1.
Tanzania
–
Tanzania /ˌtænzəˈniːə/, officially the United Republic of Tanzania, is a country in Eastern Africa within the African Great Lakes region. Parts of the country are in Southern Africa, Mount Kilimanjaro, Africas highest mountain, is in northeastern Tanzania. Tanzanias population of 51.82 million is diverse, composed of ethnic, linguistic. Dar es Salaam, the capital, retains most government offices and is the countrys largest city, principal port. Tanzania is a one party dominant state with the Chama Cha Mapinduzi party in power, from its formation until 1992, it was the only legally permitted party in the country. Elections for president and all National Assembly seats were last held in October 2015, the CCM holds approximately 75% of the seats in the assembly. Prehistoric population migrations include Southern Cushitic speakers, who are ancestral to the Iraqw, Gorowa, and Burunge and who moved south from Ethiopia into Tanzania. Based on linguistic evidence, there may also have two movements into Tanzania of Eastern Cushitic people at about 4,000 and 2,000 years ago. These movements took place at about the time as the settlement of the iron-making Mashariki Bantu from West Africa in the Lake Victoria. They brought with them the west African planting tradition and the staple of yams. They subsequently migrated out of these regions across the rest of Tanzania, European colonialism began in mainland Tanzania during the late 19th century when Germany formed German East Africa, which gave way to British rule following World War I. The mainland was governed as Tanganyika, with the Zanzibar Archipelago remaining a separate colonial jurisdiction, following their respective independence in 1961 and 1963, the two entities merged in April 1964 to form the United Republic of Tanzania. Tanzania is mountainous and densely forested in the northeast, where Mount Kilimanjaro is located, three of Africas Great Lakes are partly within Tanzania. To the north and west lie Lake Victoria, Africas largest lake, and Lake Tanganyika, the eastern shore is hot and humid, with the Zanzibar Archipelago just offshore. The Menai Bay Conservation Area is Zanzibars largest marine protected area, over 100 different languages are spoken in Tanzania, making it the most linguistically diverse country in East Africa. Among the languages spoken in Tanzania are all four of Africas language families, Bantu, Cushitic, Nilotic, Swahili and English are Tanzanias official languages. In connection with his Ujamaa social policies, President Nyerere encouraged the use of Swahili, approximately 10% of Tanzanians speak Swahili as a first language, and up to 90% speak it as a second language. Most Tanzanians thus speak both Swahili and a language, many educated Tanzanians are trilingual, also speaking English
2.
Costa Rica
–
It has a population of around 4.5 million, of whom nearly a quarter live in the metropolitan area of the capital and largest city, San José. Costa Rica was sparsely inhabited by people before coming under Spanish rule in the 16th century. Since then, Costa Rica has remained among the most stable, prosperous, following a brief civil war, it permanently abolished its army in 1949, becoming one of only a few sovereign nations without a standing army. Costa Rica is a member of the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie. The country has consistently performed favourably in the Human Development Index, placing 69th in the world as of 2015 and its rapidly developing economy, once heavily dependent on agriculture, has diversified to include sectors such as finance, pharmaceuticals, and ecotourism. Costa Rica is known for its environmental policies, being the only country to meet all five UNDP criteria established to measure environmental sustainability. Costa Rica officially plans to become a country by 2021. In 2012, it became the first country in the Americas to ban recreational hunting, historians have classified the indigenous people of Costa Rica as belonging to the Intermediate Area, where the peripheries of the Mesoamerican and Andean native cultures overlapped. More recently, pre-Columbian Costa Rica has also described as part of the Isthmo-Colombian Area. The oldest evidence of occupation in Costa Rica is associated with the arrival of various groups of hunter-gatherers about 10,000 to 7,000 years BCE in the Turrialba Valley. The presence of Clovis culture type spearheads and arrows from South America opens the possibility that, in this area, agriculture became evident in the populations that lived in Costa Rica about 5,000 years ago. They mainly grew tubers and roots, for the first and second millennia BCE there were already settled farming communities. These were small and scattered, although the transition from hunting and gathering to agriculture as the livelihood in the territory is still unknown. The earliest use of pottery appears around 2,000 to 3,000 BCE, shards of pots, cylindrical vases, platters, gourds and other forms of vases decorated with grooves, prints, and some modelled after animals have been found. The impact of indigenous peoples on modern Costa Rican culture has been small compared to other nations. Costa Rica was described as the poorest and most miserable Spanish colony in all America by a Spanish governor in 1719, for all these reasons, Costa Rica was, by and large, unappreciated and overlooked by the Spanish Crown and left to develop on its own. Costa Rica became a democracy with no oppressed mestizo or indigenous class. It was not long before Spanish settlers turned to the hills, where they found rich volcanic soil, like the rest of Central America, Costa Rica never fought for independence from Spain
3.
