in the entry with the firm's papers. When another contractor builds and we act for you, what we check on their site is set out in construction project management in Zanzibar.

The company page, about Coral & Teak, explains who we are, and our process from plot to handover sets out the stages of a build.

Classes and categories in the CRB system

Firms are sorted by category, type and class on the CRB registration page (registration of contractors on crb.go.tz, checked on 13 November 2026). A firm is in the local category when citizens of the United Republic of Tanzania own most of its authorised shares. If they do not, the firm is eligible for the foreign category.

Matching a class to the work

Next to each part of the estimate we write which firm will do it and the type and class shown in the register that holds its entry. The parts themselves are set out in what an estimate is made of.

Projects are registered as well as firms

One of the functions the board at crb.go.tz lists for itself is “To register construction projects for the purpose of regulation” (board introduction, checked on 13 November 2026). The 2022/2023 speech sets out a plan for the Zanzibar Contractors Registration Board to continue registering contractors and their projects (our translation; budget speech 2022/2023, checked on 13 November 2026). Neither source describes the forms for a private house or villa.

Where this step sits in our programme

When a board asks for a project to be registered, we add that step to the agreed work programme, next to the building permit. The permit is covered in building permits in Zanzibar.

Architects, engineers and quantity surveyors: a separate board

The Architects, Engineers and Quantity Surveyors Registration Board says it was “established under the Architects, Engineers, and Quantity Surveyors Registration Act No. 5 of 2008” (AEQSRB, checked on 13 November 2026). Its website publishes lists of registered consulting firms, quantity surveyors, engineers, interior designers, architectural technologists and architects (AEQSRB lists, checked on 13 November 2026). Contractors are not among them.

The Act sets a rule on supervision in its section on offences (Act No. 5 of 2008, checked on 13 November 2026). Section 37(4) covers a person who “constructs a building above the ground, which is one storey⁠¹⁰ in height, modern or traditional”. Such a person “shall be under the supervision of a professional Registered Architect, Engineer or Quantity Surveyor”.

Where the designer appears in our papers

The name of the architect or engineer responsible for your drawings goes on the drawing set we hand you. You can then look that name up on the board's lists. The design work itself is described on architecture and design in Zanzibar.