Dodoma
Dodoma | |
|---|---|
| Downtown Dodoma Downtown Dodoma | |
| Country |  Tanzania |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Francis Mazanda |
| Area | |
| • Land | 2,576 km2 (995 sq mi) |
| Population (2002) | |
| • Metro | 324,347 |
Dodoma (translation: "It has sunk" in Gogo), officially Dodoma Urban District, population 324,347 (2002 census), is the national capital of Tanzania, third biggest city in the country, and also the capital of the Dodoma region. In 1973, plans were made to move the capital to Dodoma. Tanzania's National Assembly moved there in February 1996, but many government offices remain in the previous national capital, Dar es Salaam (which remains the commercial capital). Dodoma is populated mainly by three tribes, with the majority being the Gogo or Wagogo; the Warangi; and the minority tribe of Sandawe who's language is related to the Kalahari Bushmen of southern Africa.
Geography
Located at 6°10′23″S 35°44′31″E / 6.17306°S 35.74194°E, in the centre of the country, the town is 486 kilometres (302 mi) west of the former capital at Dar es Salaam and 441 kilometres (274 mi) south of Arusha, the headquarters of the East African Community. It covers an area of 2,669 square kilometres (1,031 sq mi) of which 625 square kilometres (241 sq mi) is urbanised.
Demographics
Out of the total population, 157,469 people (48.5 percent) are male while 166,878 people (51.5 percent) are female. The estimated total number of households is 74,914 with an average household size of 4.3 people. The Roman Catholic Church reports that 19.2% of the population are Roman Catholics [1].
History
During German colonial rule in East Africa, the town of Dodoma was founded at the same time as the construction of the Tanzanian central railway. After the British took over the city following the First World War, Dodoma became a regional administrative centre until the independence of Tanzania in 1964. Primarily owing to the more central location, it was decided by plebiscite in 1973 to move the capital to Dodoma from Dar es Salaam. The National Assembly moved the next year, although to this day, a good deal of government offices remain in the former capital.
Infrastructure
A trunk road connects Dodoma with the former capital of Dar es Salaam via the Morogoro region in the east. To the west, there are roads to Mwanza and Kigoma going through Tabora. The Great North Road links the city with Arusha to the north. The city is also served by the Central railway line which connects it over a distance of 465 kilometres (288 miles) with Dar es Salaam in the east. The city has an airport managed by the Civil Aviation Authority of Tanzania, although the size of planes is limited to small private aircraft. There are plans to build a new airport outside the city with increased wall height and structure width.
Education
There are currently two universities in Dodoma. The first one is St. Johns University and the second one is The University Dodoma or 'UDOM' for short. UDOM started in September 2007,it currently has 1500 students and will be holding a full 40,000 students in 3-4 years time.