Tabora Region (Swahili: Mkoa wa Tabora) covers the mid-western plateau of Tanzania and is the country’s largest region by area. The 2022 census recorded a population of 3,391,679, up from 2,291,623 in 2012. The capital is Tabora town, the junction where the Central Line railway splits for Mwanza and Kigoma, and the region produces about half of Tanzania’s honey.
Districts of Tabora Region
Tabora Region is administered through eight councils covering seven districts. Nzega is the exception: it has both a town council and a rural district council. Populations below are from the 2022 census.
| District | Council type | Population (2022 census) |
|---|---|---|
| Kaliua | District council | 678,447 |
| Nzega Rural | District council | 574,498 |
| Uyui | District council | 562,588 |
| Igunga | District council | 546,204 |
| Sikonge | District council | 335,686 |
| Tabora | Municipal council | 308,741 |
| Urambo | District council | 260,322 |
| Nzega Town | Town council | 125,193 |
Towns and Villages in Tabora Region
The settlements below are grouped by district. Tabora is the regional capital; Nzega, Igunga, Kaliua, Sikonge, Urambo, Usoke, Bukene, Igurubi, Mabama and Tumbi are the other centres with recorded town populations. Nzega Town and Nzega Rural councils are listed together under Nzega.
Tabora Municipal
- Igalula
- Igambia
- Ikakango
- Itaga
- Itetemia
- Itulu
- Kakola
- Karunde
- Kipalapala
- Kwihara
- Manoleo
- Misha
- Tabora
- Tumbi
- Uruma
- Uyuyi
Igunga
- Bagamoyo
- Bulangamilwa
- Choma
- Chomachankola
- Gemela
- Ibologero
- Igunga
- Igurubi
- Kakenda
- Katunda
- Kongoro
- Lutinde
- Makomero
- Malangano
- Mapiringa
- Mbutu
- Mkomero
- Msamba
- Mwakilunga
- Mwakinda
- Mwautumbati
- Mwazizi
- Mwisi
- Ndembezi
- Ngongoro
- Ntigu
- Sakamaliwa
- Simbo
- Sungwizi
- Susi Janda
- Ulaya
- Yogelo
- Ziba
Kaliua
- Galula
- Igamba
- Igona
- Iseramagazi
- Kabanga
- Kaliua
- Kanyawikombe
- Kasenga
- Kombe
- Luangwa
- Luganzo
- Lumbe
- Maboha
- Manda
- Mbulu
- Mifulu
- Mpota
- Nganda
- Nkongo
- Ntimbi
- Sense
- Sheta
- Uflaga
- Ulunga
- Ulyankulu
- Usinge
- Ussenye
- Utindwa
- Uyowa
- Uzongwe
Nzega
- Buitigu
- Bukene
- Bulunde
- Busasi
- Chamipulu
- Gilali
- Ibanda
- Igemba
- Igusule
- Ilungu
- Ipilili
- Ipuli
- Itobo
- Itongobo
- Itunda
- Iyije
- Iyombo
- Kalagwe
- Kawe
- Kipungulu
- Kitage
- Kurumunhi
- Kyense
- Magulia
- Mambali
- Micha
- Miguwa
- Mihema
- Mingire
- Mtoa
- Mwaguguli
- Myambuye
- Ndala
- Ndomo
- Ndugutu
- Nsojo
- Nyasa
- Nzega
- Pango
- Puge
- Pumbule
- Pumusi
- Selelya
- Tuima
- Usiya
- Utaga
- Utwigu
Sikonge
- Bueni
- Chabutwa
- Darambue
- Galukiro
- Ibulwa
- Igalula
- Igigwa
- Igumira
- Ilunga
- Imalamakua
- Inala
- Ipata
- Ipole
- Isumba
- Iswangala
- Iwensate
- Kafusu
- Kakoma
- Kalangali
- Kaswa
- Kidugalo
- Kiloli
- Kilumbi
- Kininga
- Kiombo
- Kipanga
- Kipili
- Kisanga
- Kitunda
- Kululu
- Lukula
- Magawe
- Malote
- Mavangwe
- Membi
- Mikituli
- Mivono
- Mkinga
- Mkolye
- Msisi
- Muwale
- Mwanisenga
- Ngoywa
- Pangale
- Rigalo
- Sikonge
- Sila
- Tumbili
- Tutubu
- Utyatya
Urambo
- Chavuna
- Igwisi
- Kakola
- Kakuni
- Kinhwa
- Kokoto
- Msegela
- Senga
- Urambo
- Usoke
- Uyumbu
- Yelayela
Uyui
- Bukumbi
- Chali
- Goweko
- Ibeya
- Ibiri
- Igalula
- Igwamaneni
- Ikongolo
- Ikungu
- Imalakaseko
- Isenegeza
- Isenga
- Isikisia
- Issuri
- Itwanla Balumwe
- Kassenga
- Katunda
- Kigwa
- Kiloleli
- Kisengi
- Loya
- Lulanguru
- Mabama
- Malongwe
- Mfuto
- Mihama
