Patterns of urban life and urban segregation in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

Abstract

Dar es Salaam is the de facto capital of Tanzania. It is home to the country's embassies, government ministries, the offices of international organizations and private corporations, and a large population of expatriates, Asians (many of whom are more accurately called Tanzanians of Asian Descent), and Africans. Over the course of its history, Dar es Salaam was ruled by both German and British colonial governments and, since receiving its independence in 1961, by four elected presidents.

Under both German and British colonial rule, Dar es Salaam was racially segregated. Though segregation was widespread across colonial Africa, Dar es Salaam was unique in how it was segregated. Both administrations used Building Ordinances to segregate the city into zones based solely on the types of buildings allowed in each zone. Zone 1 was for buildings of a European type, Zone 2 was for residential or commercial buildings, and Zone 3 was for native style buildings. Though these ordinances applied only to the physical structures, they ultimately dictated the racial composition of these areas; European style homes were required to have flush toilets, an amenity the colonial governments assumed only Europeans desired or could afford.

This dissertation considers whether this segregation continues to impact Dar es Salaam. Using a combination of qualitative methodologies—archival research, written and oral surveys, in-depth follow-up interviews, urban observation, and mental mapping—it demonstrates that colonial racial segregation persists in contemporary Dar es Salaam. Yet more than just impacting residential patterns, this segregation also affects other aspects of daily life including food shopping, clothing shopping, and recreation. Expatriates, Asians, and Africans have distinct spatial patterns of urban life that closely mimic patterns of colonial segregation.