Samia Suluhu Hassan facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Her Excellency Samia Suluhu Hassan
Suluhu in 2021
6th President of Tanzania
Incumbent
Assumed office 19 March 2021
Prime Minister	Kassim Majaliwa
Vice President	Philip Mpango
Preceded by	John Magufuli
10th Vice-President of Tanzania
In office 5 November 2015 – 19 March 2021
President	John Magufuli
Preceded by	Mohamed Gharib Bilal
Succeeded by	Philip Mpango
Minister of State for Union Affairs in the Vice President's Office
In office November 2010 – November 2015
President	Jakaya Kikwete
Preceded by	Muhammed Seif Khatib
Succeeded by	January Makamba
Member of Parliament for Makunduchi
In office November 2010 – July 2015
Succeeded by	Ameir Timbe
Minister of Tourism, Trade and Investment
In office 2005–2010
President	Amani Karume
Preceded by	Mussa Silima
Succeeded by	Said Ali Mbarouk
Personal details
Born	(1960-01-27) 27 January 1960 (age 65) Makunduchi, Sultanate of Zanzibar
Political party	Chama Cha Mapinduzi
Spouse	Hafidh Ameir ​ (m. 1978)​
Children	4, including Wanu Hafidh Ameir
Education	Mzumbe University (AdvDip) University of Manchester (PGDip) Open University of Tanzania (MSc)
Signature

Samia Suluhu Hassan (born January 27, 1960) is a Tanzanian politician. She has been the president of the United Republic of Tanzania since March 19, 2021. She is the first woman to hold this important position.

Before becoming president, she served as the vice-president of Tanzania from 2015 to 2021. She became president after the death of the previous president, John Magufuli.

Suluhu was born in Zanzibar. She worked as a minister in the Zanzibar region from 2000 to 2010. Later, she was a Member of Parliament for the Makunduchi area from 2010 to 2015. She also served as a Minister of State for Union Affairs. In 2014, she helped write Tanzania's new constitution.

She became Tanzania's first female vice-president in 2015. This happened after she and John Magufuli won the election. They were re-elected for a second term in 2020.

As president, Suluhu has worked to improve democracy. She changed some policies that limited political opposition. She also took steps to control the COVID-19 pandemic in Tanzania. Her government focuses on building new roads and buildings. She also works to bring more investors and tourists to Tanzania.

Early Life and Education

Suluhu was born in Sultanate of Zanzibar on January 27, 1960. Her father was a teacher. Four years later, Zanzibar joined with Tanganyika to form Tanzania. She finished her high school education in 1977. After that, she started working as an office clerk.

In 1978, she married Hafidh Ameir, who worked in agriculture. They have four children, three sons and one daughter. Their daughter, Wanu Hafidh Ameir, later became a member of the Zanzibar House of Representatives.

Suluhu continued her education part-time. In 1986, she earned a diploma in public administration. She studied at the Institute of Development Management, which is now Mzumbe University. From 1992 to 1994, she studied economics at the University of Manchester. In 2015, she earned her master's degree in Community Economic Development. This was through a program with the Open University of Tanzania and Southern New Hampshire University.

In 1988, Suluhu became a development officer for the Zanzibar government. She later managed projects for the World Food Programme. In the 1990s, she led a group that managed non-governmental organizations in Zanzibar.

Political Career

In 2000, Suluhu joined the Zanzibar House of Representatives. She was part of the Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) party. She was made Zanzibar's Minister for Youth Employment, Women and Children. In this role, she allowed new mothers to return to school. She was the only high-ranking woman minister at the time. She was re-elected in 2005. Then, she became the Minister for Tourism and Trade Investment.

In 2010, Suluhu ran for the National Assembly. She won the election for the Makunduchi area with over 80% of the votes. President Jakaya Kikwete then made her the Minister of State for Union Affairs. In 2014, she helped lead the group that wrote Tanzania's new constitution.

Suluhu was chosen as the vice-presidential candidate for the CCM party in 2015. She ran with presidential candidate John Magufuli. She was the first woman to be a running mate for the party. They won the election and took office on November 5, 2015. Suluhu became the first female Vice-President of Tanzania. She and Magufuli were re-elected in 2020.

