General Information:

Situated in East Africa, Tanzania is a beautiful country with a rich mix of natural resource and landscapes. Snowcapped Mt Kilimanjaro, the tallest mountain on the African continent, towers majestically over the horizon, flamingos stand sentinel in the salt pans of the Ngorongoro Crater, wildebeest thunder by the thousands over the Serengeti Plains, and Indian Ocean breezes caress the white sands of Zanzibar’s Spice Islands.

However, amidst these natural wonders 17.5 million Tanzanian children live in the world’s worst poverty:

• The country’s $400 per capita GNI is less than 1% of the GNI in the US, and is one of the lowest in the world

• More than 45% of Tanzanian children survive on less than $1 a day

• Only 67% of these children finish primary school, and only 5% attend secondary school

• HIV prevalence is as high as 9%. It has claimed the lives of hundreds of thousands, leaving 1.2 million children orphaned, hungry, and searching for hope and a brighter future…

Hope and Promise for Tanzania

Challenging as it is, Tanzania is also well positioned for change and development. Compared to many other African nations, Tanzania has:

• A stable political environment: Led by a highly popular ruling party, CCM, which has governed the country for the past 44 years, Tanzanian transitioned successfully and peacefully to multi-party democracy in 2005. Tanzania does not have the internal political upheaval that has plagued so many other African nations.

• A harmonious society: Even though it is one of the most diverse nation in Africa, with more than 120 ethnic groups, there are no tribal conflicts. There are also virtually no conflicts with neighboring countries. Tanzania is referred to as "Switzerland" of Africa, providing neutral meeting locations for other African nations.

• A stable GDP growth: GDP grew an average 4% in the mid to late 1990s, rose to 5.8% in 2000 and reached 6.9% in 2008.  This growth was driven by non-agricultural sectors such as mining (15%), construction (10.2%), trade (7.2%), and communication (6.1%).

• A relatively controlled corruption status: Tanzania is currently rated above average for the region in terms of prevalence of corruption and is considered one of the least corrupt of all heavily indebted poor countries by the World Bank.