Dodoma

Dodoma
Downtown Dodoma
Dodoma
Coordinates: 6°10′23″S 35°44′31″E / 6.17306°S 35.74194°E / -6.17306; 35.74194
Country	Tanzania
Region	Dodoma
Government
- Mayor	Francis Mazanda
Area
- Land	2,576 km2 (994.6 sq mi)
Population (2002)
- Total	324,347
- Density	125.9/km2 (326.1/sq mi)

Dodoma (translation: "It has sunk" in Gogo), officially Dodoma Urban District, population 324,347 (2002 census), is the national capital of Tanzania,^[1] 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 town is populated by the people of different ethnic groups because it is a government administrative centre although the original ethnicity groups are the Gogo, Rangi, Sandawe, although there are a few Asians such as Arabs and Indians.

Geography

Located at 6°10′23″S 35°44′31″E / 6.17306°S 35.74194°E / -6.17306; 35.74194Coordinates: 6°10′23″S 35°44′31″E / 6.17306°S 35.74194°E / -6.17306; 35.74194, 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 ^[2].

History

During the German wars^{[citation needed]}, the town of Dodoma was founded at the same time as the construction of the Tanzanian central railway. American architect James Rossant developed a master plan for the new capital in 1986, sponsored by the United Nations.

Infrastructure

A major highway 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, via Kondoa. 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's airport is managed by the Tanzania Civil Aviation Authority; the size of planes is limited to small private aircraft. There are plans to build a new airport outside the city with increased runway length and weight-bearing capacity.

Dodoma municipal authority is also responsible for the upkeep of the nearby Hombolo Dam.

Climate

Education

There are two universities in Dodoma: St Johns University of Tanzania, owned by the Anglican Church of Tanzania, and University of Dodoma, currently with 6,000 students. It is projected to have a total of 40,000 students in three to four years time. Both Universities were officially opened in 2007.

Culture and sport

The city is represented in the Tanzanian Premier League by football clubs Polisi Dodoma and JKT Ruvu Stars.

Notes

and CDA Dodoma.

External links

• Roman Catholic Diocese of Dodoma
• Anglican Diocese of Central Tanganyika
• Dodoma Tanzania Health Development
• St Johns University of Tanzania
• Institute of Rural Development Planning - Chuo cha mipango
• University of Dodoma
• DONET - Dodoma Environmental Network of Tanzania
• Pictures of Dodoma and its surroundings on Flickr
• FallingRain Map - elevation = 1148m (Red dots are railways)