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# Amini: Giving Tanzanians in the Diaspora a powerful voice

## What you need to know:

**He has won many awards for his contribution to communities in the US and the world, with the city of Newark awarding him the Civility Icon Award Winner/Civility Leadership and President Volunteering Award**

Amini Ibrahim Ali has curved a successful profession in corporate security systems in the US, the Washington state-based Tanzanian has been mindful to lend a hand, in 2015 he donated 211 computers to Zanzibar, one of his many endeavours to foster sustainable development in communities and he has touched lives in Senegal, Gambia, Sierra Leone, Cape Verde and other parts of Africa.

He has been awarded numerous times for his contribution to communities across the United States and the world with the city of Newark awarding him the Civility Icon Award Winner / Civility Leadership and President Volunteering Award.

Now Amini has found a way to add his voice to the ever-growing podcast broadcast, with his recently launched ‘Kidodi’ podcast that aims further to connect Tanzanians in the diaspora with their home country and seize opportunities available in business, agriculture and other areas of opportunities that Tanzanians can participate in.

With just a few episodes, he has been able to interview a renown business magnate and economist Paul Mashauri and a Tanzanian American life coach Violet Mwandega.

Amini said his focus areas in the Kidodi podcast will have a wide variety, from economic empowerment, trade and advisory policies, peace and conflict resolutions and marriage and family relations.

He was moved to take podcasting seriously after years of friends telling him he had oratory skills and that he should put them to use.

He said he has always had a knack for presenting and journalism since he was a kid, he took an interest in reading newspapers from the age of 17 and started participating in radio programmes on ‘Sauti ya Ujerumani’ from his time in high school, Amini never took his talent seriously, until people who saw him appear on television urged him to pursue it as a second career.

He has appeared as a guest analyst in international Television programs like The Voice of America (VOA) giving his two cents on various topics.

In March of 2023, He was even invited to VOA’s studio to discuss US Vice President Kamala Harris’ visit to Tanzania.

His contribution to the media is significant and it was only right that is morphed into his own Kidodi podcast to have a constant voice on issues of Tanzanians and Tanzanians in the diaspora.

His dive into the world of podcasting didn’t come lightly, he has invested thousands of US dollars to buy state-of-the-art equipment to start the Kidodi podcast and spent hours reading through books and watching YouTube videos to learn how to operate the equipment.

He said he is enjoying the new path into the creative world of podcasts, he has several high-profile individuals in Tanzania and the United States that he wants to interview, hoping that his listeners will learn a lot from the knowledge his guests will share.

With his energetic voice and vast knowledge, his voice is a fresh addition to the important conversation about Tanzania’s economy and how the diaspora can play a vital role in its development.

Amini is working on the technical side of the podcast, he is currently on the verge of joining the Spotify streaming app and having his programs livestream there.

His studio is still under construction and his recently required cameras and mixers have just been installed, he hopes to buy more stuff as he continues to expand his podcast.

He has an ambitious plan to reach out to every Tanzanian in the US and interview them about their areas of profession.

He is getting a podcast app ‘Riverside’ that would allow him to interview up to three people simultaneously.

For the podcast to be profitable, Amini is currently studying how to market and brand it so that it can appeal to potential sponsors and he has taken up video editing so that he can edit on his own and upload the programs on YouTube.

He plans to stream one of his episodes in the upcoming Tanzania diaspora convention that will be happening on September 26-29 in Austin Texas.

“I will go there with my cameras and all other equipment, I told them, that media presence is vital in such a high profile convection,” he said.

He will be there to interview attendees and livestream the Kidodi podcast there.

“I will have one-on-one interactions with the award nominees who will be coming for the DICOTA awards that will take place at the same venue,” he added.

His efforts have been praised by Tanzanians living in the US, most saying that they needed this channel to have their voice heard, as they eagerly wait to add their opinions to the topics that he will prepare to talk about on his weekly podcast episodes.

Speaking about his upcoming podcast on the economy, Mr Amini believes Tanzania’s economy is in a better place and improving.

He said the economy is heavily reliant on agriculture and he plans to dive deep into the agro-industry and bring in experts to discuss the agro-product export to the US and how the diaspora can take part in the agricultural investment.

“If you look at Arusha, we can have flour mills and farms there like we used to,” he said.

He said most factories in Tanzania import flour from other countries like the US, Ukraine and other countries and he doesn’t see why Tanzania is not self-sufficient.

Agriculture is one of many topics he will be discussing with his guests.

Amini is a Pan Africanist and he is well known within the Tanzanian communities in the United States for his principles and conviction, he believes that transparency will help preserve his integrity as he embarks on his journalism journey, He knows that with his influence growing, he will attract a lot of corporate and political bigwigs who will what to influence on his interviews and reports and he has promised his listeners that will have an unbiased and ethical podcast that will be there to serve Tanzanians.

Amini hopes his Kidodi podcast will help revitalise the talk around Tanzania’s tourism, agriculture and industrial sectors and help Tanzanians in the diaspora have informed advice on how and where to invest in Tanzania by bringing credible guests to the show.

He plans to fully analyse Tanzania’s economic growth and what areas of improvement are necessary to achieve a competitive and striving economy.

He urges Tanzanians in the US to share their experience and skills for the betterment of our nation.

“Staying in seclusion away from fellow Tanzanians in the US, will not benefit anyone, whatever knowledge you have in your profession, please share with other Tanzanians so that we can all learn,” he said.

He insists that Tanzanians speak positively about their country abroad because their word of mouth is the best way to brand our country to the world.

Amini is a nominee for the upcoming DICOTA awards in the Diaspora Advantage category, which spotlights an individual who has demonstrated the ability to leverage their expertise, time and talent to positively impact the lives of individuals, communities and Tanzania.