Arusha Region
–
Arusha Region is one of Tanzanias 30 administrative regions. Its capital and largest city is the city of Arusha, major towns include Monduli, Namanga, Longido, and Loliondo to the north, Mto wa Mbu and Karatu to the west, and Usa River to the east. The region is comparable in size to the land and water areas of the United States state of Maryland. Arusha Region is a global tourist destination and is the center of the northern Tanzania safari circuit, the national parks and reserves in this region include Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Arusha National Park, the Loliondo Game Controlled Area, and part of Lake Manyara National Park. Remains of 600-year-old stone structures are found at Engaruka, just off the road between Mto wa Mbu and Lake Natron. With a HDI of 0.721, Arusha is one among the most developed regions of Tanzania, much of the present area of Arusha Region used to be Maasai land. The Maasai are still the dominant community in the region and their influence is reflected in the present names of towns, regional culture, cuisine, and geographical features. The administrative region of Arusha existed in 1922 while mainland Tanzania was a British mandate under the League of Nations, in 1948, the area was in the Northern Province, which includes the present day regions of Manyara and Kilimanjaro. In 1966, under the newly independent Tanzanian government, Arusha was given its own regional status, in 2002, Manyara Region was created and was split from Arusha Region. Portions of the former Arusha Region districts of Kiteto, Babati, Mbulu, Hanang, Arusha was the largest region in Tanzania from 1966-2002. The Great Rift Valley runs through the middle of the region north-to-south, oldonyo Lengai is an active volcano to the north of the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. Altitudes throughout the region vary widely, but much of it ranges from 900 to 1,600 metres in elevation, Mount Meru, the second highest mountain in Tanzania after Mount Kilimanjaro, peaks at 4,655 metres. Arusha Region has the highest number of craters and extinct volcanoes in Tanzania, other geographical features include the Monduli Mountains, Mount Loolmalasin, Mount Longido, and the Olduvai Gorge. The city of Arusha, the capital of the region, is located at the foot of Mount Meru. The majority of Arusha residents live in the city and the southeastern part of Arusha Region. Arusha Region is divided into one city and six districts, each administered by a council, the region is inhabited by various ethnolinguistic groups and communities. Among these are the Iraqw, Arusha, Maasai, Wameru, Sonjo, Chagga, Pare, nyama Choma, northern Tanzanian barbecue, is a popular dish among some communities in the Arusha Region, particularly the Maasai. Nyama Choma is properly served with a side of Pili Pili sauce, the A-23 Arusha-Himo road runs east-west and enters the region near Kilimanjaro International Airport
4.
