Kigoma Region (Swahili: Mkoa wa Kigoma) occupies the far west of Tanzania, along the eastern shore of Lake Tanganyika and against the borders of Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The 2022 census recorded a population of 2,470,967. The capital is Kigoma, the lake port where the railway from Dar es Salaam reaches the water.
Districts of Kigoma Region
Kigoma Region has eight councils. Two of the districts are split in two: Kasulu has separate rural and town councils, and Kigoma has a rural district council alongside the Kigoma-Ujiji municipal council that covers the capital.
| District | Council type | Population (2022 census) |
|---|---|---|
| Buhigwe | District council | 240,005 |
| Kakonko | District council | 178,419 |
| Kasulu Rural | District council | 537,767 |
| Kasulu Town | Town council | 238,321 |
| Kibondo | District council | 362,922 |
| Kigoma-Ujiji | Municipal council | 232,388 |
| Kigoma Rural | District council | 222,792 |
| Uvinza | District council | 458,353 |
| Total | 2,470,967 |
Towns and Villages in Kigoma Region
The settlements below are grouped by district, drawn from the GeoNames gazetteer of populated places. The largest centres after Kigoma are Kasulu, Nguruka, Kibondo, Kakonko, Uvinza, Mwandiga, Ujiji and Mabamba. A short final group holds one locality GeoNames records without a district.
Buhigwe
- Buyenzi
- Buyonga
- Jimbi
- Kachongo
- Kafumbo
- Kajana
- Kalukadjo
- Karundo
- Kasama
- Kasesema
- Kisanga
- Kisodji
- Kisuzi
- Kivitaga
- Kumurara
- Manyovu
- Munyegera
- Musongali
- Nganda
- Nyabasenga
- Nyamaziba
- Nyanga
- Nyangofa
- Nyaruranga
Kakonko
- Buyungu
- Chirugazi
- Irabiro
- Kakonko
- Kasanda
- Kavumu
- Kizuvu
- Mugunzu
- Muhange
- Nyanzige
- Nyaruonga
- Nyavivuye
Kasulu Rural
- Bugigero
- Buhoro
- Heru
- Kabuga
- Kagera
- Kanyato
- Karago
- Katoto
- Kavanga
- Kiberie
- Kipanga
- Kivogo
- Kivumba
- Kunga
- Kwaga
- Magoma
- Makere
- Mbiria
- Mitundu
- Mogongo
- Mrembe
- Mtevule
- Mugombe
- Mugongo
- Muhanga
- Mukinka
- Mulenbera
- Mumigunga
- Murungu
- Musosi
- Mutinde
- Ntitimu
- Nyaka Kangaga
- Nyakitonto
- Nyange
- Renza
- Sabigoma
Kasulu Town
- Buhinga
- Heru Juu
- Kakungwi
- Kanyani
- Kasulu
- Kibumba
- Kirungwi
- Mkafunya
- Msambara
- Mwewe
Kibondo
- Buhoro
- Bweru
- Gitala
- Ibolero
- Kabinda
- Kabuga
- Kabuye
- Kadida
- Kasana
- Kasanda
- Kasesa
- Kazibuzi
- Kibondo
- Kibuyo
- Kifura
- Kigogo
- Kimbanga
- Kimura
- Kisogwa
- Kumsenga
- Kwitaba
- Lubumba
- Lukungwe
- Lulemera
- Lutende
- Mabamba
- Mabogwe
- Marungu
- Mgende
- Mpagwe
- Munwesi
- Murubabi
- Muruhuma
- Murungu
- Ngegera
- Niamata
- Njamaruta
- Nyakisogo
- Nyalukangaga
- Nyamagonga
- Nyamgalika
- Nyamondole
- Nyangwe
- Nyavihondo
- Nyaviumbu
- Sororia
- Toza
Kigoma-Ujiji Municipal
- Bangwe
- Chere
- Gungu
- Gutunga
- Kigoma
- Lutale
- Mwanga
- Ujiji
Kigoma Rural
- Bigamiro
- Bitale
- Bugamba
- Kagongo
- Kagunga
- Kalinzi
- Kasekera
- Kazinga
- Kiganza
- Kiziba
- Komonanira
- Lubira
- Mahembe
- Mibula
- Mtatanga
- Mukigo
- Mwamgongo
- Mwandiga
- Mwenene
- Ngeru
- Nitabe
- Nkalinzi
- Nyarabanda
- Remba
- Sanze
- Shonge
- Zashe
Uvinza
- Bugala
- Bulola
- Bulombola
- Bwaga
- Chagu
- Chanza
- Halembe
- Hasole
- Ifimbwe
- Igalula
- Igonge
- Igunzi
- Ikonga
- Ilagala
- Ilunde
- Isonga
- Itindakusya
- Itura
- Itwalele
- Kabeba
- Kachambi
- Kalambo
- Kalya
- Kampisa
- Kandaga
- Kaosha
- Kapande
- Kapirulla
- Kapompogo
- Karago
- Kasa
- Kasagwe
- Kasangasi
- Kaseke
- Kasela
- Kasoge
- Kasuku
- Katale
- Katamba
- Katimba
- Katimbu
- Katobero
- Katumbi
- Kibwesa
- Kigonero
- Kigurwe
- Kilohilye
- Kimalapamba
- Kisaba
- Kisasa
- Kisese
- Konkwa
- Kungu
- Lagossa
- Lokoma
- Lubalisi
- Lubugwe
- Lubulilo
- Luega
- Luelampulla
- Lufubu
- Lufungu
- Lugalika
- Lugonezi
- Lugufu
- Lugunda
- Lugunga
- Luiche
