Capital: Dodoma
Area: 945,090 km²
Population: 36.8 million (Juli 2005 est.)
Ethnic groups: Bantu tribes, Asian, European and Arab minorities
Official language(s): Kiswahili and Swahili, English
Religion(s): Christians, Muslims, indigenous beliefs
Currency: 1 Tanzanian shilling = 100 cents
SOS Children's Villages' activities in the country
The work of SOS Children's Villages in Tanzania started in 1984. The then President of the island of Zanzibar, Ali Hassan Mwinyi, approached Hermann Gmeiner with the request that an SOS Children's Village should be built there. A government agreement was signed on 25 February 1987. The SOS Children's Village was constructed between 1988 and 1990 and the first families were able to move into the family houses in 1991. It is situated seven kilometres from the harbour town of Zanzibar. According to the law of nations, the island of Zanzibar is part of the Republic of Tanzania. However, the regional constitution of 1985 provides for a directly-elected president for Zanzibar and therefore, allows for a great amount of independent rule.
Because of this political independence, SOS Children's Villages also decided to work with two local legal bodies in Tanzania. Both the associations, "SOS Children's Villages Association Zanzibar" and the "SOS Children's Villages of Tanzania Trust" were officially registered in April 1997.
The first SOS Children's Village and kindergarten in mainland Tanzania were built in Arusha, in the north of the country, a few years later a primary and secondary school was added.
Due to the lack of long term care for orphaned and abandoned children in Tanzania the establishment of more SOS Children’s Villages has been planned. On the other hand SOS Family Strengthening Programmes were launched in Arusha, Dar es Salaam, Mwanza and Zanzibar, which enable children who are at risk of losing the care of their family to grow within a caring family environment. To achieve this, SOS Children’s Villages works directly with families and communities to empower them to effectively protect and care for their children, in cooperation with local authorities and other service providers.
At present there are three SOS Children's Villages, two SOS Youth Facilities, three SOS Kindergartens, two SOS Hermann Gmeiner Schools, four SOS Social Centres and two SOS Medical Centres in Tanzania.
Website of SOS Children's Villages Tanzania
(available in English)