Former second president of Tanzania Ali Mwinyi is dead

By Osoro Nyawangah, DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania 

Former second President of Tanzania, Ali Hassan Mwinyi is dead, the country's President Samia Hassan has announced this evening.

According to president Hassan, the 98-year-old man died at Mzena Hospital in Dar es Salaam on Thursday at around 1700hrs and his burial is scheduled for Saturday 3rd March in Zanzibar.

"On behalf of the government, I would like to convey my condolences to the family, relatives, friends and all Tanzanians for this loss," President Hassan said.

He succeeded Tanzania's first post-independence president, Julius Nyerere, who left office in 1985 after 22 years in power.

Mwinyi was credited with introducing free market policies and was in turn succeeded by the late Benjamin Mkapa in 1995.

President Hassan said Mwinyi who ruled the country between 1985 to 1995 died in hospital in Dar es Salaam where he was receiving treatment for lung cancer. 

He had been receiving treatment since November 2023, Hassan said.

The government has declared seven days for national mourning in honour of the late president and the flags will be flown at half-mast.

Mwinyi joined Zanzibar political party, Afro Shiraz Party (ASP) in 1964 and held different positions for the Government of Zanzibar and United Republic of Tanzania such as Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Education of Zanzibar in 1963. 

In 1970 he was Minister of State in the President’s Office of the United Republic of Tanzania and between 1982-83 he was Minister of Health, Home Affairs, Natural Resources and Ambassador of the United Republic of Tanzania in Egypt from 1977 to 1982.

In 1983 he was appointed Minister of State in Vice President’s Office and in 1984 he was elected the President of Zanzibar and Vice President of the United Republic of Tanzania.

His son Hussein Mwinyi, is the current President of Zanzibar, in the Tanzanian archipelago.