Dar es Salaam
–
Dar es Salaam is the largest city of Tanzania and the largest city in eastern Africa by population, as well as a regionally important economic centre. It is Tanzanias most prominent city in arts, fashion, media, music, film and it is Tanzanias leading financial centre with the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange being the countrys first and most important stock exchange market. Dar es Salaam is the largest and most populous Swahili-speaking city in the world, the city is the leading arrival and departure point for most tourists who visit tourism areas in Tanzania like the national parks for safaris and the islands of Zanzibar. The region had a population of 4,364,541 as of the official 2012 census, although Dar es Salaam lost its status as the nations capital to Dodoma in 1974, it remains the focus of the permanent central government bureaucracy. In the 19th century, Mzizima was a fishing village on the periphery of Indian Ocean trade routes. In 1865 or 1866, Sultan Majid bin Said of Zanzibar began building a new city very close to Mzizima, the name is commonly translated as abode/home of peace, based on the Arabic dar, and the Arabic es salaam. Dar es Salaam fell into decline after Majids death in 1870, German East Africa was captured by the British during World War I and became Tanganyika, with Dar es Salaam the administrative and commercial centre. Under British indirect rule, separate European and African areas developed at a distance from the city centre, the citys population also included a large number of south Asians. After World War II, Dar es Salaam experienced a period of rapid growth, political developments, including the formation and growth of the Tanganyika African National Union, led to Tanganyika attaining independence from colonial rule in December 1961. Dar es Salaam continued to serve as its capital, even when in 1964 Tanganyika, in 1973, however, provisions were made to relocate the capital to Dodoma, a more centrally located city in the interior. The relocation process has not yet completed, and Dar es Salaam remains Tanzanias primary city. In 1967, the Tanzanian government declared the Ujamaa policy, that set Tanzania into a socialist path, the move slowed down the potential growth of the city as the government encouraged people not to move in cities but stay in Ujamaa socialist villages. But by 1980s the Ujamaa policy proved to be a failure into combating increasing poverty, hunger and this led to the 1980s liberalization policy that virtually ended socialism and its spirit within the Tanzanias government. The move led to increasing migration of rural dwellers from rural areas into cities with Dar es Salaam becoming the city in receiving migrants from rural areas. Until the late 1990s, Dar es Salaam was not put into the category as Africas leading cities like Nairobi, Johannesburg, Lagos. The CBD skyline hosts tall buildings, among them the 35-floor PSPF Tower, finished in 2015, Dar es Salaam is located at 6°48 South, 39°17 East, on a natural harbour on the eastern coast of Africa, with sandy beaches in some areas. Administratively, the Dar es Salaam region is divided into five districts, Ilala, Kinondoni, Ubungo, Kigamboni, Dar es Salaam is the largest city in Tanzania. With a population increase of 5.6 percent per year from 2002 to 2012, the city is the third fastest growing in Africa, after Bamako and Lagos
5.
Njombe Region
–
Njombe Region is one of the thirty administrative regions of Tanzania. It was established in March 2012, when it was split off from Iringa Region, the regions capital is Njombe town. The newly established Njombe region is an upcoming tourism attractive area, ideal for domestic, the name Njombe originated from a name of a tree species called ‘Mdzombe’ for singular and Mazdombe for plural which then dominant in one of its localities known as Mdandu. And it was in Mdandu where the Germans chose to build an administrative and defence block, best for tourist investment, Njombe region stands among competitive regions for tourist development by its diversified natural and historical attractions. Identified among the top sites in Njombe region are the Nyumba Nitu natural forest, currently under conservation. Nyumba Nitu, meaning a Black house, consists of natural caves, the forest has its root from Nyumba Nitu caves, since the caves are very dark for one to see and they are associated by the myth of black cows which dwelt in the cave. Inside the caves, local Wabena people hid or took refugee during tribal wars between rival Wahehe fighters during Chief Mkwawa conquests in Iringa region, way back in last quarter of 19th century, the caves also provided safe hideout from German forces during the Maji Maji uprising. A miracle rock or a big stone is the other. Known as “Lwivala Stone”, or Glittering stone, the slab-rock has a similar to a map of Africa. It is located in Lwivala natural forest which local communities perform rituals and this 7. 5-acre rock is grown with short grass with glittering outgrows during rainy season. There are some inscriptions which local communities believe to have appeared naturally. It is located in Igodiva village, about three kilometres from Nyumba Nitu forest, wattle and tea estates are the other attractions pulling tourists to Njombe region. Excursions and walking through expansive tea and wattle estates provide a view of the southern highlands of Tanzania. Luhuji waterfall in Njombe town is a thrilling tourist attraction, best for filming, located in Luhuji River, the waterfall and rocks provide beautiful scenery for international film or movie makers. Old buildings including a Catholic Cathedral and a Lutheran church are other attractions available in Njombe town, an early German built Primary Magistrate’s Court and a German administrative block are historical sites found in Njombe Township. A grave of the local Wabena warriors killed during the Maji Maji uprising in 1906 is found in Utengule village, the grave bears hundreds of bodies of the fallen locals who were killed by German forces. New in administration, Njombe region boasts with several attractions which are still under development, lake Nyasa beaches in Manda, beautiful scenery of the Eastern Arm of the Rift Valley escarpment and village settlements are tourist pulling magnets in the region. Mpanga Kipengele ranges and Kitulo National Park are natural attractions available in Njombe region, paved Trunk road T1 from Dar es Salaam to the Zambia border passes through the northern part of the region
6.
