Tanzania is home to an estimated 17,200 lions, the highest number recorded by any country in the world, according to findings from the latest national wildlife census released by the Tanzania Wildlife Research Institute (TAWIRI).
Dr Eblate Mjingo, the TAWIRI director general, said in a presentation here yesterday that the census, conducted during fiscal 2024/2025, represents the country’s first comprehensive wildlife count in a decade and reaffirms Tanzania’s importance as a global stronghold for wildlife conservation.
The country’s lion population accounts for a significant share of the global total, reaffirming Tanzania’s position as a leading destination for wildlife conservation and tourism.
The northern tourism circuit hosts the largest concentration of lions, with 5,844 counted animals, representing 33.7 percent of the national population, housed in renowned protected areas like the Serengeti National Park, the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Tarangire National Park, Lake Manyara National Park and Arusha National Park.
Western Tanzania recorded the second-largest lion population, with 5,601 counted lions or 32.6 percent of the national total, while the eastern zone followed with 2,442 lions nearly a half of the Western zone.
About 3,118 lions, equivalent to 18.1 percent of the total population, are momentarily found outside protected areas, highlighting the growing interaction between wildlife and human settlements.
Based on global estimates. the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) comprising wild animals and plants places the world lion population at about 28,000 – with Tanzania hosting the largest share of the species worldwide.
The census also reported that Tanzania currently has 66,714 elephants. While the figure remains among the largest elephant populations in Africa, it reflects a decline from the approximately 136,000 elephants recorded during the 2014/2015 wildlife census.
Researchers attributed the decline largely to increasing human-wildlife conflicts, particularly in areas where elephants destroy crops or threaten communities, leading to retaliatory killings.
However, the report noted that elephant poaching has fallen by more than 90 percent, indicating hugely substantive progress in anti-poaching efforts and suggesting that illegal hunting is no longer the primary threat facing the species.
The nationwide wildlife census was conducted at a cost of 4.0bn/- funded by the government, the director noted.
Dr Ashatu Kijaji, the Natural Resources and Tourism minister who launched the report, praised TAWIRI for successfully carrying out the exercise, describing the findings as evidence of the country’s strong conservation record.
The results demonstrate that Tanzania’s conservation initiatives bear fruit, enabling the country to maintain its international reputation as a most important wildlife destination.
The government was strengthening conservation efforts while addressing challenges such as human-wildlife conflicts to ensure the long-term survival of key species and the sustainability of the tourism sector, she added.
Original source: https://ippmedia.co.tz/the-guardian/news/local-news/read/wildlife-census-shows-tanzania-leads-world-in-lion-populations-2026-06-18-115455