On this day December 9 in 1961, the United Republic of Tanzania re-gained its independence from their colonial rulers

Independence Day, popularly known as “Siku ya Uhuru” was won by Julius “Mwalimu” Nyerere of the National Union Party (NUP) who also became the 1st president at 59 years old.

Tanzania used to be a German colony and was known as Tanganyika. However, in 1918, it became a British mandate territory. On 9 December 1961, Tanganyika got its freedom from the British rule. Later in 1964, this is an important day when Tanzanians commemorate their non-violent transition to freedom from the British rule.

Tanzania is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region i.e Lake Victoria. It\’s borders are Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoros Islands and the Indian Ocean to the east; Mozambique and Malawi to the south; Zambia to the southwest; and Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west. It is home to  Africa’s highest mountain, Mount Kilimanjaro located in northeastern Tanzania.

The capital city is Dodoma, with Dar Es Salaam being the largest city. Its national currency is the Tanzanian Shillings. The national language is Swahili and it has English as its official language. There are other spoken languages such as Arabic which is widely spoken in Zanzibar. 

Tanzania\’s principal exports are gold, coffee, cashew nuts, and cotton and its current president is President John Magufuli who recently won another term of office in recent elections where he won by a landslide.