Ruvuma Region (''Mkoa wa Ruvuma'' in Swahili) is one of

Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands and ...

's 31 administrative

regions In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...

. The regional capital is the municipality of

Songea Songea is the capital of Ruvuma Region in southwestern Tanzania. It is located along the A19 road. The city has a population of approximately 203,309, and it is the seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Songea. Between 1905 and 1907, the cit ...

. According to the 2012 national census, the region had a population of 1,376,891, which was lower than the pre-census projection of 1,449,830.Population Distribution by Administrative Units, United Republic of Tanzania, 2013
For 2002–2012, the region's 2.1 percent average annual population growth rate was the twentieth highest in the country. It was also the 28th most densely populated region with . The region is named after the

Ruvuma River Ruvuma River, formerly also known as the Rovuma River, is a river in the African Great Lakes region. During the greater part of its course, it forms the border between Tanzania and Mozambique (in Mozambique known as ''Rio Rovuma''). The river is ...

, the second longest river in Tanzania, which forms most of its southern boundary with

Niassa province Niassa is a province of Mozambique. It has an area of 129,056 km2 and a population of 1,810,794 (2017). It is the most sparsely populated province in the country. Lichinga is the capital of the province. There are a minimum estimated 450,000 Ya ...

Mozambique Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...

(where it is known as «Rovuma»). The region is also bordered to the north by the

Morogoro Region Morogoro Region (''Mkoa wa Morogoro'' in Swahili) is one of Tanzania's 31 administrative regions. The region covers an area of . The region is comparable in size to the combined land area of the nation state of Ireland. Morogoro Region is border ...

, to the northeast by the

Lindi Region Lindi Region (''Mkoa wa Lindi'' in Swahili) is one of Tanzania's 31 administrative regions. The region covers an area of . The region is comparable in size to the combined land area of the nation state of Sri Lanka. The regional capital is the m ...

, to the east by the

Mtwara Region Mtwara Region (''Mkoa wa Mtwara'' in Swahili) is one of Tanzania's 31 administrative regions. The regional capital is the municipality of Mtwara. Mtwara Region is home to one of the most infuluencial people in Tanzania, the Makonde. Mtwara is ...

, and to the northwest by the

Njombe Region Njombe Region (''Mkoa wa Njombe'' in Swahili) is one of Tanzania's 31 administrative regions. The region covers a land area of . The region is comparable in size to the combined land area of the nation state of El Salvador. Njombe Region is bord ...

. Ruvuma has many different

tribe The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldwide usage of the term in English language, English is in the discipline of anthropology. This definition is contested, in p ...

s, such as the Mpoto. The largest group in the region being the Ngoni. The highest point in the region is Mount Lukukura at 1,769m. The regional commissioner of the Ruvuma Region is Christina Solomon Mndeme.

Administrative divisions

Districts

Ruvuma Region is divided into five

districts A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...

, each administered by a council:

Constituencies

For parliamentary elections, Tanzania is divided into constituencies. As of the 2010 elections, the Ruvuma Region had six constituencies: # Nyasa Constituency # Mbinga Mjini Constituency # Mbinga Vijijini Constituency # Namtumbo Constituency # Peramiho Constituency # Songea Mjini Constituency # Tunduru Constituency # Madaba Constituency

Notable persons

Sidi Mubarak Bombay Sidi Mubarak Bombay (1820–1885) was a waYao explorer and guide, who participated in numerous expeditions by 19th century British explorers to East Africa. He was a waYao, a subgroup of the Bantu peoples, born in 1820 on the border of Tanzani ...

, Tanzanian explorer * Edward Said Tingatinga, Tanzanian painter

References

External links

* {{coord, 11, 00, S, 36, 00, E, region:TZ_type:adm1st_source:GNS-enwiki, display=title Regions of Tanzania