conventional short form: Tanzania
former: United Republic of Tanganyika and Zanzibar
Government type: republic
Capital: Dar es Salaam; note - legislative offices have been transferred to Dodoma, which is planned as the new national capital; the National Assembly now meets there on regular basis
Administrative divisions: 25 regions; Arusha, Dar es Salaam, Dodoma,
Iringa, Kagera, Kigoma, Kilimanjaro, Lindi, Mara, Mbeya, Morogoro,
Mtwara, Mwanza, Pemba North, Pemba South, Pwani, Rukwa, Ruvuma,
Shinyanga, Singida, Tabora, Tanga, Zanzibar Central/South, Zanzibar
North, Zanzibar Urban/West
Independence: 26 April 1964; Tanganyika became independent 9
December 1961 (from UK-administered UN trusteeship); Zanzibar became
independent 19 December 1963 (from UK); Tanganyika united with
Zanzibar 26 April 1964 to form the United Republic of Tanganyika and
Zanzibar; renamed United Republic of Tanzania 29 October 1964
National holiday: Union Day (Tanganyika and Zanzibar), 26 April (1964)
Constitution: 25 April 1977; major revisions October 1984
Legal system: based on English common law; judicial review of legislative acts limited to matters of interpretation; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal