National Marine Ecosystem Diagnostic Analysis (MEDA) - Tanzania

Tanzania is located on the East coast of Africa, bordering the Indian Ocean, and lies between Kenya to the north and Mozambique to the south. Its total area is 945,087 km2 and this includes the islands of Mafia, Pemba and Zanzibar. Water covers 59,050 km2 of this area and the coastline along the Indian Ocean is 1,424 km. The population of the country is 40 million with a growth rate of 2.6%. The economy is largely dependent on agriculture, which accounts for about 48% of the GDP. Tanzania is endowed with a scenic, diverse and resource rich coastal area. This strip of land and water supports a diversity of important natural systems, including coral reefs, beaches, estuaries, sea grass beds and extensive mangrove stands. Tanzania’s coastal and marine ecosystems cover the mainland coast, three major islands (Pemba, Unguja, and Mafia) all of which are less than 100 km offshore, numerous small near-shore islands and islets and one oceanic island, Latham Island. The continental shelf covers an estimated 17,500 – 17,900 km2 .

The MEDA is a national contribution to the multinational Transboundary Diagnostic Analyses (TDA) -Strategic Action Programme (SAP) process, and was funded and supported by the Agulhas and Somali Current Large Marine Ecosystems Project (which is funded by the Global Environment Facility and implemented by the United Nations Development Programme).