Union Day in Tanzania

The date and its legal status

Tanzania’s Public Holidays Act lists Union Day as 26 April and says scheduled holidays are to be observed each year. The Act gives the President power to declare an additional holiday or substitute another day, but it does not set an automatic substitute day when Union Day falls on a weekend.[1]

The Act allows a head of a government department to open its offices and require employees to work on a public holiday. Under the Employment and Labour Relations Act, an employee who works on a public holiday specified by the Public Holidays Act must be paid double their basic wage for each hour worked.[1][3]

How the Union began

The Union’s documents were signed in Zanzibar on 22 April 1964 by Tanganyika’s Julius Nyerere and Zanzibar’s Abeid Amani Karume. The government’s account says the agreement was ratified on 26 April by Tanganyika’s Parliament and Zanzibar’s Revolutionary Council; leaders exchanged the Union documents the following day in Dar es Salaam.[2]

The agreement brought the two independent states together as one republic. Tanzania’s government describes close historical, cultural, commercial and political ties between the peoples and between TANU and ASP as among the reasons for the Union. The Union also established shared government responsibilities alongside separate responsibilities for mainland Tanzania and Zanzibar.[2]

Commemorating the Union

Union Day is specific to Tanzania because it marks the country’s founding Union and the relationship between its mainland and Zanzibar. An official history published by the Vice President’s Office records a Union Day ceremony in which Nyerere received a salute from the defence and security forces. This documents a formal observance, though it does not establish that the same ceremony takes place every year.[4]

Work, offices and planning

The holiday’s legal status does not guarantee that every government office will close: the Act allows department heads to keep offices open and call staff to work. The employment law sets additional pay for employees who work on the holiday; it does not say that every employee must receive the day off.[1][3]

The Public Holidays Act does not set opening hours for banks, shops, schools or public transport. Their schedules may differ, so check with the specific office or service before making a trip. The Act also leaves the possibility of a separately proclaimed holiday, so consult official announcements for any additional arrangements.[1]