A witness statement is a written testimony made by a witness before a commissioner for an oath for the purpose of giving evidence in chief before appearing in court for cross-examination. Essentially, it is the testimony in chief of that witness regarding the case. (refer to Total Tanzania Ltd vs Samwel Mgonja (Civil Appeal No.70 of 2018) [2021] TZCA 265)
A party who intends to rely on a witness statement as evidence shall cause his witness to attend for cross-examination. (refer rule 56 (1) of the Commercial Court Rules)