Ifakara

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TAZARA train station Ifakara

Ifakara is a small rural town in the Kilombero District, Morogoro region, south central Tanzania. It is the headquarters of the Kilombero District administration and the main trading centre for Kilombero and Ulanga districts. The town is located near the Tanzania-Zambia Railway (TAZARA) line, at the edge of the Kilombero Valley, a vast swampland flooded by the mighty Kilombero River.

Ifakara is home to three major institutions of the Tanzanian health sector:

  • the Ifakara Health Institute,[1] formerly Ifakara Health Research and Development Centre, recognized internationally for its research on malaria, other tropical diseases and health systems and services
  • the St. Francis Designated Referral Hospital
  • the newly renovated Tanzanian Training Centre for International Health (TTCIH), Ifakara offering assistant medical officer (AMO) training.[2]

History

Ifakara is home to the Mbunga tribe though the population today constitutes of the Pogolo and Ndamba tribes as well as descendants of royalty from Zululand (Larson 1976:14).[3] Later on, around the Ngoni migration era, Ifakara came to be home of some Bena people from south in the mid-1800s. Around the same time, there was a significant amount of Bantu-Arab interaction in the area. The interaction of the Bantu groups and the Arabs broadened the use of Swahili, which still remains to be the most commonly spoken language in the area.

Environment and Geography

Ifakara is an authentic savannah grassland with natural grass fields that are green during the rainy season and brown in the dry season. Some exceptions are the beautiful evergreen banks of the Kilombero River and cultivated lands.

Daytime temperature in the region is vary between 32 degrees Celsius in June and 39 degrees celsius in December. Night temperatures are only 2-4 degrees lower than daytime temperature.

See also

NGOs in Ifakara

  • SolidarMed - Swiss Organisation for Health in Africa > www.solidarmed.ch
  • Plan (aid organisation)
  • Ifakara Community Group (ICG)
  • Bakhita Girls

References

  1. ↑ "Ifakara Health Institute". 
  2. ↑ "Tanzania Training Centre for International Health, Ifakara (TTCIH)". 
  3. ↑ A History of the Mahenge (Ulanga) District,c.1860-1957. PhD dissertation,University of Dar es Salaam

External links

Coordinates: 08°06′S 36°41′E / 8.100°S 36.683°E / -8.100; 36.683


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