Nyerere, Julius Kambarage

▪ 2000

      Tanzanian politician (b. April 13, 1922, Butiama, Tanganyika—d. Oct. 14, 1999, London, Eng.), as chief minister (later prime minister) of self-governing Tanganyika (from 1960) and the first president of Tanzania (1964–85), was admired for his integrity and steadfast principles, but his socialist policies failed to achieve economic development for his country. The son of a chief, Nyerere's educational talent was recognized early; he attended Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda, and the University of Edinburgh, becoming one of the first Tanganyikans to receive a university degree outside of Africa. He began his career as a teacher, but his involvement in the independence movement and his oratory powers led him to found the Tanganyika African National Union (TANU) in 1954. After TANU won 70 of 71 seats on the Tanganyikan Legislative Council, Nyerere negotiated a peaceful transition to full independence (1961). He was elected president of the independent state in 1962, and subsequently orchestrated the union of Tanganyika and Zanzibar to form Tanzania (1964). Once in the presidency, Nyerere established a one-party state. In his 1967 Arusha Declaration he implemented a policy of nationalization, forced collectivization, and villagization called ujamaa (Swahili: “familyhood”). Although there was much criticism of his policies, which left his country dependent on international aid, they did create a high literacy rate, unite Tanzanians across ethnic lines, and leave the country relatively untouched by the tensions that troubled other parts of Africa. In 1985 Nyerere voluntarily stepped down from the presidency, one of the few African leaders to do so. In his last years the man his people called Mwalimu (“teacher”) built on the diplomatic techniques he had developed as a founder and former chairman (1984) of the Organization of African Unity. Most recently he had mediated talks aimed at ending the conflict in Burundi.

* * *