Hafidh Ameir Hassan, husband of Tanzania’s President Samia Suluhu Hassan, has died while receiving treatment at a hospital in Zanzibar.

Hassan’s death was announced by the country’s Vice-President, Deogratius Ndejembi, who disclosed that the First Gentleman had been suffering from a heart condition.

According to Ndejembi, Ameir died at about 8:00 a.m. local time (6:00 a.m. GMT) on Monday at the Emilio Mzena Memorial Hospital in Zanzibar.

He added that funeral arrangements were underway in Kizimkazi, a village on the semi-autonomous island of Zanzibar.

Ndejembi expressed condolences to President Samia, as well as Ameir’s family and friends, while paying tribute to the late academic.

Ameir was an agricultural academic who largely maintained a low public profile. 

He became Tanzania’s first First Gentleman after President Samia assumed office in 2021.

The First Gentleman rarely appeared in public alongside the President and was only occasionally seen with her at official events.

Ameir married Samia in 1978, before she entered national politics. The couple had four children, three sons and a daughter.

Their daughter, Wanu Hafidh Ameir, is also a politician and currently serves in Zanzibar’s House of Representatives.