Shortly after achieving independence from Britain in the early 1960s, 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.
39,384,223 note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2007 est.)
total: 17.7 years male: 17.4 years female: 17.9 years (2007 est.)
Population growth rate:
2.091% (2007 est.)
Birth rate:
35.95 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Death rate:
13.36 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Net migration rate:
-1.68 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.005 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 71.69 deaths/1,000 live births male: 78.84 deaths/1,000 live births female: 64.33 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 50.71 years male: 49.41 years female: 52.04 years (2007 est.)
Total fertility rate:
4.77 children born/woman (2007 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
8.8% (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
1.6 million (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
160,000 (2003 est.)
Major infectious diseases:
degree of risk: very high food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever vectorborne diseases: malaria, Rift Valley fever and plague are high risks in some locations water contact disease: schistosomiasis (2007)
Nationality:
noun: Tanzanian(s) adjective: Tanzanian
Ethnic groups:
mainland - African 99% (of which 95% are Bantu consisting of more than 130 tribes), other 1% (consisting of Asian, European, and Arab); Zanzibar - Arab, African, mixed Arab and African
Religions:
mainland - Christian 30%, Muslim 35%, indigenous beliefs 35%; Zanzibar - more than 99% Muslim
Languages:
Kiswahili or Swahili (official), Kiunguja (name for Swahili in Zanzibar), English (official, primary language of commerce, administration, and higher education), Arabic (widely spoken in Zanzibar), many local languages note: 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; it has become the lingua franca of central and eastern Africa; the first language of most people is one of the local languages
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write Kiswahili (Swahili), English, or Arabic total population: 78.2% male: 85.9% female: 70.7% (2003 est.)
conventional long form: United Republic of Tanzania conventional short form: Tanzania local long form: Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania local short form: Tanzania former: United Republic of Tanganyika and Zanzibar
Government type:
republic
Capital:
name: Dar es Salaam geographic coordinates: 6 48 S, 39 17 E time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) note: legislative offices have been transferred to Dodoma, which is planned as the new national capital; the National Assembly now meets there on a regular basis
26 April 1964; Tanganyika became independent 9 December 1961 (from UK-administered UN trusteeship); Zanzibar became independent 19 December 1963 (from UK); Tanganyika united with Zanzibar 26 April 1964 to form the United Republic of Tanganyika and Zanzibar; renamed United Republic of Tanzania 29 October 1964
National holiday:
Union Day (Tanganyika and Zanzibar), 26 April (1964)
Constitution:
25 April 1977; major revisions October 1984
Legal system:
based on English common law; judicial review of legislative acts limited to matters of interpretation; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Jakaya KIKWETE (since 21 December 2005); Vice President Dr. Ali Mohammed SHEIN (since 5 July 2001); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government head of government: President Jakaya KIKWETE (since 21 December 2005); Vice President Dr. Ali Mohammed SHEIN (since 5 July 2001) note: Zanzibar elects a president who is head of government for matters internal to Zanzibar; Amani Abeid KARUME was reelected to that office on 30 October 2005 cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president from among the members of the National Assembly elections: president and vice president elected on the same ballot by popular vote for five-year terms (eligible for a second term); election last held 14 December 2005 (next to be held in December 2010); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Jakaya KIKWETE elected president; percent of vote - Jakaya KIKWETE 80.3%, Ibrahim LIPUMBA 11.7%, Freeman MBOWE 5.9%
Legislative branch:
unicameral National Assembly or Bunge (274 seats - 232 elected by popular vote, 37 allocated to women nominated by the president, five to members of the Zanzibar House of Representatives; members serve five-year terms); note - in addition to enacting laws that apply to the entire United Republic of Tanzania, the Assembly enacts laws that apply only to the mainland; Zanzibar has its own House of Representatives to make laws especially for Zanzibar (the Zanzibar House of Representatives has 50 seats elected by universal suffrage to serve five-year terms) elections: last held 14 December 2005 (next to be held in December 2010) election results: National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - CCM 206, CUF 19, CHADEMA 5, other 2, women appointed by the president 37, Zanzibar representatives 5 Zanzibar House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - CCM 30, CUF 19; 1 seat was nullified with a rerun to take place soon
Judicial branch:
Permanent Commission of Enquiry (official ombudsman); Court of Appeal (consists of a chief justice and four judges); High Court (consists of a Jaji Kiongozi and 29 judges appointed by the president; holds regular sessions in all regions); District Courts; Primary Courts (limited jurisdiction and appeals can be made to the higher courts)
Political parties and leaders:
Chama Cha Demokrasia na Maendeleo (Party of Democracy and Development) or CHADEMA [Bob MAKANI]; Chama Cha Mapinduzi or CCM (Revolutionary Party) [Jakaya Mrisho KIKWETE]; Civic United Front or CUF [Ibrahim LIPUMBA]; Democratic Party [Christopher MTIKLA] (unregistered); Tanzania Labor Party or TLP [Augustine Lyatonga MREME]; United Democratic Party or UDP [John CHEYO]
chief of mission: Ambassador Andrew Mhando DARAJA chancery: 2139 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 939-6125 FAX: [1] (202) 797-7408
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Michael L. RETZER embassy: 140 Msese Road, Kinondoni District, Dar es Salaam mailing address: P. O. Box 9123, Dar es Salaam telephone: [255] (22) 2666-010 through 2666-015 FAX: [255] (22) 2666-701, 2668-501
Flag description:
divided diagonally by a yellow-edged black band from the lower hoist-side corner; the upper triangle (hoist side) is green and the lower triangle is blue
general assessment: fair system operating below capacity and being modernized for better service; small aperture terminal (VSAT) system under construction domestic: trunk service provided by open-wire, microwave radio relay, tropospheric scatter, and fiber-optic cable; some links being made digital international: country code - 255; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean, 1 Atlantic Ocean)
total: 11 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 113 1,524 to 2,437 m: 18 914 to 1,523 m: 62 under 914 m: 33 (2006)
Pipelines:
gas 254 km; oil 872 km (2006)
Railways:
total: 3,690 km narrow gauge: 969 km 1.067-m gauge; 2,721 km 1.000-m gauge (2005)
Roadways:
total: 78,891 km paved: 6,808 km unpaved: 72,083 km (2003)
Waterways:
Lake Tanganyika, Lake Victoria, and Lake Nyasa principal avenues of commerce with neighboring countries; rivers not navigable (2005)
Merchant marine:
total: 9 ships (1000 GRT or over) 24,801 GRT/31,507 DWT by type: cargo 1, passenger/cargo 4, petroleum tanker 4 registered in other countries: 2 (Honduras 1, Saint Kitts and Nevis 1) (2006)
Tanzanian People's Defense Force (Jeshi la Wananchi la Tanzania, JWTZ): Army, Naval Wing (includes Coast Guard), Air Defense Command (includes Air Wing), National Service (2007)
Military service age and obligation:
15 years of age for voluntary military service; 18 years of age for compulsory military service upon graduation from secondary school; conscript service obligation - 2 years (2004)
Tanzania still hosts more than a half-million refugees, more than any other African country, mainly from Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, despite the international community's efforts at repatriation; disputes with Malawi over the boundary in Lake Nyasa (Lake Malawi) and the meandering Songwe River remain dormant
Refugees and internally displaced persons:
refugees (country of origin): 393,611 (Burundi), 150,112 (Democratic Republic of the Congo) (2006)
Illicit drugs:
growing role in transshipment of Southwest and Southeast Asian heroin and South American cocaine destined for South African, European, and US markets and of South Asian methaqualone bound for southern Africa; money laundering remains a problem
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