Innocent Bashungwa
{{short description|Tanzanian politician}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name = Innocent Lugha Bashungwa
| image = Bashungwa.jpg
| honorific-prefix = Honourable
| honorific-suffix = MP
| office1 = Ministry of Home Affairs
| term_start1 = 8 December 2024
| term_end1 =
| predecessor1 = Mh. Hamad Yusuf Masauni
| successor1 =
| president1 = Samia Suluhu
| office2 = Minister of Works
| term_start2 = 1 September 2023
| term_end2 = 8 December 2024
| predecessor2 = Makame Mbarawa
| successor2 = Abdallah Hamis Ulega
| president2 = Samia Suluhu
| office3 = Minister of Defence and National Service
| term_start3 = 3 October 2022
| term_end3 = 31 August 2023
| predecessor3 = Stergomena Tax
| successor3 = Stergomena Tax
| president3 = Samia Suluhu
| office4 = Minister of Information, Culture, Arts and Sports
| term_start4 = 5 December 2020
| term_end4 = 10 January 2022
| predecessor4 = Harrison Mwakyembe
| successor4 = Mohamed Mchengerwa
| president4 = John Magufuli {{small|(2020)}}
Samia Suluhu {{small|(2021)}}
| office5 = Minister of Industry and Trade
for Tanzania
| term_end5 = 16 June 2020
| predecessor5 = Joseph Kakunda
| successor5 = Geofrey Mwambe
| president5 = John Magufuli
| office6 = Member of Parliament
for Karagwe District
| term_start6 = December 2015
| term_end6 =
| predecessor6 =
| successor6 =
| party = Chama Cha Mapinduzi
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1979|03|5|df=y}}
| birth_place = Karagwe
| nationality = Tanzanian
| spouse = Jennifer Bash
| children =
| alma_mater = St. John's University of Tanzania
Columbia University
Open University of Tanzania
| website =
}}
Innocent Lugha Bashungwa (born May 5, 1979) is a Tanzanian politician who has served as the Minister of Works in Tanzania since 2023. He previously served as Minister of Information, Culture, Arts and Sports, Minister of Defence and a Minister of State in the President's Office (Regional Administration and Local Government) in Tanzania and is a member of the Chama Cha Mapinduzi political party.{{Cite report |url=https://referenceworks.brillonline.com/entries/encyclopaedia-of-islam-2/*-SIM_4685 |title=LUGHA |publisher=Koninklijke Brill NV |doi=10.1163/1573-3912_islam_sim_4685 |language=en}} He was elected MP representing Karagwe in 2015.
Political career
He was appointed Deputy Minister of Agriculture by President John Magufuli on 10 November 2018. On November 13, 2018, he was sworn in as Deputy Minister.{{Cite news|url=https://allafrica.com/stories/201811140490.html|title=Tanzania: New Ministers in Full Throttle ... . Govt Directive Bears Fruit, Lindi Collects Over 4,000 Tonnes Cashews|date=2018-11-14|work=Tanzania Daily News (Dar es Salaam)|access-date=2018-11-17}} In June 2019, Joseph Kakunda was replaced by Innocent Bashungwa as the minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, he went on to serve at this docket for a year before the parliament was dissolved on June 16, 2020.{{Cite web|title=Tanzanian president sacks industry minister, tax chief - Xinhua {{!}} English.news.cn|url=http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2019-06/08/c_138127083.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190613100727/http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2019-06/08/c_138127083.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=June 13, 2019|access-date=2020-12-24|website=www.xinhuanet.com}}
In Magufuli's second cabinet, he was appointed as the Minister of Information, Culture, Artists and Sports.{{Cite web|title=Magufuli's unveils his cabinet 30 days after taking oath|url=https://www.thecitizen.co.tz/tanzania/news/magufuli-s-unveils-his-cabinet-30-days-after-taking-oath-3219688|access-date=2020-12-24|website=The Citizen|language=en|archive-date=2021-01-11|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210111230057/https://www.thecitizen.co.tz/tanzania/news/magufuli-s-unveils-his-cabinet-30-days-after-taking-oath-3219688|url-status=dead}} Following the January 2022 reshuffle of the Suluhu Cabinet, he assumed the position of the Minister of State in the President's Office.{{Cite web|date=2022-01-10|title=Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu reshuffles Cabinet|url=https://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/tea/news/east-africa/president-samia-reshuffles-tanzanian-cabinet-3676116|access-date=2022-01-14|website=The East African|language=en}}
References
{{Cabinet of Tanzania}}
{{Current CCM MPs}}
{{Chama Cha Mapinduzi}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bashungwa, Innocent}}
Category:Chama Cha Mapinduzi politicians
Category:Government ministers of Tanzania
Category:Tanzanian MPs 2015–2020
Category:Tanzanian MPs 2020–2025
Category:Tanzanian Roman Catholics
{{Tanzania-politician-stub}}