Pwani
Pwani Region (Mkoa wa Pwani in Swahili), meaning "coast", is one of Tanzania’s 31 administrative regions. Its capital is Kibaha, and it shares borders with Tanga Region to the north, Morogoro Region to the west, Lindi Region to the south, and surrounds Dar es Salaam Region to the east. The Indian Ocean lies to its northeast and southeast, giving the region a strategic coastal location.
Pwani is home to Mafia Island, the Rufiji Delta, and Saadani National Park. It also includes Bagamoyo, a historic Swahili settlement and the first colonial capital of German East Africa.
According to the 2012 national census, the region had a population of 1,098,668, slightly lower than the projected 1,110,917. Between 2002 and 2012, Pwani’s population grew at an average annual rate of 2.2%, ranking 17th in the country. With a density of 34 people per square kilometer, it was the 21st most densely populated region. By the 2022 census, the population had almost doubled to 2,024,947.
Spanning 32,133 square kilometers (12,407 sq mi), Pwani is slightly larger than Belgium.