- Lukandamila
- Lumbwa
- Lumbye
- Lusanda
- Machazo
- Magambo
- Malagarasi
- Malahi
- Mambwe
- Masaba
- Masala
- Masanza
- Matuzi
- Mayobozi
- Mfumo
- Mgombazi
- Mgondozi
- Mlinda
- Molongo
- Mowezi
- Mpira
- Msomsoko
- Muhela
- Muiyne
- Mwakizega
- Mwina
- Mzanga
- Nguruka
- Nkonde
- Ntondo
- Rungwa
- Sikoke
- Simbo
- Sitete
- Sitwa
- Tandala
- Ugolole
- Ujamba
- Uvinza
Other localities
- Kabanga
Geography
Kigoma covers 37,040 km². Lake Tanganyika forms the western edge, and across the water is the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Burundi lies to the north-west. Inside Tanzania the region borders Kagera to the north, Geita to the north-east, Tabora to the east and Katavi to the south.
The land is a plateau that falls from about 1,750 m in the north-east to roughly 800 m at the lakeshore. The drop steepens towards the lake along the margin of the Albertine Rift, which is why the western strip is broken country and the eastern districts are open plateau. The Malagarasi is the most important river in the region. Uvinza district runs from the lakeshore east along that river towards the Tabora border, and its settlement list below is the longest of any district here.
Around 20,000 km² of Kigoma was under forest and about 12,000 km² was suitable for grazing or farming, on a 1998 assessment. Gombe Stream National Park runs along the lakeshore north of Kigoma town, in Kigoma Rural district; the villages of Mwamgongo and Kagunga sit at its northern end, close to the Burundi border.
Economy and Local Life
Salt is the region’s oldest industry. The works at Uvinza have drawn brine from the Malagarasi valley for centuries and still supply salt across western Tanzania. Kigoma harbour handles cargo moving between Tanzania, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Zambia, and lakeshore villages fish Lake Tanganyika.
The Ha are the largest ethnic group in the region, with Vinza, Tongwe, Jiji and Holoholo communities alongside them. Kigoma also hosts a large refugee population: roughly 150,000 Burundians and 80,000 Congolese across three camps, Nyarugusu, Mtendeli and Nduta. Those camps and their markets are a substantial part of the local economy in Kasulu and Kibondo.
Ujiji, now part of the Kigoma-Ujiji municipality, was a hub of the ivory and slave trade in the nineteenth century. It is where Henry Morton Stanley found David Livingstone on 27 October 1871.
Getting There
Kigoma railway station, itself a national monument, is the western end of the line from Dar es Salaam. Trains run the full width of the country to the lake, and the port at Kigoma transfers freight to boats serving the Lake Tanganyika shore and the ports beyond it.
Kigoma Airport handles scheduled flights to Dar es Salaam and Mwanza. By road the main southern route runs from Kigoma through Uvinza, then east towards Tabora or south towards Mpanda in Katavi Region. The northern route runs through Kasulu and Kibondo to Nyakanazi in Kagera Region, joining traffic heading for Rwanda and Uganda.
FAQ
How many districts are in Kigoma Region?
Eight councils: Buhigwe, Kakonko, Kasulu Rural, Kasulu Town, Kibondo, Kigoma-Ujiji Municipal, Kigoma Rural and Uvinza.
What is the population of Kigoma Region?
The 2022 census recorded a population of 2,470,967, up from 2,127,930 at the 2012 census.
What is the capital of Kigoma Region?
Kigoma, on Lake Tanganyika. The Kigoma-Ujiji municipal council recorded a population of 232,388 at the 2022 census.
Which countries border Kigoma Region?
Burundi to the north-west and the Democratic Republic of the Congo across Lake Tanganyika to the west.
What villages are in Kigoma Region?
The district lists above name more than 270 towns and villages, from Manyovu and Kasesema in Buhigwe to Ilagala and Nguruka in Uvinza.