Geita Region (Swahili: Mkoa wa Geita) lies south of Lake Victoria in north-western Tanzania. The 2022 census recorded a population of 2,977,608, which makes it the seventh most populous of the country’s 31 regions. The capital is Geita, and the Geita Gold Mine 4 km west of the town is the largest mining operation in the region.
Districts of Geita Region
Geita Region has six councils: one town council for Geita itself and five district councils. Between them they contain 122 wards, 474 villages and 2,219 hamlets. Geita Rural is by far the largest council by population.
| District | Council type | Population (2022 census) |
|---|---|---|
| Bukombe | District council | 407,102 |
| Chato | District council | 584,963 |
| Geita Rural | District council | 1,035,214 |
| Geita Town | Town council | 361,671 |
| Mbogwe | District council | 362,855 |
| Nyang’hwale | District council | 225,803 |
| Total | 2,977,608 |
Towns and Villages in Geita Region
The settlements below are grouped by district, drawn from the GeoNames gazetteer of populated places. After Geita itself the larger centres are Ushirombo, Katoro, Uyovu, Buseresere, Masumbwe, Diobahika, Chato, Kasamwa and Mhalamba.
Bukombe
- Bukombe
- Bukombe Kombe
- Diobahika
- Ikuzi
- Kabuhika
- Mbugwe
- Musasa
- Nsungwa
- Ushirombo
- Uyovu
Chato
- Bukome
- Buseresere
- Busonzo
- Buzirayombo
- Bwanga
- Bwanga-Bwina
- Chato
- Chisenya
- Diobahika
- Kabashishi
- Kagofwa
- Kakanshe
- Kalembera
- Karando
- Kasagara
- Kasaka
- Kasala
- Kasenda
- Katoro
- Kibumba
- Kigongo
- Kigunguri
- Kisaho
- Kitera
- Makurugusi
- Mbuye
- Migege
- Muganza
- Murumba
- Mwaruka
- Ntunganire
- Nyakakarangwa
- Nyakato
- Nyamirembe
- Nyango
- Rubirizi
- Yodzu
Geita Town
- Geita
Geita Rural
- Bugurura
- Buhalahala
- Bukindo
- Bukondo
- Bulela
- Bumwangoka
- Bunegeji
- Busanda
- Butwa Lulegeya
- Chankurongo
- Chigunga
- Chikobe
- Fulwe
- Ibanda
- Igati
- Igenge
- Ihanamilo
- Ikanduli
- Ikina
- Kagu
- Kagunga
- Kamena
- Kamwhanga
- Kasamwa
- Kataborwa
- Katoma
- Kibingo
- Mabale
- Mawemeru
- Mhalamba
- Mkangala
- Mpomvu
- Nkome
- Nungwe
- Nyakagomba
- Nyakasasa
- Nyakaswa
- Nyambale
- Nyamboge
- Nyamhali
- Nyanchenche
- Nyankambu
- Nyarakoma
- Nyawizu
- Ruamagaza
- Shinamwenda
- Songwe
- Sungunsira
- Ukaranga
Mbogwe
- Itimbia
- Masumbwe
- Mbogwe
Nyang'hwale
- Bubada
- Burumiro
- Ibuswa
- Ikondo
- Itetemia
- Kadasi
- Karumwa
- Kayenzi
- Kitaloma
- Mabogo
- Mahinuka
- Mikuyu
- Ngerere
- Nyanhwale
- Nyankurukuru
- Nyarubele
- Nyarubere
- Nyashano
Geography
Geita covers 20,054 km² between latitudes 2°8′ and 3°28′ south. Lake Victoria wraps around the north of the region. Most of the land sits on a plateau 1,100 m to 1,300 m above sea level, and the highest point is Mula at 1,519 m.
Kagera Region lies to the west and north-west, Mwanza to the north-east, Shinyanga to the south-east, and Tabora and Kigoma to the south and south-west. Rubondo Island National Park sits offshore in Lake Victoria and is reached by ferry from the Geita and Chato district shores.
The two southern districts, Bukombe and Mbogwe, sit well back from the water on the open plateau. Chato and the northern half of Geita district front the lake, and their villages are strung along the bays and inlets rather than spread evenly across the land.
Rainfall runs 900 mm to 1,200 mm a year. The main wet season is February to May, with a second wetter spell from September to December and a dry stretch from June to September. Temperatures range from 22°C to 30°C. At 2,977,608 people on 20,054 km², the region averages about 148 people per square kilometre, well above the national figure.
Economy and Local Life
Gold sets the pace here. The Geita Gold Mine, operated by AngloGold Ashanti, sits just outside the regional capital and pulls workers and traders from across the region. Small-scale and artisanal mining runs alongside it, and settlements such as Katoro, Buseresere and Kasamwa grew on that trade.
Farming and fishing are the other two mainstays. Villages on the Lake Victoria shore in Chato and Geita districts fish the lake; inland the land is farmed. Of the 474 villages counted across the region’s 122 wards, most are farming settlements. The mining towns are the exception, not the pattern.
The Sukuma and Sumbwa are the main settler communities, while the Zinza, Sumbwa and Haya are counted as the region’s native peoples. Gold has pulled people in from across northern Tanzania for decades, which is why Geita Rural council alone now holds 1,035,214 people, more than a third of the region.
Geita is a young region. It was created in March 2012 from parts of Shinyanga, Kagera and Mwanza regions. John Magufuli, Tanzania’s fifth president, came from here.
Getting There
Two paved trunk roads cross the region from east to west. The T3 runs through the south, from Kahama towards the Rwandan border. The T4 runs through the north, linking Mwanza with Bukoba in Kagera Region and passing Geita town on the way.
Traffic from Mwanza reaches the region at the Kigongo-Busisi crossing on the Gulf of Mwanza, the main link between Geita and Mwanza city. Ferries from the Geita and Chato shores serve Rubondo Island National Park.
Geita Airport sits 14 km from Chato town and about 90 km west of the regional capital. It took its first scheduled service in January 2021, and Air Tanzania flies from it to Dar es Salaam and Mwanza.
FAQ
How many districts are in Geita Region?
Six councils: Geita Town Council plus the Bukombe, Chato, Geita, Mbogwe and Nyang’hwale district councils.
What is the population of Geita Region?
The 2022 census recorded a population of 2,977,608, seventh among Tanzania’s 31 regions.
What is the capital of Geita Region?
Geita. The town council recorded a population of 361,671 at the 2022 census.
When was Geita Region created?
In March 2012, out of parts of Shinyanga, Kagera and Mwanza regions. It is one of Tanzania’s newest regions.
What villages are in Geita Region?
The district lists above name more than 110 towns and villages, from Bwanga and Nyamirembe in Chato to Karumwa and Ikondo in Nyang’hwale.