Zanzibar
–
Zanzibar is a semi-autonomous part of Tanzania in East Africa. It is composed of the Zanzibar Archipelago in the Indian Ocean, 25–50 kilometres off the coast of the mainland, the capital is Zanzibar City, located on the island of Unguja. Its historic centre is Stone Town, which is a World Heritage Site, the name Zanzibar is apparently derived from the Persian zang-bâr signifying black coast. Zanzibars main industries are spices, raffia, and tourism, in particular, the islands produce cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon, and black pepper. For this reason, the islands, together with Tanzanias Mafia Island, are called the Spice Islands. Zanzibar is the home of the endemic Zanzibar red colobus monkey, the Zanzibar servaline genet, the word Zanzibar came from Arabic Zanjibār, which is in turn from Persian Zang-bār, a compound of Zang + bār. The presence of microlithic tools suggest that it has been home to humans for at least 20,000 years, a Greco-Roman text between the 1st and 3rd centuries AD, the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea, mentioned the island of Menuthias, which is probably Unguja. Little is known about the history of Zanzibar between the time of the Periplus and the death of Muhammad in 632 CE, from that point forward, wars in Asia and increasing trade motivated Persians, Arabs, and Indians to visit or migrate to Zanzibar. Persian traders used Zanzibar as a base for voyages between the Middle East, India, and Africa and they established garrisons on the islands and built the first Zoroastrian fire temples and mosques in the Southern Hemisphere. The impact of these traders and immigrants on the Swahili culture is uncertain, during the Middle Ages, Zanzibar and other settlements on the Swahili Coast were advanced. The littoral contained a number of autonomous trade cities and these towns grew in wealth as the Bantu Swahili people served as intermediaries and facilitators to local, Arab, Persian, Indonesian, Malaysian, Indian, and Chinese merchants. This interaction contributed in part to the evolution of the Swahili culture, although a Bantu language, Swahili as a consequence today includes some elements that were borrowed from other civilizations, particularly Arabic loanwords. With the wealth that they had acquired through trade, some of the Arab traders also became rulers of the coastal cities, vasco da Gamas visit in 1498 marked the beginning of European influence. In 1503 or 1504, Zanzibar became part of the Portuguese Empire when Captain Ruy Lourenço Ravasco Marques landed and demanded and received tribute from the sultan in exchange for peace, Zanzibar remained a possession of Portugal for almost two centuries. It initially became part of the Portuguese province of Arabia and Ethiopia and was administered by a governor general, around 1571, Zanzibar became part of the western division of the Portuguese empire and was administered from Mozambique. It appears, however, that the Portuguese did not closely administer Zanzibar, the first English ship to visit Unguja, the Edward Bonaventure in 1591, found that there was no Portuguese fort or garrison. The extent of their occupation was a depot where produce was purchased and collected for shipment to Mozambique. In other respects, the affairs of the island were managed by the local king and this hands-off approach ended when Portugal established a fort on Pemba around 1635 in response to the Sultan of Mombasas slaughter of Portuguese residents several years earlier
7.
