Tanzania won the Cecafa Senior Challenge Cup after after beating guest entrants Ivory Coast 1-0 in the final in Dar-es-Salam on Sunday.

The victory gave Tanzania their first East and Central Africa regional title in 16 years.

Taifa Stars coach Jan Poulsen was delighted with the way his team improved as the tournament progressed.

"We started slowly but we have been improving with each game and here we are," Poulsen said.

"We have been criticized before but we have proved that we are worthy champions at the end of the day."

Ivory Coast boss Kouadio Georges said he was impressed by the performance of his young team ahead of next year's African Nations Championship (CHAN).

"We came here to learn and we go home with a lot of experience gained," he said.

The Ivorians, who like Zambia and Malawi played as guests, used the Cecafa tournament as part of their preparation for the CHAN in Sudan.

Meanwhile, Uganda took the third position after defeating Ethiopia 4-3 in an entertaining game in Dar-es-Salam.