Public holidays in Tanzania
Public holidays in Tanzania are in accordance with the Public Holidays Ordinance (Amended) Act, 1966 and are observed throughout the nation.[1]
Tanzania has the largest number of holidays in both the EAC and SADC region.
Background
The Public Holidays Ordinance (Amended) Act, 1966 lists twelve public holidays in its schedule.[2] At present, Tanzania has a total of seventeen public holidays: eight religious holidays, three national holidays, two commemorating the death anniversaries of the inaugural leaders of its constituent states and the remaining four of other national importance.
The President of Tanzania can declare additional holidays at his/her discretion, for example, during the general election day. The President of Zanzibar can also do the same within the semi-autonomous islands of Zanzibar.[3] A recent example of this is on November 4th 2015, where President Kikwete announced a national holiday to celebrate Magufuli winning the presidential election for the next day (November 5th 2015).[4]
List
| Key | National holiday | |
|---|---|---|
| Religious holiday |
| Date | Name | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1 January | New Year's Day | |
| 3 January* | Mawlid Day | Observance of the birth anniversary of the Prophet Muhammad |
| 12 January | Zanzibar Revolution Day | Marking the end of the Sultanate of Zanzibar |
| 3 April | Good Friday | Commemorating the crucifixion and death of Jesus |
| 6 April | Easter Monday | Commemorating the resurrection of Jesus |
| 7 April | Karume Day | Commemoration of the assassination of Zanzibari President Abeid Karume |
| 26 April | Union Day | The unification of Tanganyika and the People's Republic of Zanzibar in 1964 |
| 1 May | Labour Day | |
| 7 July | Saba Saba Day | Climax of the annual Dar es Salaam International Trade Fair |
| 17–18 July* | Eid ul-Fitr | Marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan (2 days) |
| 8 August | Nane Nane Day | Farmers' Day |
| 23 September* | Eid al-Adha | |
| 14 October | Nyerere Day | Commemoration of the death anniversary of Julius Nyerere, the father of the nation |
| 9 December | Independence Day | Celebrating the end of British rule in 1961 |
| 25 December | Christmas Day | Commemoration of the birth of Jesus |
| 26 December | Boxing Day | |
* denotes subject to the sighting of the moon
See also
References
- ^ "Tanzania Public Holidays 2014" (PDF). DSE. 2014. Retrieved 11 December 2014.
- ^ "The Public Holidays Ordinance (Amended) Act, 1966" (PDF). Parliament of Tanzania. Retrieved 11 December 2014.
- ^ "JK: It's public holiday to celebrate Z'bar Revolution". The Guardian. 13 January 2014. Retrieved 12 December 2014.
- ^ "Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania - Tovuti Rasmi ya Rais". ikulu.go.tz. Retrieved 2015-11-04.
External links
- Revisiting Tanzania’s lazy, hazy holidays … by Karl Lymo, Business Times