Singida Region
–
Singida is one of the regions of Tanzania. The regional capital is the municipality of Singida and it is one of the poorest regions in Tanzania. It is accessible from Arusha through Babati and Katesh in Manyara Region, Dar es salaam, Iringa and Mbeya through Dodoma and Tabora, Shinyanga and Mwanza through Nzega in Tabora Region. Although not all the roads are all the year round, they expected to be so in the near future when the connections to Arusha, Dodoma. Otherwise the connection to Shinyanga, Mwanza and Tabora via Nzega is passable all the year round, Singida region is located below the equator between latitudes 3052’ and 7034’. Longitudinally the region is situated between 33027’ and 350 26’ east of Greenwich, to the north, it shares borders with Shinyanga Region, Arusha, Manyara and on the east borders Dodoma. To the south it borders with Iringa and Mbeya while on the west there is Tabora Region. Singida region has a surface area of 49,438 km2, out of which 95.5 km2 or 0.19 percent are covered by water bodies of Lake Eyasi, Kitangiri, Singidani, Kindai. The remaining 49,342.5 km2 is land area, Singida region is deemed to be neither small nor big. It is the 13th in size and occupies about 5.6 percent of mainland Tanzanias total area of 881,289 km2, in regard to climate there are two key features which are temperature and rainfall. Total rainfall ranges from 500 mm to 800 mm per annum, there are two rather well defined seasons, the short rainy season during the months of December to March or sometimes goes to April and the long dry season from April to November. The mean annual rainfall is in the range of 600 mm to 800 mm over large areas of Iramba, the regional mean annual average rainfall is 700 mm. The temperatures in the region according to altitude but generally range from about 15 °C in July to 30 °C during the month of October. Moreover, temperature differences are observed between day and night and may be high, with hot afternoons going up to 35 °C. Winds follow a monsoonal pattern being north-easterly during the months of November to March, in May to October, the winds are usually dry and contribute to the semi-aridity of the region. The fact that maximum wind velocities coincide with the period of greatest water deficiency underlines the impact of these winds on moisture losses. According to the 2012 Tanzania National Census, the population of Singida Region was 1,370,637, according to the 2002 Tanzania National Census, the population of Singida Region was 1,090,758. The region is divided into six of the Districts of Tanzania, In Singida town and Singida Rural District
8.
Williamson diamond mine
–
The Williamson Diamond Mine is a diamond mine 23 kilometres northeast of Shinyanga in Tanzania, it became well known as the first significant diamond mine outside of South Africa. Over its lifetime it has produced over 19 million carats of diamonds, the Williamson mine, once owned by its namesake Dr. Williamson and later nationalized by the government of Tanzania. Since February 2009 the mine is owned by Petra Diamonds, with 75% ownership. The Williamson diamond mine is an open pit mine currently about 90 meters deep. The open pit mining and tailings re-treatment are the largest of the four operations, the mine employs about 1,100 staff, mostly Tanzanians. The mine is located about 160 kilometers south of the town of Mwanza in Kishapu District of Shinyanga Region, the most important geological feature of the Williamson diamond mine is the kimberlite pipe on which it is located. At 146 square kilometers in area at level, it ranks as the largest economically exploitable diamond-bearing volcanic pipe in the world. Recent exploratory drill cores conducted by De Beers have indicated that the pipe is a pyroclastic kimberlite and this indicates that it may be possible to extend the current 90-meter deep open pit to as much as 350 meters deep, and continue down even further with underground mining operations. However, a review of operations and long term plans continues. The Williamson diamond mine is now characterized by low ore grade of about 6 carats per hundred tons of ore. Production in the 1950s and 1960s was usually between 500,000 and 750,000 carats per year, the year of production was 1966. Today production levels for all Williamson mine diamond recovery activities is about 300,000 carats per year, the diamond industry of Tanzania in the 1930s was characterized by a scattering of very small mining operations that were insignificant in the economic makeup of the country. Dr. Williamson was hired by one of operations, the Mabuki diamond mine, in 1938. By the 1950s he had developed the Williamson diamond mine into the first significant diamond mine in Tanzania, the mine was visited in the early 1950s by the US author John Gunther who describes it in his book Inside Africa. The mine then employed 2,600 African workers,110 Europeans and 60 Asians, the mine was noted for technical innovations in diamond mining which were developed under Williamsons watch. Williamson closely managed the mine until his death in 1958 at the age of 50, Williamsons heirs sold the mine for about £4 million GBP to an equal partnership between De Beers and the colonial government of Tanganyika on August 13,1958. In 1971, a decade after Tanzanias independence, the government nationalized the mine, although details are unknown, De Beers and other diamond industry players speculate that mine performance deteriorated significantly in the 1980s under government management. Perhaps as a result of poor performance, Tanzania invited De Beers to purchase back into the mine
9.
