Poverty and living standards in Kusini Unguja, Tanzania: official figures
In the 2019/20 Zanzibar Household Budget Survey, 21.5% of people in Kati district and 14.8% of people in Kusini district lived below Zanzibar's basic-needs poverty line (Zanzibar: 25.7%). Together these districts held 6.3% of Zanzibar's poor.
Is poverty falling in Kusini Unguja?
Between 2014/15 and 2019/20 basic-needs poverty went from 25.1% to 21.5% in Kati and 26.3% to 14.8% in Kusini.
Source: Office of the Chief Government Statistician, Zanzibar · saved copyHow many homes in Kusini Unguja have a proper toilet?
92.2% of households in Kusini Unguja had an improved toilet at the 2022 census and 5.5% had no toilet at all (Tanzania: 60.2% and 5.6%); the improved share is 3rd highest of Tanzania's 31 regions.
Source: National Bureau of Statistics and Office of the Chief Government Statistician, Zanzibar · saved copyDo households in Kusini Unguja have clean water?
85.3% of households in Kusini Unguja drew their drinking water from an improved source such as a tap, borehole or protected well in 2022 (Tanzania: 70.1%), 7th highest of Tanzania's 31 regions.
Source: National Bureau of Statistics and Office of the Chief Government Statistician, Zanzibar · saved copyWhat fuel do households in Kusini Unguja cook with?
84.0% of households in Kusini Unguja cooked mainly with firewood or charcoal in 2022 and 7.8% with gas (Tanzania: 81.6% and 9.2%).
Source: National Bureau of Statistics and Office of the Chief Government Statistician, Zanzibar · saved copyMore figures
- Food poverty (too poor to afford the minimum food basket) stood at 6.0% in Kati and 1.7% in Kusini in 2019/20 (Zanzibar: 9.3%). Source: Office of the Chief Government Statistician, Zanzibar · saved copy
- 91.4% of households in Kusini Unguja lived in houses built of modern materials (the census measure of an improved house) in 2022 (Tanzania: 77.9%), 5th highest of Tanzania's 31 regions. Source: National Bureau of Statistics and Office of the Chief Government Statistician, Zanzibar · saved copy
How Kusini Unguja compares with other regions
Households with an improved toilet (2022)
Kusini Unguja ranks 3 of 31, highest first.
| Rank | Region | Households with an improved toilet |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mjini Magharibi | 99.0% |
| 2 | Dar es Salaam | 97.7% |
| 3 | Kusini Unguja | 92.2% |
| 4 | Kaskazini Unguja | 88.3% |
| 5 | Iringa | 82.8% |
| 6 | Kilimanjaro | 82.4% |
| 7 | Njombe | 80.3% |
More on Kusini Unguja: overview · economy and jobs · health · education and schools · Tanzania
Sources
- National Bureau of Statistics and Office of the Chief Government Statistician, Zanzibar: 2022 Population and Housing Census: Basic Demographic and Socio-Economic Profile, United Republic of Tanzania (regional tables), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 20ed491aac53…)
- Office of the Chief Government Statistician, Zanzibar: Zanzibar Household Budget Survey 2019/2020: Tables 7.3 and 7.4 (poverty by district) and Tables 3.10b and 3.12b (enrolment by region), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 99e322f888d2…)
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