September 29, 2016/Reuters

Tanzania’s economy grew 7.9 percent in the second quarter of 2016, compared to 5.8 percent during the same time last year, the state-run National Bureau of Statistics said on Thursday.

“The growth of GDP in the second quarter was driven by mining, manufacturing and energy sectors,” Albina Chuwa, the director general of the bureau, told a news conference.

“The increased production of natural gas has significantly boosted electricity generation in the country.”

Tanzania’s growth in the first quarter was 5.5 percent.

(Reporting by Fumbuka Ng’wanakilala; Editing by Katharine Houreld and Raissa Kasolowsky)