Tanzania Information Guide & Facts

Area: 945,000 sq km (365,000 sq miles)
Population: 33 million
Capital City: Dar es Salaam (population: 3 million). Dodoma is the capital designate and home to Tanzania's legislature.
People: Most are of Bantu origin, with some 120 ethnic groups on the mainland, none of which exceeds 10% of the population. The biggest group is the Sukuma; others include Masai, Haya Gogo, Nyamwezi, Ha, Chagga. There are Asian and expatriate minorities.
Language(s): The official language is Kiswahili. English is also widely spoken.
Religion(s): Islam (45% of population), Christianity (45%) and traditional beliefs (around 10%).
Currency: Tanzania shilling (Tsh)

GEOGRAPHY

Tanzania lies south of the Equator in east Africa. It borders on the Indian Ocean to the east and has land borders with eight countries: anticlockwise from the north, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo (across Lake Tanganyika), Zambia, Malawi and Mozambique. The climate is temperate on the coast and semi-temperate inland.

HISTORY

The modern Tanzanian state is formed from the former colony of Tanganyika, on the mainland, and the former Protectorate of Zanzibar. After World War I, control of Tanganyika passed from Germany to Britain under a League of Nations mandate. After World War II, Tanganyika became a UN trust territory under British control. During the 1940s there were growing demands for self-determination. In 1954, Julius Nyerere founded the Tanganyikan African National Union (TANU), which became the focus of African nationalism. The colonial authorities responded with constitutional changes increasing the voice of the African population and elections were held in 1958-59 and again in 1960. The result was overwhelming victory for TANU. The new Government and Britain agreed at a constitutional conference to full independence for Tanganyika in 1961. Tanganyika became a republic in December 1962 and Nyerere was directly elected as President. In 1965, the constitution was changed to establish a one-party system.Zanzibar became independent from Britain in 1963. In 1964, a revolution by the majority black-African population overthrew the government. The Constitution was annulled. The Sultan (whose family had governed Zanzibar since the eighteenth century) was expelled and many of Zanzibar’s Arab population fled the country. Zanzibar was proclaimed a People's Republic. The union of Tanganyika and Zanzibar took place in April 1964. It was formally named the United Republic of Tanzania in October 1964. Zanzibar has its own constitution and a separate Parliament. On 5 February 1977, the ruling parties of the two countries, merged to form the Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM), or 'Movement for the Revolution'.

Nyerere stepped down as President in 1985 and was succeeded by Ali Hassan Mwinyi. During Mwinyi's Presidency Tanzania began to experiment with economic liberalisation and democratic reform. Benjamin Mkapa was first elected in 1995 and re-elected in 2000.

Basic Economic Facts

GDP: US$ 9.2 bn
GDP per head: US$ 268
Annual Growth: 5.6%
Inflation: 4.6%
Major Industries: textiles, agribusiness, mining, light manufacturing, oil refining
Major trading partners: UK, India, Japan, South Africa and Kenya
Aid & development: Aid flows are a significant part of the economy. About 45% of Tanzania's total budget is funded from external sources. External debt is very high ($7.4 bn).
Exchange rate: £1=Tsh 1640 (May 2003)