Tanzania ratified the Nairobi Convention on 1 March 1996.

Unless stated otherwise, the data quoted in this page are cited from publications by Nairobi Convention Secretariat and UNDP (see bottom of page for list).

The United Republic of Tanzania is an independent, sovereign coastal state that was formed of the union of two countries, namely Tanganyika (mainland) and Zanzibar (Unguja and Pemba islands) in 1964.

The entire coastline of Tanzania, including its inner waters and major and small islands, covers 1424km. The continental shelf is narrow, with the 200m depth contour occurring at about 4km offshore, except in the Zanzibar and Mafia channels where the shelf extends up to 80km from the mainland coast.

Tanzania’s (mainland and Zanzibar) Territorial Waters span 64 000km² with the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) covering an area of 223 000km². This area includes Zanzibar’s Unguja and Pemba islands. The Rufiji River is Tanzania’s largest river that drains into the Indian

Tanzania has a population of 57 million people (United Nations, 2019).

Tanzania has appointed a Focal Point to the Nairobi Convention to help coordinate efforts to protect, manage, and use the Western Indian Ocean at the national level.