Tanzania

Shortly after independence, Tanganyika and Zanzibar merged to form the nation of Tanzania in 1964. One-party rule came to an end in 1995 with the first democratic elections held in the country since the 1970s. Zanzibar's semi-autonomous status and popular opposition have led to two contentious elections since 1995, which the ruling party won despite international observers' claims of voting irregularities.

United Republic of Tanzania is a republic in southeast Africa, bordered on the north by Lake Victoria and Uganda, on the northeast by Kenya, on the east by the Indian Ocean, on the south by Mozambique, Lake Nyasa, and Malawi, on the southwest by Zambia, and on the west by Lake Tanganyika, Burundi, and Rwanda. The country includes the islands of Zanzibar and Pemba, and other offshore islands in the Indian Ocean. The total area of Tanzania is 945,100 sq km (364,900 sq mi), of which 942,453 sq km (363,882 sq mi) is on the mainland. The designated capital of Tanzania is Dodoma, but many government facilities have yet to transfer from the former capital of Dar es Salaam.

As early as the 8th century ad, Zanzibar and other islands off the coast of East Africa became bases for Arab merchants trading with the mainland, which they called the Land of Zanj (Arabic for “blacks”), or Azania. In the course of time some of these—including Zanzibar and Kilwa—became independent Muslim sultanates with mixed Arab and African populations. In the 16th and 17th centuries they were dominated by the Portuguese, and in the 18th century, Zanzibar and Pemba were subject to the sultans of Masqat and Oman. In 1832 Sayyid Sa‘id ibn Sultan, the sultan of Oman, established his residence on Zanzibar, where he promoted the production of cloves and palm oil and carried on an active slave trade with the interior. His domain, which included parts of the mainland, was a commercial rather than a territorial empire. His successors did not have a legal claim to the lands they controlled commercially, and did not have the power to keep the Germans and British from annexing them when the European nations began dividing up Africa later in the century. Zanzibar was declared a British protectorate in 1890; the sultan was retained for ceremonial purposes, but most major decisions were made by the British resident.

Most of the known history of Tanganyika before the 19th century concerns the coastal area, although the interior has a number of important prehistoric sites, including the Olduvai Gorge. Trading contacts between Arabia and the East African coast existed by the 1st century AD, and there are indications of connections with India. The coastal trading centres were mainly Arab settlements, and relations between the Arabs and their African neighbours appear to have been fairly friendly. After the arrival of the Portuguese in the late 15th century, the position of the Arabs was gradually undermined, but the Portuguese made little attempt to penetrate into the interior. They lost their foothold north of the Ruvuma River early in the 18th century as a result of an alliance between the coastal Arabs and the ruler of Muscat on the Arabian Peninsula. This link remained extremely tenuous, however, until French interest in the slave trade from the ancient town of Kilwa, on the Tanganyikan coast, revived the trade in 1776. Attention by the French also aroused the sultan of Muscat's interest in the economic possibilities of the East African coast, and a new Omani governor was appointed at Kilwa.

German East Africa became a major theater of operations, in which General Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck tied down about a quarter of a million British and colonial troops with a makeshift force of 12,000 Africans and 4,000 Germans before finally capitulating in 1918. Tanganyika then became a mandate of the League of Nations under British tutelage. The actions of the British governors in the 1920s kept European colonization to a minimum; thus, unlike neighboring Kenya, Tanganyika did not develop a race problem. The results of this enlightened attitude were evident in the transition period before independence. The major party, the Tanganyika African National Union (TANU), led by Julius Nyerere, was a moderate organization; its appeal cut across ethnic and national lines. Nyerere became prime minister when Tanganyika was granted independence in December 1961; one year later the new nation adopted a republican constitution, with Nyerere as its president.

Plains along coast; central plateau; highlands in north, south.

Except for the narrow coastal belt of the mainland and the offshore islands, most of Tanzania lies above 600 feet (200 metres) in elevation. Vast stretches of plains and plateaus contrast with spectacular relief features, notably Africa's highest mountain, Kilimanjaro (19,340 feet [5,895 metres]), and the world's second deepest lake, Lake Tanganyika (4,710 feet [1,436 metres] deep). The East African Rift System runs in two north–south-trending branches through Tanzania, leaving many narrow, deep depressions that are often filled by lakes. One branch, the Western Rift Valley, runs along the western frontier and is marked by Lakes Tanganyika and Rukwa

mainland - native African 99% (of which 95% are Bantu consisting of more than 130 tribes), other 1% (consisting of Asian, European, and Arab); Zanzibar - Arab, native African, mixed Arab and native African

Tanzania is extremely heterogeneous, with more than 120 different indigenous African peoples as well as small groups of Asians and Europeans. As early as 5000 BC, San-type hunting bands inhabited the country. The Sandawe hunters of northern Tanzania are thought to be their descendants. By 1000 BC, agriculture and pastoral practices were being introduced through the migration of Cushitic people from Ethiopia. The Iraqw, Mbugu, Gorowa, and Burungi have Cushitic origins. About AD 500, iron-using Bantu agriculturalists coming from the west and south started displacing or absorbing the San hunters and gatherers; at roughly the same time, Nilotic pastoralists entered the area from the southern Sudan.

