Tanzania inaugurate First Female President

Tanzania’s vice-president, Samia Suluhu Hassan, has been sworn in as president, becoming the first female head of state in the East African country, following the death of her predecessor John Magufuli

Hassan, 61, was sworn in at State House in the country’s commercial capital, Dar es Salaam, on Friday.

She assumes the presidency following Wednesday’s announcement of the death of Magufuli, after a two-week absence from public life that drew speculation about his health.

Under the constitution, Hassan, the country’s 61-year-old vice president, will serve the remainder of Magufuli’s second five-year term, which does not expire until 2025.

A former office clerk and development worker, Hassan began her political career in 2000 in her native Zanzibar,  before being elected to the national assembly on mainland Tanzania and assigned a senior ministry.

A ruling party stalwart, she rose through the ranks until being picked by Magufuli as his running mate in his first presidential election campaign in 2015.

The Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) comfortably won and Hassan made history when sworn-in as the country’s first-ever female vice president.

The newly sworn-in president declared 14 days of mourning for the death of her predecessor. She also promised to consult the CCM over the appointment of a new vice president.