Julius Nyerere First President of Tanzania Date of Birth: 13.04.1922 Country: Tanzania

1. Early Life and Education
2. Higher Education and Activism
3. Return to Tanganyika
4. Independence and Premiership
5. Presidency
6. Foreign Policy
7. Retirement and Final Years

Early Life and Education

Julius Nyerere was born in March 1922, near Butiama, on the eastern shore of Lake Victoria. His father, a junior chief of the Zanaki tribe, had 22 wives and 26 children. Nyerere was the first son of his father's fourth wife.

At the age of 12, Nyerere entered a Catholic mission school, graduating with honors. He continued his education at the only secondary school in Tanganyika.

Higher Education and Activism

From 1943 to 1945, Nyerere attended Makerere University College in Uganda. He then taught for two years at a Catholic school in Tabora. In 1949, he was sent to Scotland, where he earned a Master's degree from the University of Edinburgh.

Return to Tanganyika

Nyerere returned home in 1953 as young radicals were intensifying their campaign for self-government. In 1954, he founded the Tanganyika African National Union (TANU) to fight against British rule. Nyerere also made several speeches before the UN Trusteeship Council.

Independence and Premiership

By 1958, TANU had become strong enough to win a majority in local legislative elections. When Tanganyika gained independence in December 1961, Nyerere became the country's Prime Minister. A month later, he relinquished his position to Rashid Kawawa to focus on party affairs, working to revitalize TANU.

Presidency

After the unification of Tanganyika and Zanzibar in 1964, Nyerere became President of Tanzania. He established a one-party state but allowed party members to compete for parliamentary seats. In 1967, he declared that Tanzania's development would be based on self-reliance rather than foreign aid, nationalizing commercial firms and promoting communal tradition in the countryside.

Foreign Policy

In the late 1960s, Nyerere recognized the secession of Biafra from Nigeria and refused to recognize Idi Amin's regime in Uganda. After 1975, he actively supported the transfer of power in Rhodesia to the armed organization, the "Patriotic Front."

Retirement and Final Years

Nyerere retired in 1985 but remained leader of the Revolutionary Party until August 1990. Throughout the 1990s, he participated in peace initiatives, including the political settlements in Burundi and Kenya. Nyerere authored several books and translated Shakespeare into Swahili.