President of Tanzania

Becoming President

On March 17, 2021, Suluhu announced that President Magufuli had passed away. He had been ill for some time. She was sworn in as president on March 19, 2021. She will serve the rest of his second term.

After becoming president, Suluhu chose Philip Mpango as her vice-president. She also made some changes to the government. She brought back some people who had been removed by the previous president. She also worked with former president Jakaya Kikwete.

When she became president, Suluhu was the first female president of Tanzania. She was also the second person from Zanzibar to hold the position. At that time, she was one of only two female heads of state in Africa. She was the only female head of government in Africa.

Leading the Country

Map highlighting countries Suluhu visited while president

The COVID-19 pandemic was still happening when Suluhu became president. She changed the country's approach to COVID-19. She joined the COVAX program to get COVID-19 vaccines for Tanzania. She also made travelers from certain countries quarantine for 14 days.

President Suluhu has promised to finish big development projects started by Magufuli. These include building a railway line and a hydropower plant. She also wants to bring electricity and clean water to rural areas.

In 2021, Suluhu made a movie called The Royal Tour. She worked with filmmaker Peter Greenberg. The movie aims to promote tourism and attract investors to Tanzania. In September 2021, she spoke at the United Nations General Assembly. She was the fifth African woman to do so. In 2022, she changed her cabinet to include more loyal supporters.

Suluhu has taken a more international approach than her predecessor. She wants to attract both investors and tourists. In 2022, she attended Expo 2020 to promote Tanzanian products. She signed a business deal with Dubai. She has remained neutral on the Russian invasion of Ukraine. She believes the countries should negotiate for peace.

In 2022, Time magazine named Suluhu one of the world's 100 most influential people. By 2024, she started appointing some of Magufuli's supporters to government jobs. She is expected to run for re-election in the 2025 general election.

How She Leads

Many people describe Suluhu as "soft-spoken." She has also mentioned her quiet way of leading. She likes to talk with her advisors before making big decisions. Some compare her style to former president Jakaya Kikwete. He also worked with opposition groups instead of stopping them.

Suluhu is sometimes called Mama Samia. This name shows respect for her. She has used her identity as a woman to help unite different political groups.

When she became president, many saw Suluhu as a leader who would bring more democracy. She took steps to increase freedom of speech and freedom of the press. She wanted to improve Tanzania's image around the world. She released some political prisoners and met with opposition leaders. She also allowed newspapers that had been closed to reopen. In 2023, she lifted a ban on political rallies.

Even with these changes, some people say she hasn't done enough. They believe she should change more of the old laws. Suluhu has said that the country's economy needs to improve first.

Re-election Campaign

In January 2025, the CCM party chose Suluhu as their candidate for president. She will run in the 2025 Tanzanian general election in October.

Honours, Awards and Recognition

Suluhu receiving honorary doctorate at Jawaharlal Nehru University, October 2023

Honours

Year	Country	Order
2023	South Africa	Order of South Africa
2024	Tanzania ( Zanzibar)	Order of the Revolution for Leaders with Unique Characteristics

Awards

• 2022: Africa Road Builders – Babacar Ndiaye Trophy
• 2022: CARE International – CARE Impact Award for Women's Inspirational Leadership
• 2023: Key to the City of Lilongwe
• 2023: Ranked in Forbes list of "World's 100 most powerful women".

Honorary Academic Awards

Year	University	Country	Honour
2022	University of Dar es Salaam	Tanzania	Doctor of Letters (D.Litt) (Honoris Causa)
2023	Jawaharlal Nehru University	India	Doctor of Philosophy (Honoris Causa)
2023	State University of Zanzibar	Tanzania	Doctor of Philosophy in Tourism Management and Marketing (Honoris Causa)
2024	Ankara University	Turkey	Honorary Doctorate in Economics (Honoris Causa)
2024	Korea Aerospace University	South Korea	Doctor of Philosophy in Aviation Management (Honoris Causa)
2024	Mzumbe University	Tanzania	Honoris causa

Filmography

See also

In Spanish: Samia Suluhu para niños