Who was the second president of Tanzania?

Ali Hassan Mwinyi, who succeeded Julius Nyerere on 5 November 1985 and served two terms, until 23 November 1995.

Why was Mwinyi called Mzee Rukhsa?

Rukhsa means permission. He relaxed many of the economic controls of the socialist years, so the nickname stood for a time when much that had been forbidden was allowed.

When did Ali Hassan Mwinyi die?

On 29 February 2024, in Dar es Salaam, at the age of 98.

Ali Hassan Mwinyi

A schoolteacher who became president of Zanzibar and then, in 1985, of Tanzania. He opened an economy that had been closed for two decades and oversaw the return of multi-party politics.

Edited by Kabeer Dalvi · Updated 13 October 2026

Born: 8 May 1925, Kivure, Pwani
President: 5 November 1985 – 23 November 1995
Order: Second president
Party: CCM
Died: 29 February 2024, Dar es Salaam

01Government

Early life and teaching

Ali Hassan Mwinyi was born on 8 May 1925 at Kivure, in today's Pwani Region on the mainland, and grew up in Zanzibar, where he went to school.

He spent almost twenty years in education, from 1945 to 1964, as a tutor, teacher and head teacher. He studied by correspondence, took a teaching diploma at Durham University in England, and in 1962 became principal of the Zanzibar Teacher Training College.

02Government

From minister to president of Zanzibar

After the union of 1964 Mwinyi moved into government and held several posts, among them minister for home affairs. On 30 January 1984 he became president of Zanzibar and, with that office, vice-president of Tanzania.

When Julius Nyerere decided to step down, Mwinyi was chosen to succeed him, and he was sworn in as the second president of Tanzania on 5 November 1985.

03Government

As president

Mwinyi inherited an economy in deep trouble and began to open what the ujamaa years had closed. Tanzanians nicknamed him Mzee Rukhsa, from the word for permission, for a time when much that had been forbidden was allowed.

In 1992 the National Assembly passed the Political Parties Act, ending one-party rule, and the first multi-party election was held as his second term ended in 1995. The story of those years is on the multi-party era.

Ali Hassan Mwinyi standing beside Manuel Marín in front of the European flag — President Ali Hassan Mwinyi with Manuel Marín of the European Commission, April 1991.

President Ali Hassan Mwinyi on a visit to the European Commission in Brussels, April 1991 — President Ali Hassan Mwinyi on a visit to the European Commission, April 1991.

04Government

After office

Mwinyi left office on 23 November 1995 after two terms, and was chairman of CCM from 1990 to 1996.

He died in Dar es Salaam on 29 February 2024, aged 98. His son, Hussein Ali Mwinyi, became president of Zanzibar in 2020 (see who runs Tanzania).

Ali Hassan Mwinyi in 2009 with Joseph Butiku of the Mwalimu Nyerere Foundation.

Common questions

Who was the second president of Tanzania?: Ali Hassan Mwinyi, who succeeded Julius Nyerere on 5 November 1985 and served two terms, until 23 November 1995.
Why was Mwinyi called Mzee Rukhsa?: Rukhsa means permission. He relaxed many of the economic controls of the socialist years, so the nickname stood for a time when much that had been forbidden was allowed.
When did Ali Hassan Mwinyi die?: On 29 February 2024, in Dar es Salaam, at the age of 98.