Ngara District

Ngara District is one of the eight districts of the Kagera Region of Tanzania. It is bordered to the north by Karagwe District, to the east by Biharamulo District, to the south by the Kigoma Region, to the northeast by Muleba District and to the west by the countries of Rwanda and Burundi.

According to the 2002 Tanzania National Census, the population of the Ngara District was 334,939.[1]

Geography

Ngara is located in northwestern Tanzania near the borders of Rwanda and Burundi. Its elevation is approximately 6,000 feet (1,800 m) and is considered to be in the highlands of Tanzania.

Ngara has four seasons: two dry seasons from June to September and January to February with two rainy seasons from October to December and from March to May. During dry seasons there are sometimes strong winds/hazy air and temperatures vary between 18 and 30 °C (64 and 86 °F), depending on the time of day or night. During the rainy seasons, sudden and heavy downpours may occur daily, lasting from a few minutes to several hours. The rain is sometimes associated with strong winds, floods, mud, fog and temperatures may range between 12 and 26 °C (54 and 79 °F).

Language

The local language in Ngara is KIshubi and KIhangaza,which are very similar to Rundi and Nyarwanda, the languages of Rwanda and Burundi. Although Tanzania’s national and official languages are Swahili and English, usage in Ngara District is, however, rather limited to official functions, offices, institutions of higher learning and a few other places. Generally, English is understood on a limited scale in the market, and Swahili much more so.

Economy

The primary occupation is subsistence farming and livestock rearing. Local crops include bananas, passion fruit, papaya, groundnuts, beans, coffee, maize, cassava and a variety of vegetables. The local population's livestock is mostly cattle, goats and chickens.

Administrative subdivisions

Constituencies

For parliamentary elections, Tanzania is divided into constituencies. As of the 2010 elections Ngara District had one constituency:[2]

However the recent sate council meetings in 2014 has been put forward an argumentation to divide the district into two constituencies which will be North Ngara and South Ngara. This has been agreed for or the case after the allocation of new Region which in the coming years the district will be sharing one region with the other two District from Kigoma region which are Kakonko and Kibondo joining Ngara and Biharamulo from Kagera Region to form a new Region with its head quarter at Nyakanazi the recent and popular known junction joining Kigoma region with Kagera Region.

Wards

As of 2002, Ngara District was administratively divided into seventeen wards:[1]
  • Mugoma
  • Murusagamba
  • Ngara Mjini
  • Ntobeye
  • Nyakisasa
  • Nyamiyaga
  • Rulenge
  • Rusumo

Ngara District received several hundred thousand refugees from Burundi beginning in 1993, and Rwanda in 1994. A number of refugee camps were established to accommodate the refugees. The largest camp was Benaco, which was opened to accommodate over 200,000 refugees from Rwanda in 1994. Benaco was closed in late 1996, however, smaller numbers of refugees have remained in the district since that time. Lukole camp for Burundians is the best known of these camps.

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "2002 Population and Housing General Report: Kagera: Ngara". Archived from the original on 18 March 2004.
  2. ↑ "Organisations located in Ngara District - Tanzania". African Development Information.

Coordinates: 2°31′00″S 32°54′00″E / 2.51667°S 32.9°E