Unguja South Region (Swahili: Mkoa wa Kusini Unguja) covers the centre and south of Unguja, the main island of Zanzibar. The 2022 census recorded a population of 195,873 in 854 km2, making it the largest of the three Unguja regions by area and the smallest by population. The regional headquarters is Koani, an inland town on the road east from Zanzibar City; the coast holds the beach villages of Paje, Jambiani, Bwejuu and Makunduchi.
Districts of Unguja South Region
The region is divided into two districts, Kati in the centre and Kusini in the far south, each with its own council.
| District | Council type | Population (2022 census) |
|---|---|---|
| Kati (Central) | District council | 132,717 |
| Kusini (South) | District council | 63,156 |
| Total | 195,873 |
Towns and Villages in Unguja South Region
The list below covers 173 recorded towns, villages and hamlets, grouped by district and listed alphabetically. Koani, Makunduchi, Chwaka, Paje, Jambiani, Bwejuu, Tunguu and Unguja Ukuu are the largest.
Kati District
- Azala
- Bambi
- Bi Moja
- Binguni
- Birikani
- Bondeni
- Bweni
- Changani
- Charawe
- Cheju
- Chichi
- Chikuni
- Chuchumile
- Chwaka
- Dikoni
- Dunga
- Gambani
- Jendele
- Karange
- Kaye
- Kibajanga
- Kibele
- Kibodeni
- Kichikini
- Kidimni
- Kidukajua
- Kidundani
- Kidunguni
- Kigongoni
- Kijuni
- Kikozi
- Kikungwi
- Kimu
- Kinduni
- Kingoni
- Kinyongo
- Kiongoni
- Kisomanga
- Kitumba
- Kituoni
- Koani
- Koani Ndogo
- Kwakirobo
- Kwambani
- Kwebona
- Kyangale
- Machui
- Mapopwe
- Marumbi
- Mayami
- Mchafu
- Mchangani
- Mfumbwi
- Mgani Haji
- Mhindoni
- Michamvi
- Mkonjani
- Mkorogo
- Mpapa
- Mseweni
- Mtakwani
- Mwamampaji
- Mwembe N’gombe
- Mwera
- Mzingani
- Ndijani
- Panga Nguruwe
- Panga Pemba
- Pingwe
- Pongwe
- Poromoka
- Shahaji
- Shamba-la-Pwani
- Tindini
- Tunguu
- Ubago
- Ukongoroni
- Umbuji
- Unguja Ukuu
- Unguja Ukuu Pwani
- Uroa
- Uzi
- Uzingwi
- Uzini
- Zuze
Kusini District
- Banda Baya
- Bungi
- Buyukuu
- Bwejuu
- Chejuu
- Dimbani
- Dindi
- Hiari
- Jambiani
- Jozani
- Kaekuu
- Kajengwa
- Kibaani
- Kibanguni
- Kibigija
- Kibondeni
- Kibuteni
- Kichungwani
- Kidenga
- Kiembeni
- Kiganga
- Kijibwe Chui
- Kijichi
- Kijuuni
- Kikadini
- Kikutani
- Kikwacheni
- Kilima Cheche
- Kinandi
- Kinyasini
- Kipandoni
- Kipupuni
- Kisongoni
- Kitogani
- Kitumba
- Kitumbo
- Kiundwi
- Kiungani
- Kiwandani
- Kizimkazi
- Kombani
- Kufile
- Kumbini
- Kungwi
- Kuumbi
- Machwaje
- Madete
- Makunduchi
- Mau
- Mchangani
- Mchekwa
- Mchenzani
- Milangoni
- Misufini
- Miuli
- Miwaleni
- Mkowa
- Mokojani
- Msufini
- Mtawandani
- Mtegani
- Mtende
- Mtendeni
- Mudimani
- Muongoni
- Muyuni
- Mwenda Wima
- Mzurikaja
- Nganane
- Paje
- Pandoni
- Pete
- Ramla
- Shakani
- Sheba
- Sokoni
- Tasani
- Tongoni
- Usine
Other localities
GeoNames records these places in the region without a district assignment.
- Dimbuni
- Kepwani
- Kichaka Nyuki
- Kisaka Saka
- Kiwani
- Kuwani
- Mchangamle
- Mungwi
- Ngambwa
Geography
The region covers 854 km2 and lies entirely on Unguja island. The Indian Ocean borders it to the south and east, Unguja North Region to the north-east and Mjini Magharibi Region to the north-west.
Most of the land is flat coral rag with thin soil and scrub, which is why settlement clusters along the two coasts and the central road. Jozani-Chwaka Bay National Park, between Chwaka Bay and the southern villages, protects groundwater forest and mangrove and holds the Zanzibar red colobus monkey, found nowhere else. Menai Bay, on the south-west side, is a conservation area of reefs, seagrass and small islands including Uzi. Kizimkazi at the southern tip is known for its resident spinner dolphins and for the Kizimkazi Mosque, whose Kufic inscription is dated 1107 and makes it the oldest standing mosque in East Africa.
Economy and Local Life
Household surveys put farming at about 26 per cent of livelihoods, seaweed farming at 24.5 per cent, fishing at 23 per cent and tourism at 14.5 per cent. Seaweed lines are staked out on the tidal flats at Paje, Jambiani and Bwejuu, harvested and dried at the roadside, and sold on for cosmetics and food processing.
Inland at Mwera, Bambi, Cheju and Umbuji, smallholders grow rice, cassava, bananas, oranges and coconuts, and Cheju supplies much of Zanzibar City’s rice. Fishing boats work out of Chwaka, Unguja Ukuu, Kizimkazi and Uroa. Tourism concentrates on the south-east coast, where Paje has become the island’s kitesurfing centre.
Koani sits at the administrative centre of the island, and the villages around it, Dunga, Bambi, Jendele and Kikungwi, are farming settlements rather than market towns. Dunga holds the ruins of the palace built in the 1840s for the Mwinyi Mkuu, the last hereditary ruler of the Hadimu people of Unguja.
Two places in the region carry most of its history. Unguja Ukuu, on the south-west shore, is the earliest known trading settlement on the island; excavation there has turned up imported pottery and glass from the sixth to tenth centuries, when it traded across the western Indian Ocean. Makunduchi, in the far south, holds Mwaka Kogwa each July, the Shirazi new-year festival in which men of the village fight each other with banana stems before a hut is burned to carry off the past year’s quarrels. It is the largest traditional festival in Zanzibar and draws visitors from across both islands.
Getting There
Abeid Amani Karume International Airport, in neighbouring Mjini Magharibi Region, is about 30 km from Paje. A tarmac road runs east from Zanzibar City through Tunguu, where it forks: one branch heads north-east to Chwaka and Uroa, the other south-east through Jozani to Paje, Jambiani, Makunduchi and Kizimkazi. Daladala minibuses cover both routes daily, and Unguja Ukuu is reached by a spur south from the airport road.
FAQ
How many districts are in Unguja South Region?
Two: Kati District in the centre of the island and Kusini District in the south.
What is the population of Unguja South Region?
The 2022 census recorded a population of 195,873, up from 115,588 in 2012.
What is the capital of Unguja South Region?
Koani, an inland town in Kati district, is the regional headquarters.
What villages are in Unguja South Region?
The region records 173 settlements. Makunduchi, Paje, Jambiani, Bwejuu, Chwaka, Uroa, Michamvi, Kizimkazi, Unguja Ukuu, Tunguu, Mwera and Jozani are among the best known.
Where is Jozani Forest?
Jozani-Chwaka Bay National Park sits in Unguja South Region between Chwaka Bay and the southern coast, on the main road from Tunguu to Paje.