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TANZANIA FACT SHEET


GENERAL

Official name

United Republic of Tanzania

Capital

Dodoma

Area

947,300 Km2  (885,800 land; 61,500 water including the islands of Zanzibar – Unguja, Pemba & Mafia; and Ukerewe in Lake Victoria) (Source : National Bureau of Statistics, July 2019)

Current Weather
(Dar es Salaam)

Maximum temperature: 33 °C
Minimum  temperature: 19 °C

Population

59 million (2020) – 0.77% of  World Population; 24th most populated country in the world;  Annual growth rate: 2.7%

Languages (with %age of speakers, if available)

Kiswahili, a major Bantu language in Roman script, is the national language and lingua franca;   English is widely understood and spoken in major urban areas and places of tourist interest.

Religions (with %age, if available)

Christian 61.4%; Muslim 35.2%; folk religion 1.8%, others 0.2%; unaffiliated 1.4%. 


Zanzibar is almost entirely Muslim.

Currency
Exchange rate with US$ &INR

Tanzanian Shilling (TSh)
Exchange rate: US $1 =  TSh 2,314
Re.1   =  Tsh 29.9935 (Official ROE for May, 2020)

Political Structure

The 1977 Constitution provides for Tanzania to be a unitary, Presidential Republic based on multi-party parliamentary democracy, with the President, elected directly, being eligible for maximum two 5-year terms as the executive Head of State. The President is assisted by the Vice President, Prime Minister and the Council of Ministers.  National Assembly [Bunge] has up to 325 members, 75 special women's representatives apportioned among the political parties based on their election results and 10 Presidential nominees. 
The ruling party, Chama Cha Mapinduzi [CCM or Revolutionary Party], formed by the merger of Tanganyika African National Union (TANU) and Afro-Shirazi Party in 1977 has remained in power since independence.  There are 15 other registered political parties, the leading among them being the Chama Cha Demokrasia na Maendeleo (CHADEMA) and the Civic Union Front [CUF] are the main opposition parties.
Zanzibar has its own Constitution, President, House of Representatives and Flag.


The judiciary has evolved from the British model and  is largely independent.

Head of State & Head of Government

H.E. Dr. John Pombe Joseph Magufuli     (Elected President)

 Prime Minister

H.E. Mr. Kassim Majaliwa  (appointed by the President and is the leader of Government business in the National Assembly)

Minister for Foreign Affairs

Prof. Palamagamba John A. M. Kabudi

 

ECONOMIC INDICATORS

Economy

HDI ranking -159/189 [UNDP Human Development Report 2019]; Ease of doing business ranking 141/190 [World Bank Report 2019]; mainly agrarian – 23% of GDP; limited industry, after long years of socialism adversely affecting the economy, liberalization introduced after mid-80s under IMF guidance; now one of the best performers in Africa recording 6-7% annual average growth for last 7 years before COVID19 pandemic; ICT, mining, construction, roads, financial services, and tourism in particular were growing fast. Relatively slow rate of growth of labour intensive agriculture, which employs three quarters of workforce, explains the slow decline of poverty in rural areas. Natural Resources: Good hydel potential, gold, diamonds, copper, precious and semi precious stones, coal, nickel, cobalt and other minerals, and large deposits of natural gas; 20% of Africa’s total fresh water resources. Agriculture: Cloves, cashew nuts, coconut, cassava, coffee, cotton, corn, tea, sisal, pyrethrum, bananas, mangoes, jackfruit, vegetables, cattle, poultry, etc. Industry: Sugar, cigarettes, sisal twine, cement, textiles, wood products, pharmaceuticals, soap, flour, edible oils, steel, beverages, packaging, foam mattresses, leather incl. Shoes, pipes.

GDP

US $ 59 billion (2019)   -  0.05% of the World Economy

GDP per capita at current prices

US $ 1020 (2018)    Source:  World Bank

GDP Growth Rate

6.8% (Tanzanian Govt) ;   6%  (IMF/WB figures)

Total Trade
Imports
Exports

US$ US $ 13.17 billion  (2019)
US$ 8.24 billion
US$ 4.93 billion

Bilateral Trade
Imports from India
Exports to India

US$ 1993.50 Million (2019) (close to $ 2 billion)
US$ 1126.82 Million (2019)
US$ 866.68 Million (2019)

 

INDIA SPECIFIC INFORMATION

Indian Origin

Approximately 50,000
PIOs:   Mostly  Muslims & Hindus from Gujarat – all in business; There are also sizable number of Punjabi Sikhs & Hindus.

Indian Expatriates

Total: 10,000  Mostly professionals engaged in senior management positions in Indian invested and local companies.  Also technical personnel on shop floor jobs. (Most of them are from South Indian States, Gujarat, Maharashtra, West Bengal etc.)

Indian Organizations

Banks

(i) Bank of Baroda;  (ii) Bank of India; (iii) Canara Bank

 

PSUs

(i) National Minerals Development Corporation (NMDC)
(ii) WAPCOS

 

Others

Private Companies
(i)   TATA Africa Holdings (Tanzania) Ltd.
(ii)  Airtel Tanzania
(iii) Kamal Group
(iv) Tanzindia Assurance Company Limited
(v)   Larsen & Toubro
(vi)  AFCONS
(vii) KEC International Ltd.
(viii) Megha Engineering
(ix)   Hester Biosciences
(x)    Purandare Industries
(xi)   Mahashree Agro Processing Ltd.
(xii) Ashok Leyland, TVS,  Bajaj, Hero Moto Corp. etc. have their agents & distributors in Tanzania
Others


In addition, there are several linguistic and other Indian Associations & Organisations, Hindu Temples & Gurudwaras.

 

21 May 2020

 

India - Tanzania