[5][6] Agriculture, including the production of rice, maize, cotton, sesame, pineapple, cashew, sweet potato, coconut, and mango, is the main source of income for the Bagamoyo district council.

Tourism is a big income earner for the district through its beaches, marine life, mangrove reserves, and coral reefs.

Fishing, hunting, commerce (primarily agro-trade), industrial growth, artisanal and informal activities, and tourism are further economically stable pursuits.

The district's per capita income in 2002 was projected to be 128,000 Tanzanian shillings (approximately $250) annually, significantly less than the US$260 per year average for the country.

Despite the low 2002 statistic, the poverty reduction strategy's implementation has helped boost Bagamoyo's current per capita income levels to more than US$320.

Even while Bagamoyo's bus terminals and important road intersections are buzzing with informal activity, the district council hasn't been helping to regulate or encourage it.

The district's economic development has been hampered by a lack of infrastructure support and weak policies for the industry, which has also caused geographical disarray, particularly among the informal settlements.

The Dar es Salaam-Bagamoyo road was made possible by the adoption of the "Vision 2025" strategy for eradicating poverty, which Bagamoyo district worked on in conjunction with other partners.

More bore wells and rainfall harvesting systems were built by the district council in an effort to increase the water supply.

[11] The original inhabitants of the district were the Zaramo, then followed by the Swahili and eventually colonial period starting with the Portuguese, Arabs and then the Germans and British.