Drive-In Socialism: Debating Modernities and Development in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

Abstract

In May 1966, the first—and perhaps only—socialist drive-in on the planet opened in Tanzania, on the site of what is today the American embassy in the nation's capital, Dar es Salaam.1 The brainchild of C. C. Patel, a cunning and well-connected insurance magnate with business, political, and family ties throughout East Africa, with the assistance of Second Vice-President Rashid Kawawa, a former actor, the drive-in was heralded by leading Tanzanian politicians as a stunning example of the modernist development opportunities achievable through African socialism.2 At the ribbon-cutting ceremony, the minister of commerce and cooperatives, Abdulrahman Mohamed Babu, an avowed Marxist and an avid supporter of state socialism, hailed it as an “exemplary project of co-operation” between private enterprise and the socialist state.3 The capital for building and operating the drive-in was provided entirely by Patel. The Tanzanian government acquired a 30 percent stake in the venture through a “donation” of land, while unnamed officials were granted shares in the company in exchange for their support.4 In the spirit of African socialism that was sweeping the nation at the time, the corporate name of the drive-in was Sisi Enterprises, with the “C. C.” of Patel's initials superseded by Sisi, Kiswahili for “we” or “us.”5

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