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by Daniel Mkude and Brian Cooksey

Introduction
With more than 30 million people, Tanzania has a per capita gross domestic product of $490. Tanzania’s agricultural section employs 85% of the population that generates 50% of the GDP.

Historical Background
The first higher education institution in the country was established in 1961 as a college of the University of London. The University College of Tanganyika, as it was then called, started with the Faculty of Law. In 1963, the college became a constituent college of the University of East Africa, together with Makerere and Nairobi university colleges. It was then known as University College Dar es Salaam. In 1970, it was decided to dissolve the University of East Africa. Thus, on 1 July 1970, University College Dar es Salaam became an independent national university.

Enrollment

Enrollment In Higher Learning Institutions: 1997-2000
	1997-98			1998-99			1999-2000
	F	M	T	F	M	T	F	M	T
1. University of Dar es Salaam	744	3,387	4,131	932	3,240	4,172	1,209	3,556	4,765
2. Muhimbili U College of Health Sci	122	299	421	141	407	548	180	440	620
3. U C Land and Architectural Studies	47	329	376	64	437	501	82	606	688
4. Sokoine University of Tanzania	251	793	1,044	257	902	1,159	318	1,114	1,432
5. Open University of Tanzania	558	4,251	4,809	682	5,007	5,689	813	4,347	5,160
6. UDSM-Post Graduate	58	140	198	51	141	192	66	142	208
7. MUCH-Post Graduate	6	22	28	3	23	26	6	21	27
8. SUA-Post Graduate	22	153	175	24	84	108	56	186	242
9. Dar es Salaam Inst of Technology	38	763	801	55	864	919	89	1,046	1,135
10. Technical College Arusha	57	418	475	63	381	444	46	394	440
11. Mbeya Technical College	20	563	583	17	453	470	8	466	474
12. Institute of Dev Management	227	828	1,055	245	734	979	310	751	1,061
13. Institute of Finance Management	422	968	1,390	378	690	1,068	282	553	835
14. Moshi Cooperative College	66	196	262	36	86	122	45	69	114
15. Institute of Accountancy Arusha	37	123	160	38	145	183	36	99	135
16. National Institute of Transport	3	88	91	2	45	47	1	57	58
17. Community Deve Institute Tengeru	96	61	157	92	59	151	86	68	154
18. Mweka Wildlife College	29	139	168	29	135	164	67	151	218
19. Dar School of Accountancy	60	185	245	109	277	386	122	263	385
20. National Social Welfare Institute	154	130	284	166	108	274	110	73	183
21. Karume Technical College Zanzibar	57	146	203	51	161	212	66	161	227
22. Tanzania School of Journalism	9	25	34	40	38	78	25	36	61
23. Inst Rural Dev Planning Dodoma	14	39	53	21	36	57	27	38	65
24. College of Business Education	223	444	667	315	462	777	460	62	1,058
25. St. Augustine University	93	192	285	102	201	303	117	175	292
26. Tumaini University-KCMC	6	10	16	48	57	105	25	34	59
- Makumira Campus	-	-	-	11	133	144	9	131	140
- Iringa Campus	-	-	-	40	73	113	74	132	206
27. Tanzania Adventist College	55	88	143	37	78	115	35	83	118
28. Waldorf College	23	49	72	75	109	184	76	88	164
29. Hubert Kairuki Memorial U	-	-	-	4	6	10	11	15	26
30. Intern. Medical and Tech. U	-	-	-	7	27	34	19	39	58
31. Zanzibar University	11	18	29	26	66	92	37	67	104
Total	3,508	14,847	18,355	4,161	15,665	19,826	4,919	16,003	20,912

Funding and Resources
Public institutions greatly depend on the government for financial support. It is advisable to distinguish here between university and non-university institutions because many non-university institutions charge fees, which are not paid by the student directly but by the sponsoring authority, usually a government ministry or parastatal. Besides collecting fees, these institutions also receive a subsidy from the government. The size of the subsidy often depends on the negotiation skills of the parent ministry or parastatal because government funding of universities is not guided by any clear and consistent formula.

Private institutions are entirely self-financing. Their main sources of funds are student fees, donations, endowments, and self-generated income. Because the income base of many Tanzanian families is weak, students in these private institutions tend to come from well-to-do families within Tanzania or from outside the country.

Governance and Administration
Public higher learning institutions have limited freedom and autonomy. Chief executives of such institutions and other top leaders are usually appointed by the state, with or without consultation with other stakeholders. The dominant mode of relationship between the government and these institutions is one of state control or interference.

Although each institution has its own regulations regarding staff appointment, evaluation, promotion, and even dismissal, these regulations are modeled on government regulations on similar issues. It is therefore fair to say that these institutions operate very much like civil service departments.

Another issue relating to governance is the question of participation of stakeholders in decision-making. Workers’ participation is a well-established practice in public organizations in Tanzania. It is part of the country’s socialist legacy. At the University of Dar es Salaam, student representation is extended even to sensitive organs like the examination committees, which sometimes handle appeals on examination results.

Gender
Most institutions have been taking steps to improve female participation, but the problem stems from deep-rooted cultural and psychological factors. The cut off point for female candidates has been lowered by one unit in order to enable more females to qualify for admission. For science-based disciplines, pre-entry programs mounted annually to help female candidates make up for any deficiencies they might have. At the end of the 8-week program, they are given an examination. Cases of open hostility or vulgarity between male and female students used to occur frequently at some campuses. The situation has improved significantly since the implementation of gender sensitization campaigns.

Note: For detailed account on the state of higher education in Tanzania, please consult Daniel Mkude and Brian Cooksey, African Higher Education: An International Reference Handbook (Damtew Teferra and Philip. G. Altbach, Indiana University Press, 2003), pp. 583-594.

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