Joseph Isangura
The Tanzanian government has assured citizens that essential health services, including reproductive health care, will continue uninterrupted despite the recent suspension of U.S. aid.
Speaking on Wednesday, February 19, Chief Medical Officer Dr. Grace Magembe emphasized that the situation is being closely monitored by a task force under the Prime Minister’s Office. She reassured the public that no critical services have been halted.
“All services are continuing as usual. ARV drugs and other essential medicines remain available in health facilities,” Dr. Magembe said.
However, she acknowledged that some civil society organizations that previously provided reproductive health education have been affected by the funding cut.
To address the gap, the government has expanded its support for community health workers, who now provide integrated services, including public health education, tuberculosis and malaria treatment, family planning, and teenage pregnancy prevention.
Dr. Magembe also revealed that a long-term plan is in place to train more community health workers to ensure the sustainability of these services.
While U.S. funding has been suspended, Tanzania continues to receive support from other international donors. One key program still in operation is the Solutions for Supporting Healthy Adolescents’ Rights and Protection (SHARP) initiative, funded by the European Union and implemented in Tanzania as well as several other countries in the Great Lakes region.
Despite these reassurances, health advocates have raised concerns about the long-term effects of the aid suspension. Some worry that reduced funding for reproductive health programs could lead to increased rates of teenage pregnancies, maternal deaths, and HIV infections, especially in rural areas.
Hadija Maganga, a youth leader and peer educator, expressed concerns about young girls’ access to reproductive health information.
“With this funding cut, many adolescents will struggle even more to find reliable information about reproductive health. In many families, these conversations remain taboo, leaving young people uninformed,” she said.
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Reproductive health expert Denis Bwana warned that regions with high rates of teenage pregnancies, such as Manyara and Morogoro, could see worsening conditions if alternative funding solutions are not secured.
Meanwhile, Modest Pesha, coordinator of the Christian Council of Tanzania (CCT), urged the government to invest more domestic resources into healthcare to reduce dependency on foreign aid.
“Sustainable healthcare funding should be a national priority. Our tax revenues must be directed towards strengthening health services, education, and infrastructure,” Pesha said.
He also called for a review of tax and investment policies to encourage private sector involvement in healthcare, arguing that businesses could play a crucial role in supporting health programs if given the right incentives.
