Tanzania: Fact file
| Name | United Republic of Tanzania |
| Area | 945 087 km2 (Murison 2001) |
| Capital | Dodoma |
| Major cities | Dar es Salaam, Arusha, Mbeya, Mwanza, Morogoro, Zanzibar, Tanga (Murison 2001) |
| Boundaries | Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, DRC, Zambia, Malawi, Mozambique, Indian Ocean |
| Population | 37 627 000, 2003 (UNDP 2006) |
| Pop growth rate | 1.7%, 2004-15 (UNDP 2006) |
| Urbanisation | 23.8%, 2004 (UNDP 2006) |
| Life expectancy | Female 46.2 yrs, male 45.6 yrs, 2004 (UNDP 2006) |
| Infant mortality | 78/1000, 2004 (UNDP 2006) |
| HIV/AIDS prevalence | 6.5%, 2003 (UNAIDS 2003) |
| Adult literacy rate | Female 62.2%, male 77.5%; 2004 (UNDP 2006) |
| Legal system | English common law (africa in sight undated) |
| Independence | 6 December 1961, from United Kingdom (Murison 2001) |
| GDP | US$12.956 billion, 2006 (IMF 2006) |
| GDP per capita | US$339.157 annually, 2006 (IMF 2006) |
| GDP growth rate | 5.9%, 2006 (IMF 2006) |
| Main exports | Cashew nuts, coffee, minerals, tobacco, cotton, tea (Murison 2001) |
| Currency | 1 Tanzanian shilling = 100 cents (Murison 2001) |
| Unemployment | 5.1%, 2001 (Government of Tanzania 2003) |
| Inflation rate | 7.5%, 2006 (IMF 2006) |
| External debt ratio | 48.4% of GDP, 2006 (IMF 2007) |
| Ethnic groups | Tanzania has over 120 ethnic groups. The largest, the Sukuma, is 13% of the population, while no other group is more than 5% of the population. Major groups include the Nyamwezi, Chagga, Swahili, Shirazi, Zaramo and the Makonde (East Africa Living Encyclopedia undated) |
| Languages | Official languages Swahili and English; languages with over a million speakers include the Sukuma, Gogo, Nyamwezi, Haya, Makonde and the Ha. Languages with over half a million speakers include Hehe, Nyakyusa-Ngonde, Luguru, Shambala, Bena, Mochi, Nyaturu, Asu, Yao, Mwera and the Iraqw. A further 108 smaller languages are found (Ethnologue.com undated) |
| Religion | Christian 50.4%, Muslims 31.8% and African Traditional 16.1% (Religious Freedom 2001) |
References
AFRICA IN SIGHT UNDATED "Legal System", [www] Legal System (AI) [opens new window] (September 2005).
EAST AFRICA LIVING ENCYCLOPEDIA UNDATED "Tanzania - Ethnic Groups", African Studies Center, [www] http://www.africa.upenn.edu/NEH/tethnic.htm [opens new window] (September 2005).
ETHNOLOGUE.COM UNDATED "Languages of Tanzania" [www] http://www.ethnologue.com/show_country.asp?name=Tanzania [opens new window].
GOVERNMENT OF TANZANIA 2003 "Integrated Labour Force Survey 2000/01", [www] http://www.tanzania.go.tz/pdf%5Cnr.pdf [PDF document, opens new window] (September 2005).
IMF 2007 Regional Economic Outlook: Sub-Saharan Africa, [www] http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/reo/2007/AFR/ENG/sreo0407.pdf, 100 [PDF document, opens new window].
IMF 2006 World Economic Outlook Database, [www] http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2006/02/data/index.aspx [opens new window].
MURISON, K (ed) 2001 Africa South of the Sahara 2002, Europa Publications, 1029, 1042, 1043, 1045.
RELIGIOUS FREEDOM 2001 "Nation profile: Tanzania", [www] http://religiousfreedom.lib.virginia.edu/nationprofiles/Tanzania/rbodies.html [opens new window] (September 2005).
UNAIDS 2006 "Tanzania", [www] http://www.unaids.org/en/Regions_Countries/Countries/tanzania.asp [opens in window] (September 2005).
UNDP 2006 "Tanzania, U. Rep. of", IN Human Development Report 2006, [www] http://hdr.undp.org/hdr2006/statistics/countries/data_sheets/cty_ds_TZA.html [opens new window].