Changuu

About

Changuu Island (also known as Kibandiko, Prison or Quarantine Island) (Kisiwa cha Changuu, in Swahili) is an island in the Mjini Magharibi Region, Tanzania, off the coast of Mjini District. It is situated in the Zanzibar Channel. It is located 5.6 km (3.5 mi) northwest of Stone Town. The island is around 800 m (2,600 ft) long and 230 m (750 ft) wide at its broadest point. The island was used as a prison for enslaved people in the 1860s and also functioned as a coral rag mine.

The British First Minister of Zanzibar, Lloyd Mathews, purchased the island in 1893 and constructed a prison complex there. No prisoners were ever housed on the island and instead it became a quarantine station for yellow fever cases. The station was only occupied for around half of the year and the rest of the time it was a popular holiday destination. More recently, the island has become a government-owned tourist resort and houses a collection of endangered Aldabra giant tortoises which were originally a gift from the British governor of the Seychelles.