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Kagera Region ( Mkoa wa Kagera in Swahili language) is one of Tanzania's 31 administrative regions. The region covers an area of . The region is comparable in size to the land area of the Netherlands. for Netherlands at Kagera Region is bordered to the east by Lake Victoria, Mwanza Region and Mara Region. The region is bordered to the south by Geita Region and Kigoma Region. Lastly, Kagera borders Rwanda to the west, Uganda to the north and Burundi to the south west. The regional capital city is Bukoba. According to the 2022 national census, the region had a population of 2,989,299, an increase from 2,458,023 recorded in 2012.
Kagera is known for its agriculture, lush landscapes, and wildlife. It has reasonably fertile old soils but poor soil management has led to soil exhaustion requiring the use fertiliser.
For a period of about five centuries, Kagera was home to nine different kingdoms with highly hierarchical societies. Before European colonialism, coffee was a traditional crop in the area, used for its stimulant properties and in local cultural rituals. During colonial times, coffee was a cash crop. Bananas were a staple food in the region. Although there was a gender-based division of labour in the traditional Bahaya society, women at the time were not thought to be inferior to men. In fact women commanded special respect in all traditional rituals. For example, upon the death of a family head (Nyin'enju), inheritance rituals were followed, the "Main Inheritor" (Omusika) had to have a female counterpart selected from among his sisters to share his authority. Similarly, upon the death of a reigning king, during the crowning of the next king, there had to be a "sister to the nation" ( Kinyany'engoma) who was also selected from among his sisters.
The kings lived in elaborate palaces and were respected as the direct link to gods of their kingdoms. The authority of the nine kingdoms (Kihanja, Karagwe, Kiziba, Misenye, Bugabo, Kyamtwara, Ihangiro, Bukara and Biharamulo) was diminished when Germany colonised Tanzania in 1885 and supported the Haya people, the ethnic group of Bukoba and Muleba Districts over the other districts. However, the local kings held on to power. The demise of these kingdoms came after Tanzania gained its independence and president Julius Nyerere considered them detrimental to national unity.
There was a chief called Omukama (the word meant a king or chief) who could be born with that authority. Some prominent chiefs in Kagera include Kyamukuma, who was the last chief in Misenye (currently Missenyi District).Seth, Niyikiza The Other chiefs included Rumanyika of Karagwe, Ruhinda, Kahigi and other inferior chiefs. Kahigi is among the chiefs who waived their territories by collaborating with German colonialists.
Cultural tours are available for tourists visiting Kagera and can be accessed from the region's capital of Bukoba. These tours include visits to the region's national parks/nature reserves etc.
During German rule Dr. M. Zupitza, then serving as the local medical officer, encountered a plague outbreak in Kiziba (1897–1898). In cooperation with Dr. Robert Koch, he confirmed that the cause was the same bacteria as the outbreak in Bombay.
When authority was transferred to the British after World War I, Kagera was opened to Lutheran missionary activity. Other Christian denominations including the Roman Catholic arrived later. Their legacy is in the many churches in the region.
The attempted annexation of Kagera by Uganda in 1979 triggered the Uganda–Tanzania War.
Food crop sales accounted for 54.0% of smallholder households' total cash income in the Kagera Region, with cash crop sales (18.9%), other sporadic income (8.7%), fishing (4.3%), and wages/salaries (4.3%). Small businesses were the primary source of income for only 3.4% of smallholder households, followed by the sale of livestock (2.5%), cash remittances (2.0%), sales of forest products (0.7%), and sales of animal products (0.6%).
Kagera is also one of the largest coffee producers in the country. Muleba with 26%), Karagwe 23%), Ngara 10%), Biharamulo 1%), and Bukoba Urban 1%) were the other coffee-producing areas, with Bukoba Rural having the highest area 39%). (Map 3.33). However, Ngara (1.23 ha) had the greatest average amount of land planted with coffee per household, followed by Karagwe(0.32 ha), Biharamulo (0.22 ha), Muleba (0.21 ha), Bukoba Rural (0.21 ha), and Bukoba Urban (0.21 ha) (0.18 ha).
Kagera is home to Biharamulo Forest Reserve, Burigi-Chato National Park, Ibanda-Kyerwa National Park, Rumanyika-Karagwe National Park, Rubondo Island National Park and Saanane Island National Park. In 2019, Burigi, Biharamulo game reserve, and Lakes Burigi and Kimis were upgraded to become a national park with the Burigi-Chato National Park. Rumanyika-Karagwe National Park was gazetted as Rumanyika-Karagwe National Park and Ibanda-Kyerwa National Park.
| Biharamulo District | 323,486 | 5,627 | |
| Bukoba Rural | 289,697 | ||
| Bukoba Urban | 128,796 | ||
| Karagwe District | 332,020 | 7,716 | |
| Kyerwa District | 321,026 | ||
| Missenyi District | 202,632 | 2,709 | |
| Muleba District | 540,310 | 10,739 | |
| Ngara District | 320,056 | 3,744 | |
In 2016 the Tanzania National Bureau of Statistics report there were 2,789,577 people in the region, from 2,458,023 in 2012.
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