- Mitundu
- Mkurusi
- Muwa
- Mwakuni
- Ndono
- Ntankwa
- Rubuga
- Tura
- Ubada
- Ugwana
- Ulimakafu
- Upuge
- Usagari
- Usase
- Useko
- Usungu
Geography
Tabora Region covers 72,150 km², more than any other region in Tanzania, and holds about 47 people per km². It borders Shinyanga to the north, Singida to the east, Mbeya and Songwe to the south, and Katavi, Kigoma and Geita to the west. The region lies between latitudes 4 and 7 degrees south, most of it on a plateau 1,000 to 1,500 m above sea level. The highest point is Wumbo peak, 1,395 m, in Sikonge District.
Woodland dominates the landscape. Forest reserves cover 34,698 km², about 46 percent of the region, and game reserves a further 17,122 km², about 22 percent. The Ugalla, Malagarasi, Wembere and Manonga rivers drain the plateau, and the Malagarasi swamp on the western edge is one of the largest wetlands in the country. The Ugalla River Game Reserve straddles Sikonge and Urambo. Rainfall runs to about 1,010 mm a year in the west and 700 mm or less towards the east, with a mean temperature near 23 degrees Celsius.
Economy and Local Life
Farming accounts for roughly 64 percent of economic activity in Tabora Region. Maize, groundnuts, cassava, beans, rice and sunflower feed households and local markets. Tobacco is the export crop: Urambo, Sikonge and Kaliua districts grow flue-cured leaf on smallholder contracts, and the leaf-buying season sets the calendar in those towns.
Tabora produces about half of all Tanzanian honey, which is why it is called the honey region. Beekeepers hang log hives in the miombo woodland of Sikonge, Urambo and Uyui, and the crop supplies both domestic packers and export buyers. Gold mining in Nzega District is the other large employer, alongside cattle keeping in Igunga and Uyui. Ulyankulu in Kaliua District began as a settlement for Burundian refugees in the 1970s; many residents were later naturalised as Tanzanian citizens.
Getting There
Tabora is a rail town first. The Central Line reaches it from Dodoma and splits there, one branch running north-west to Mwanza and the other west to Kigoma on Lake Tanganyika, with a further branch south to Mpanda. Passenger trains from Dar es Salaam call at Tabora, Nzega and Igunga.
On the roads, the T3 trunk route crosses the north of the region through Nzega, linking Singida in the east to Shinyanga and Mwanza. Tarmac runs from Nzega south to Tabora town, and from Tabora south-west through Sikonge and Ipole towards Mpanda. Tabora Airport handles scheduled domestic flights.
FAQ
How many districts are in Tabora Region?
Seven districts, administered through eight councils: Kaliua, Nzega Rural, Uyui, Igunga, Sikonge, Tabora Municipal, Urambo and Nzega Town.
What is the population of Tabora Region?
The 2022 census recorded a population of 3,391,679, compared with 2,291,623 in 2012.
What is the capital of Tabora Region?
Tabora town, run by Tabora Municipal Council, which held a population of 308,741 in 2022.
What is Tabora known for?
Honey and tobacco. Tabora supplies about half of Tanzania’s honey and its western districts grow the country’s flue-cured tobacco. The town was also the caravan hub of Kazeh in the nineteenth century, where David Livingstone stayed at Kwihara.
What villages are in Tabora Region?
The list above covers more than 230 towns and villages across all seven districts, from Ipole and Tutubu in Sikonge to Mambali and Itobo in Nzega.