Dar es Salaam. Rosemary When Olivia Fabian Rweganwa fell ill, her mother never imagined the struggle ahead would cost her almost everything she owned.
Yet for Rosemary Mtiro (pictured), a 63-year-old farmer from Magu District in Mwanza Region, no sacrifice was too great if it meant saving her daughter’s life.
Over four painful years, Rosemary sold her land, exhausted family savings and eventually gave away one of her kidneys in a desperate effort to keep her 26-year-old daughter alive.
Today, mother and daughter are recovering side by side after a successful kidney transplant at Muhimbili National Hospital, carried out on May 9, 2026.
But their journey began long before the operating theatre.
Rosemary recalls the first alarming phone call in 2022 while Olivia was studying for a certificate in secretarial studies in Tabora Region.
“She told me she was passing blood in her urine,” Rosemary says quietly.
“Doctors said it was a urinary tract infection. She was treated and continued with school.”
The symptoms, however, refused to disappear. After graduating, Olivia moved to Karagwe District in Kagera Region to stay with her sister. Her health rapidly deteriorated. Her body swelled.
Fluid collected in her stomach. Yet hospitals continued to treat her for recurring infections.
It was not until she arrived at Bugando Medical Centre that doctors finally delivered the devastating truth: both kidneys had failed.
For the family, life changed overnight.
Olivia was immediately placed on dialysis three times a week. The treatment kept her alive, but it came at a crushing financial cost.
Rosemary began selling pieces of land she had worked on for decades. One plot after another disappeared, including three and a half acres of farmland that had sustained the family for years.
“I sold everything because I could not watch my daughter die,” she says.
As medical bills mounted, the family sought assistance from the Health ministry. Even then, the burden remained overwhelming.
In January 2024, tragedy struck again when Rosemary lost her husband.
Amid grief and uncertainty, she still carried the responsibility of caring for her daughter.
Then came the decision that would change both their lives forever.
Initially, Olivia’s twin sibling offered to donate a kidney. Doctors advised against it because of age-related concerns.
Rosemary was then tested as a possible donor.
“I did not hesitate,” she says. “She is still young. She still has dreams ahead of her.”
The transplant was later performed through laparoscopic surgery, making Olivia one of only four patients to undergo the minimally invasive procedure at Muhimbili.
Rosemary was discharged three days later and continues to recover steadily.
For Olivia, her mother’s sacrifice became a source of strength during the darkest moments of her illness.
“I saw how far my mother was willing to go for me,” she says. “That gave me hope.” Now recovering, Olivia dreams of rebuilding her life. Yet another battle remains.
The family still faces challenges meeting the cost of post-transplant medication.
The medicine costs more than Sh1.045 million every month and Olivia will need it for life.
Rosemary appeals to President Samia Suluhu Hassan to support the family in accessing the medication.
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