Sukuma people
–
The Sukuma are a Bantu ethnic group inhabiting the southeastern African Great Lakes region. They are the largest ethnic group in Tanzania, with an estimated 8.9 million members or 16 percent of the total population. Sukuma means north and refers to people of the north, the Sukuma refer to themselves as Basukuma and Nsukuma. They speak Sukuma, which belongs to the Bantu branch of the Niger-Congo family, the northern area of their residence is in the famous Serengeti Plain. Sukuma families have migrated southward, into the Rukwa Region and Katavi Region and these Sukuma have settled outside Pimbwe villages. The Sukumaland is mostly a flat scrubless savannah plain between 910 and 1,220 metres elevation, twenty to forty inches of rain fall from November to March. High temperatures range from 26 to 32 °C while lows at night drop below 15 °C. Population is very spread out among small farm plots and sparse vegetation, the Wasukuma call themselves, Sukuma, when speaking to Nyamwezi, but use Nyamwezi when speaking to anyone else. It can be called the Nyamwezi-Sukuma complex, for while never united, they were closely related in attitude. Like most of their neighbors they were an ethnic group divided into smaller groups. Some claim they were a Nyamwezi people who had moved northwestward to escape Mirambos raids with the result that game, unyanyembe, the most important chiefdom of the Wanjamwesi, centered on Tabora, obtained its meat supplies from the Sukuma. As all Nyamwesi, the Sukuma, being agriculturalists, ridged their fields to accommodate the fertile, at the same time they had herds, having acquired them from the Tatoga people, but since mixed farming was practiced they were not considered pastoralists. Usakma also contained and used iron deposits, re-exporting some 150,000 iron hoes to Tabora, the Sukuma believe in spirit possession and have a holistic lens of viewing the world as interconnected with all living things, natural and supernatural. Relationships between the Sukuma and their neighbors, the Tatoga, were generally good and they did not regard each other as enemies. The Tatoga needed the grain of the Sukuma while the Sukuma needed the cattle, (Rainmaking experts of the Tatoga were considered the very best at this important and highly specialized activity. The Masaai, however, in contrast to the Tatoga, were considered enemies, the Sukuma were very selective in what they assimilated, just as the Nyamwesi were, they were able to assimilate others but were unable to assimilate themselves into other societies. The Sukuma were left closer to the big Nyanza, cleared the forests, even then, when the Taturu moved out toward the plains, they left Taturu administrators to rule over the Sukuma. For this reason, up until the time of the dissolution of the system, all chiefs
10.
Kigoma Region
–
Kigoma Region is one of Tanzanias 30 administrative regions. The regional capital is the city of Kigoma, according to the 2012 national census, the region had a population of 2,127,930, which was higher than the pre-census projection of 1,971,332. For 2002-2012, the regions 2.4 percent average annual growth rate was tied for the fourteenth highest in the country. It was also the sixteenth most densely populated region with 57 people per square kilometer, with a size of 45,066 square kilometres, the region is slightly smaller than Estonia. Kigoma Region resides in the corner of Tanzania, on the eastern shore of Lake Tanganyika. The region lies at about 5° south and 30° east of Greenwich, the region is bordered to the north by both Burundi and the Kagera Region. To the east, it is bordered by the Shinyanga and Tabora regions, to the south by the Rukwa Region, and to the west by Lake Tanganyika, which forms a border with the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The regions total area is 45,066 square kilometres, of which 37,037 square kilometres is land and 8,029 square kilometres is water, the regions total area is just 161 square kilometres less than that of Estonia. As of 1998, approximately 20,000 square kilometres was in forests and 12,000 square kilometres was suitable for grazing or farming. Kigoma Region is on a plateau that slopes from the northeast at about 1,750 meters down to 800 meters at the shore of lake Tanganyika. The topography in the north and east is gently rolling hills that gradually become steeper as they get closer to the Albertine Rift margin, the most important river is the Malagarasi, with the Luiche and the Ruchugi being the two other major rivers draining the region. In precolonial Africa the region was a source of ivory and slaves, Tabora and Ujiji were Arab staging areas for shipments to the coast. It was visited by the early European explorers Richard Burton, John Speke, David Livingstone, in fact, Stanley met Livingstone in Ujiji on the shores of Lake Tanganyika on 27 October 1871. In colonial times, the Kigoma area was known as the Western Region, the region is administratively divided into eight districts
Media from Wikimedia Commons