Today the majority of Tanzanians are of Bantu descent; the Sukuma constitute the largest group, and others are the Nyamwezi, Hehe, Nyakyusa, Makonde, Yao, Haya, Chaga, Gogo, and Ha. Nilotic peoples are represented by the Masai, Arusha, Samburu, and Baraguyu. No one group has been politically or culturally dominant, although the tribes that were subject to Christian missionary influence and Western education during the colonial period (notably the Chaga and Haya) are now disproportionately represented in the government administration and cash economy.

There are also Asian and European minorities. During the colonial period, Asian immigration was encouraged, and Asians dominated the up-country produce trade. Coming mostly from Gujurat in India, they form several groups distinguished by religious belief: the Isma'ilis, Bohras, Sikhs, Punjabis, and Goans. Since independence the Asian population has steadily declined due to emigration. The European population, never large because Tanganyika was not a settler colony, was made up primarily of English, Germans, and Greeks. In the postindependence period, a proliferation of different European, North American, and Japanese expatriates connected with foreign aid projects have made Tanzania their temporary residence.

Kiswahili or Swahili (official), Kiunguju (name for Swahili in Zanzibar), English (official, primary language of commerce, administration, and higher education), Arabic (widely spoken in Zanzibar), many local languages.

Kiswahili (Swahili) is the mother tongue of the Bantu people living in Zanzibar and nearby coastal Tanzania; although Kiswahili is Bantu in structure and origin, its vocabulary draws on a variety of sources, including Arabic and English, and it has become the lingua franca of central and eastern Africa; the first language of most people is one of the local languages.

The population of Tanzania consists mostly of members of more than 120 black African groups, the majority of which speak a Bantu language.The largest ethnic groups are the Sukuma and the Nyamwezi, each representing about a fifth of the country’s population. Other groups of significant size include the Haya, Ngonde, Chagga, Gogo, Ha, Hehe, Nyakyusa, Nyika, Ngoni, Yao, and Masai.

Olduvai Gorge, in the Great Rift Valley, is the site of the discovery of some of the earliest known remains of human ancestry, dating back 1,750,000 years.

The ancient in-migration of Cushitic, Nilotic, and Bantu peoples, displacing the native San-type population, resulted in a complex agglomeration of tribal communities practicing complementary forms of pastoral and agricultural livelihoods.

In the last 500 years, Portuguese, Arab, Indian, German, and British traders and colonists have added to the mosaic.

Today Tanzania's multiethnic and multiracial population practices a variety of traditions and customs that form a rich cultural heritage.

The role of kin is central to Tanzanian social and recreational life. Visiting kin on joyous and sorrowful family occasions is given high priority despite the inconvenience caused by a relatively undeveloped transport system. Educated members of the extended family are frequently held responsible for the education and welfare of younger siblings.

Football (soccer) is a popular sport. In international competitions, Tanzanian sportsmen have excelled in long-distance running.

Oral storytelling traditions and tribal dancing are an important part of the cultural life of the rural population.

The University of Dar es Salaam has an active theatre arts group. Among the visual arts, Makonde carvers from southern Tanzania are renowned for their abstract ebony carvings, and Zanzibar is famous for its elaborately carved doors and Arab chests. Basket weaving, pottery, and musical instrument making are prevalent in many rural areas.

Tanzania is one of the poorest countries in the world. The economy is heavily dependent on agriculture, which accounts for half of GDP, provides 85% of exports, and employs 80% of the work force. Topography and climatic conditions, however, limit cultivated crops to only 4% of the land area. Industry is mainly limited to processing agricultural products and light consumer goods. The World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, and bilateral donors have provided funds to rehabilitate Tanzania's deteriorated economic infrastructure. Growth in 1991-2001 featured a pickup in industrial production and a substantial increase in output of minerals, led by gold. Natural gas exploration in the Rufiji Delta looks promising and production could start by 2002. Recent banking reforms have helped increase private sector growth and investment. Continued donor support and solid macroeconomic policies should support steady real GDP growth of 5% in 2002 and 2003.

The economy of Tanzania is primarily agricultural. Some 84 percent of the economically active population is engaged in farming, forestry, or fishing, and agricultural products account for a significant share of annual exports. The country is the world’s largest producer of sisal and cloves. With per capita income an estimated $270 a year, Tanzania is one of the poorest countries in the world.

Government programs once called for a form of socialism, and most banks were nationalized in 1967. An economic recovery program announced in the mid-1980s generated increases in agricultural production and financial support from donor nations, and the government has adopted financial restraints recommended by the International Monetary Fund. The estimated national budget in 1996 included $733 million in revenues and $768 million in expenditures.

The Tanzanian economy is overwhelmingly agrarian in nature and reflects the leadership's political commitment to socialist development and central planning. Agriculture constitutes over half of the gross domestic product (GDP) and some 80 percent of export earnings, and it provides a livelihood for about nine-tenths of the economically active population. Industry accounts for less than 10 percent of the GDP, and mining less than 1 percent, whereas services, including public administration, produce approximately one-third of the GDP. A number of industries and public services were nationalized at the time of the Arusha Declaration in 1967, when the intention to build a socialist state was announced.

Tanzanian shilling (TZS):

This info is dated 19 March 2003