made no attempt to cling to power or to influence his successors, who restored capitalism.

wanted to make Tanzania self-reliant,

he saw colonialism and capitalism as responsible for the subjugation of their people

e his policies may have proved disastrous for his country, few question his sincerity. Tanzania remains one of the poorest countries in the world, but its economy has grown since Nyerere's retirement

. For example, under Nyerere literacy and health care "surpassed anything most African countries

"rich and varied" and his intentions as always "noble."

He also battled the International Monetary Fund over the issue of Third World debt, a

"a genuine national entity out of a hotch-potch of some 120 ethnic groups"

"enduring achievement."

after the failure of his socialist experiment,

"worldwide moral authority."

University of Edinburgh

he obtained his Masters of Arts degree on economics and history

On his return to Tanganyika, Nyerere took a position teaching History, English, and Kiswahili at St. Francis’ College, near Dar es Salaam.

e colonial authorities,

"was a schoolmaster by choice and a politician by accident.

his political activities and teaching.

Nyerere traveled throughout the country, speaking to common people and tribal chiefs, trying to garner support for the movement towards independence.

o spoke on behalf of TANU to the Trusteeship Council and Fourth Committee of the United Nations, in New York

His oratory skills and integrity helped Nyerere achieve TANU's goal for an independent country without war or bloodshed

e. Nyerere entered the Colonial Legislative council in 1958, and was elected chief minister in 1960. In 1961, Tanganyika was granted self-governance and Nyerere became its first Prime Minister on December 9, 1961

. Nyerere was instrumental in the union between the islands of Zanzibar and the mainland Tanganyika to form Tanzania, after a 1964 coup in Zanzibar toppled Jamshid bin Abdullah

Arusha Declaration

When in power, Nyerere implemented a socialist economic program

introduced a policy of collectivization in the country's agricultural system, known as Ujamaa, or "familyhood."

people truly become "persons" within community-starting with the family, then moving into an extended family,

Gandhi Peace Prize in 1995.

. Wealth would thus spread horizontally, not vertically

t Nyerere was first and foremost an African, and secondly a socialist. He was what is often called an African socialist.

s faith in rural African people and their traditional values and ways of life.

s. All that needed to be done was to return to this state and capitalism would be forgotten. He believed that this would be a true repudiation of capitalism, since his society would not rely on capitalism for its existence.

ujamaa system failed to boost agricultural output and by 1976, the end of the forced collectivization program

went from the largest exporter of agricultural products in Africa to the largest importer of agricultural products in Africa.

Nyerere

Nyerere willingly announced that he would retire after presidential elections in 1985, leaving the country to enter its free market era under the leadership of Ali Hassan Mwinyi.

still recognized as the Father of the Nation

, he did not interfere in his successors policies, which reversed many of his own.

Nyerere was instrumental in putting both Ali Hassan Mwinyi and Benjamin Mkapa in power

From the mid-1970s, along with President Kenneth Kaunda of Zambia, he was an instigator and leader of the "Front Line States," which provided uncompromising support for the campaign for Black Majority Rule in South Africa

he led Tanzania into war against Uganda, then under the dictatorship of Idi Amin, resulting in the defeat of Uganda and exile of Amin

regarded to have set back development in the Seychelles for many years.

all emphasized neutrality in the Cold War, and under his leadership, Tanzania enjoyed friendly relations with both the West and the East.

e was a model to Walter Lini, Prime Minister of Vanuatu, whose theories on Melanesian socialism owed much to the ideas he found in Tanzania,

the 1977 coup d'etat that ousted the first president of the Seychelles, James Mancham, and replaced him with socialist France-Albert René