Mpanda is a city in
Katavi Region of Tanzania, East Africa with a
postcode
A postal code (also known locally in various English-speaking countries throughout the world as a postcode, post code, PIN or ZIP Code) is a series of letters or numerical digit, digits or both, sometimes including spaces or punctuation, inclu ...
number
A number is a mathematical object used to count, measure, and label. The most basic examples are the natural numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, and so forth. Numbers can be represented in language with number words. More universally, individual numbers can ...
50100. It is the administrative centre of
Katavi Region,
Mpanda District and is itself one of the four districts of the region.
Mpanda is a "frontier town" in the far west of Tanzania, roughly 500 km north of
Mbeya and 380 km south-west of
Tabora. It is the administrative headquarters for the Katavi Region, (created by subdivision of the Rukwa Region in 2012), and for the Mpanda District. It is an important centre in the
rural economy, especially for the marketing and transshipment of rice and maize. The Katavi region is increasingly of interest to mineral prospectors, especially for gold. It is also a staging point for visiting the beautiful Katavi National Park, with its headquarters just 35 km to the south at Sitalike. The Park has a good cross-section of East African wildlife but is perhaps best known for its populations of hippopotamus.
As yet all roads into Mpanda (from
Sumbawanga, Tabora or
Kigoma) remain unsealed and may for brief periods become impassable at the height of the wet season (particularly February–March). The Tanzanian government has in progress a project to seal a large part of the road north from Sumbawanga. Sumry operate two daily bus services to Sumbawanga (240 km 5hours), one of those going on to Mbeya. Several bus lines operate to Tabora (380 km, 9 hours). Local services include minibuses to Sitalike, and daily bus services to Usevya and to the fishing villages of
Karema and Ikola on
Lake Tanganyika. Mpanda is the endpoint of a rail line with passenger services from Tabora (approx 12-15hours). In 2012 the government completed an upgrade of
Mpanda airport to a 2 km sealed runway and a commercial air service has commenced.
Mpanda was made the centre of a new Catholic Diocese in October 2000 and boasts a very fine cathedral with magnificent pictorial windows. The town is also the centre for the
Anglican Diocese of Lake Rukwa created in June 2010. There is a fine
Moravian church
The Moravian Church, or the Moravian Brethren ( or ), formally the (Latin: "Unity of the Brethren"), is one of the oldest Protestant denominations in Christianity, dating back to the Bohemian Reformation of the 15th century and the original ...
and other Christian services are provided by Lutheran, African Inland Church and Tanzania Assemblies of God. Muslim people are well served by several mosques spread through the urban area.
Transport
Airport
The city can be reached by flights operated by Air Tanzania
See also
*
Railway stations in Tanzania
References
{{Authority control
Katavi Region
Districts of Katavi Region
Constituencies of Tanzania
Regional capitals in Tanzania