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.

Source: CIA World Fact Book

Population: 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.)

---

Age structure: 0-14 years: 43.9% (male 8,666,227/female 8,624,387) 15-64 years: 53.3% (male 10,330,727/female 10,649,507) 65 years and over: 2.8% (male 491,252/female 622,123) (2007 est.)

---

Median age: 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: 69.4% male: 77.5% female: 62.2% (2002 census)

Tanzania is one of the poorest countries in the world. The economy depends heavily on agriculture, which accounts for almost 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 traditionally featured the processing of agricultural products and light consumer goods. The World Bank, the IMF, and bilateral donors have provided funds to rehabilitate Tanzania's out-of-date economic infrastructure and to alleviate poverty. Long-term growth through 2005 featured a pickup in industrial production and a substantial increase in output of minerals led by gold. Recent banking reforms have helped increase private-sector growth and investment. Continued donor assistance and solid macroeconomic policies supported real GDP growth of nearly 6% in 2006.

---

GDP (purchasing power parity): $29.64 billion (2006 est.) G

---

DP (official exchange rate): $13.14 billion (2006 est.)

---

GDP - real growth rate: 5.9% (2006 est.)

---

GDP - per capita (PPP): $800 (2006 est.)

---

GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 43.3% industry: 17.7% services: 39% (2006 est.)

---

Labor force: 19.35 million (2006 est.)

---

Labor force - by occupation: agriculture: 80% industry and services: 20% (2002 est.)

---

Unemployment rate: NA%

---

Population below poverty line: 36% (2002 est.)

---

Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 2.8% highest 10%: 30.1% (1993)

---

Distribution of family income - Gini index: 38.2 (1993)

---

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 5.9% (2006 est.)

---

Investment (gross fixed): 19% of GDP (2006 est.)

---

Budget: revenues: $2.431 billion expenditures: $3.001 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2006 est.)

---

Public debt: 30.5% of GDP (2006 est.)

---

Agriculture - products: coffee, sisal, tea, cotton, pyrethrum (insecticide made from chrysanthemums), cashew nuts, tobacco, cloves, corn, wheat, cassava (tapioca), bananas, fruits, vegetables; cattle, sheep, goats

---

Industries: agricultural processing (sugar, beer, cigarettes, sisal twine); diamond, gold, and iron mining, salt, soda ash; cement, oil refining, shoes, apparel, wood products, fertilizer

---

Industrial production growth rate: 8.4% (1999 est.)

---

Electricity - production: 2.562 billion kWh (2004)

---

Electricity - consumption: 2.383 billion kWh (2004)

---

Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2004)

---

Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (2004)

---

Oil - production: 0 bbl/day (2004 est.)

---

Oil - consumption: 23,000 bbl/day (2004 est.)

---

Oil - exports: NA bbl/day

---

Oil - imports: NA bbl/day

---

Oil - proved reserves: 0 bbl (1 January 2005)

---

Natural gas - production: 0 cu m (2004 est.)

---

Natural gas - consumption: 0 cu m (2004 est.)

---

Natural gas - proved reserves: 22.65 billion cu m (1 January 2005 est.)

---

Current account balance: -$906 million (2006 est.)

---

Exports: $1.831 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)

---

Exports - commodities: gold, coffee, cashew nuts, manufactures, cotton

---

Exports - partners: China 9%, India 8.9%, Netherlands 6.3%, Japan 5.4%, UAE 4.3%, Germany 4.3% (2006)

---

Imports: $3.18 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)

---

Imports - commodities: consumer goods, machinery and transportation equipment, industrial raw materials, crude oil

---

Imports - partners: South Africa 9.7%, China 9.3%, Kenya 7.8%, India 6.7%, UAE 5.9%, Zambia 5.7% (2006)

---

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $2.375 billion (2006 est.)

---

Debt - external: $4.61 billion (2006 est.)

---

Economic aid - recipient: $1.2 billion (2001)

---

Currency (code): Tanzanian shilling (TZS)

---

Exchange rates: Tanzanian shillings per US dollar - 1,251.9 (2006), 1,128.93 (2005), 1,089.33 (2004), 1,038.42 (2003), 966.58 (2002)

---

Fiscal year: 1 July - 30 June