Global Initiatives - Tanzania

Tanzania

Located below the horn of Africa and bordered by the Indian Ocean, Tanzania is an environmentally rich developing country in East Africa. Boasting Africa’s largest mountain, Mt Kilimanjaro, and the Serengeti National park, tourism is an important revenue earner for Tanzania. Despite the consistent influx of tourists each year, Tanzania remains one of the world’s poorest countries and a large portion of the population lives below the poverty line.Communicable diseases such as HIV and malaria burden the population, and the country continues to suffer from their deficient health care system. In 2012, 1.5 million people in Tanzania were living with HIV. High mortality rates from infectious diseases, especially among children, are seen in populations living in rural and poor urban areas. Many populations living in these rural and tribal regions of the country lack sufficient access to medical facilities, general health care infrastructure, and basic hygiene practices. With the country’s limited resources allocated to the national health sector, these communities continue to suffer from the deficient health care distribution

Approach

International Medical Aid began its operations in Tanzania in May 2013 with a series of mobile medical and hygiene clinics. Given this country’s lack of strong healthcare infrastructure, IMA has begun developing its own network of trusted physicians, pharmacies and referral clinics. To ensure a high quality of care, IMA has appointed an in-country Medical Director and several Patient Coordinators to ensure a seamless patient experience. IMA also engages international doctors, students and overseas hospital volunteers to staff our medical and public health operations. As a trusted partner, IMA works closely with tribal and local leaders to design and execute the most effective public health program for a given community. We also provides students and practitioners from around the world the opportunity to volunteer in Africa

Key Facts

Total Population (2013)
49.2 million
Population under 15 (2012)
44.1 %
Life expectancy at birth (2013)
61
Maternal mortality ratio per 100,000 live births (2010)
454
Under 5 mortality rate per 1000 live births (2013)
54
Total expenditure on health as % of GDP (2010)
7.28 %
General government expenditure on health as % of general expenditure (2012)
39 %
Human Development Index rank out of 186 countries (2012)
159
Adult (15+) literacy rate (2012)
67.8 %
Adult male (15+) literacy rate (2012)
75.5 %
Adult female (15+) literacy rate (2012)
60.8 %
Population with sustainable access to improved drinking water (2012)
50 %
Population with sustainable access to improved sanitation (2012)
40 million

Sources:

1. Tanzania National Bureau of Statistics, Tanzania
Facts and Figures, 2012

2. Tanzania Demographic and Health Survey, 2010
Report

3. UNDP Human Development Report, Tanzania, 2013

4. UNESCO, Institute for Statistics, 2013

5. UNICEF, Progress on Drinking Water and Sanitation,
2012 Update Report7

6. Tanzania Ministry of Health and Social Welfare