Tanzania’s Vice-President Samia Suluhu Hassan is set to be sworn in today, March 19, as the sixth president of the East African country following the death of John Magufuli.
The ceremony will be held at the State House in Dar es Salaam, the Tanzanian Government Spokesperson said.
The 61-year-old politician from Zanzibar will serve the remainder of Magufuli’s second term which ends in 2025 and will still be eligible to run for another term under the Tanzanian Constitution.
After her swearing-in, Suluhu will be expected to announce the date for the state funeral of Magufuli who died from cardiac-related complications on Wednesday, March 17, according to Tanzanian authorities.
Suluhu will make history as the first female president of the giant East African nation of about 61 million people.
Tanzania’s leading English newspaper, The Citizen, said a high-level meeting of Chama Cha Mapinduzi’s Central Committee will convene after the swearing-in ceremony to pick the new vice president.