A Geography Lesson

Painted on the wall at the Moshono campus is this list of twelve interesting facts.
1. Mt. Kilimanjaro is 5,895 meters high. It is the highest point in Africa.
2. The giraffe is the national animal. It is TWIGA in Swahili.
3. The Nile is the longest river in the world. It starts in Uganda and ends in Egypt.
4. There are over 2,000 languages in Africa.
5. There are seven continents. Tanzania is in Africa.
6. Dodoma is the capital of Tanzania. Dar Es Salaam is the largest city.
7. The United Republic of Tanzania was formed when Tanganyika and Zanzibar joined in 1964.
8. There are 52 countries in Africa.
9. Tanzanite is a precious stone found only in Tanzania in a mine near Arusha.
10. Eight countries border Tanzania. They are Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Congo, Zambia, Malawi and Mozambique.
11. Tanganyika became independent in 1961.
12. 40% of Tanzanians are Moslem, 40% are Christian and 20% follow traditional beliefs.

And would you like to know something about the National Flag?
There are four colors in the national flag.
Green stands for natural vegetation.
Yellow stand for natural resources (minerals, game parks)
Black stands for the people.
Blue stands for the waters (rivers, springs and lakes.


Here are the words to the national anthem.
(This is a prayer to God to bless Tanzania and Africa. The people express their hope for respect, unity and peace in Tanzania and in Africa.)

Mungu ibariki Afrika
Wabariki viongozi wake
Heshima umoja na amani
Hizi ni ngao zetu
Afrika na watu wake
Ibariki A Afrika
Ibariki A Afrika
Tubariki watoto wa Afrika

Mungu ibariki Tanzania
Dumisha uhuru na umoja
Waje jwa waume na watoto
Mungu ibariki
Tanzania na watu wake
Ibariki Tanzania
Ibariki Tanzania
Tubariki watoto wa Afrika

And there is a National Motto

“Uhuru na Umoja” which means “Freedom and Unity.”

In 1959, Dr. Mary Leakey found what has been determined to be the oldest skull of a human ever found and she found it not far from where I am right now, in the Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania, not far from Aursha. Did the world’s first humans come from Tanzania? Likely.