Location: Eastern Africa, bordering the Indian Ocean between Kenya and Mozambique

Map references: Africa, Standard Time Zones of the World

Area:
total area: 945,090 sq km
land area: 886,040 sq km
comparative area: slightly larger than twice the size of California
note: includes the islands of Mafia, Pemba, and Zanzibar

Land boundaries: total 3,402 km, Burundi 451 km, Kenya 769 km, Malawi 475 km, Mozambique 756 km, Rwanda 217 km, Uganda 396 km, Zambia 338 km

Coastline: 1,424 km

Maritime claims:
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm

International disputes: boundary dispute with Malawi in Lake Nyasa; Tanzania-Zaire-Zambia tripoint in Lake Tanganyika may no longer be indefinite since it is reported that the indefinite section of the Zaire-Zambia boundary has been settled

Climate: varies from tropical along coast to temperate in highlands

Terrain: plains along coast; central plateau; highlands in north, south

Natural resources: hydropower potential, tin, phosphates, iron ore, coal, diamonds, gemstones, gold, natural gas, nickel

Land use:
arable land: 5%
permanent crops: 1%
meadows and pastures: 40%
forest and woodland: 47%
other: 7%

Irrigated land: 1,530 sq km (1989 est.)

Environment:
current issues: soil degradation; deforestation; desertification; destruction of coral reefs threatens marine habitats; recent droughts affected marginal agriculture
natural hazards: the tsetse fly and lack of water limit agriculture; flooding on the central plateau during the rainy season
international agreements: party to - Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection; signed, but not ratified - Biodiversity, Climate Change

Note: Mount Kilimanjaro is highest point in Africa

NOTE: The information regarding Tanzania on this page is re-published from the 1995 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Tanzania Geography 1995 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Tanzania Geography 1995 should be addressed to the CIA.