Tanzania

Helping Tanzania Stop an HIV Epidemic Driven by Injection Drug Use

On February 10, 2011 Tanzania became the first country in sub-Saharan Africa to offer a medication assisted treatment ("MAT") program for injection drug users ("IDUs"). The first MAT clinic opened at Muhimbili National Hospital in Dar es Salaam and is providing methadone to patients as part of a comprehensive drug and HIV prevention and treatment program that aims to head off an epidemic of HIV among injection drug users in Tanzania.  (Read Pangaea's announcement about the opening for more information.)

Over the past two years, Pangaea has been assisting the Drug Control Commission (DCC) of Tanzania and the Zanzibar AIDS Control Program (ZACP) with the development of a national framework to address drug dependency and reduce HIV transmission.

It’s estimated that there are at least 25,000 injection drug users in Tanzania and that 40% of the IDU population is HIV positive. So although this group currently accounts for just a fraction of the one million Tanzanians living with HIV, these statistics set off a warning bell for the government.

The Pangaea team, including Dr. Douglas Bruce, a leading international expert in the establishment of harm reduction programs, is assisting in the development of this comprehensive plan for treatment for IDUs, including a guide for screening for and treating addictions in primary health settings. In addition, Pangaea has helped the DCC develop a national guideline for the introduction of methadone, clinical guidelines for its use, standard minimum criteria for health facilities that would provide the methadone, and an operational plan for the full spectrum of services necessary for implementing methadone.

Supporting the Harmonization of Community Health Worker Curricula in Tanzania

In partnership with Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences (MUHAS) and with funding from the United States CDC, Pangaea is supporting the Government of Tanzania in the harmonization of community health worker (CHW) curricula as part of Tanzania's ongoing efforts to increase the capacity of the health care system to deliver HIV/AIDS care, treatment and prevention services.  In countries severely affected by HIV/AIDS, shortages of health workers present a major obstacle to scaling up HIV services.

Within Tanzania, and in the context of HIV/AIDS, there has been a focus placed on increasing the number of health care workers at various levels of the system, and supporting the development of the role of the community health worker in order to address the existing human resource gap in HIV/AIDS programs. The project will include identification of all CHW training programs in the country, assessment of the opportunities for moving to a standard categorization of CHW cadres, and development of a policy advocacy strategy and plan for accreditation of CHW training within the broader context of Tanzania's health systems strengthening efforts.