Tanzania has been recognized among the first countries in Africa to attain international UNESCO Global Geopark status, following the global recognition of the Ngorongoro–Lengai Geopark. The achievement prompted the Government to establish the state-of-the-art Geopark Heritage Museum in Karatu District, Arusha Region, which was officially inaugurated in 2025.
Presenting the Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism’s budget estimates in Parliament in Dodoma, the Minister for Natural Resources and Tourism, Hon. Dr. Ashatu Kijaji, stated that the museum forms part of the Ngorongoro–Lengai Geopark initiative and was established to provide education on geological science, volcanology, and environmental history. She noted that the facility is unique within Sub-Saharan Africa.
According to Dr. Kijaji, the museum offers visitors and stakeholders an immersive educational experience, including insights into the evolution of the Earth over millions of years, the unique geological formations of the Great Rift Valley, and a rare three-million-year-old rock formation found within the Ngorongoro–Lengai Geological Conservation Area.
Visitors also have the opportunity to learn about the cultural heritage of the Hadzabe, Iraqw, Datoga, and Maasai communities, engage in wildlife sound recognition activities, and participate in interactive educational experiences within the museum. T
The museum is managed by the Ngorongoro Conservation Area Authority (NCAA) as part of the broader Ngorongoro Conservation Area (NCA), which holds three internationally recognized UNESCO designations: the Man and Biosphere Reserve status awarded in 1981, Mixed Natural and Cultural World Heritage Site status granted in 2010, and the Ngorongoro–Lengai UNESCO Global Geopark designation awarded in 2018. Dr. Kijaji emphasized that Tanzania became the second country in Africa to receive UNESCO Global Geopark recognition, after Morocco, underscoring the country’s growing international profile in conservation, geoheritage preservation, and sustainable tourism development. Tanzania currently has a total of 158 heritage and archaeological sites, seven of which have been recognized as UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
