Minister appreciates health sector investment that attracts foreigners

Njombe. Tanzania’s growing investment in its healthcare sector is attracting patients from neighbouring countries, the Minister of Education, Science, and Technology, Prof Adolf Mkenda has said.

Such countries, according to him, include Malawi, Zambia, Comoros, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Burundi.

He said the neighbours travel to Tanzania seeking treatment.

Prof Mkenda was speaking during the launch of the Makoga Health Centre in Wanging'ombe District, Njombe Region.

Prof Mkenda attributed the increase in international patients to the government’s deliberate efforts, under the leadership of President Samia Suluhu Hassan, to improve healthcare services across the country.

“Previously, if you needed a kidney transplant, you would have to travel to India, but now such services are available right here in Tanzania, at the Benjamin Mkapa Hospital in Dodoma,” Prof Mkenda said.

He noted that the Makoga Health Centre is one of several similar facilities being built in Njombe Region, capable of conducting surgical operations.

He added that every district in the region now has a hospital with services that meet district-level standards, an achievement that was previously difficult to attain.

Speaking on behalf of Njombe Regional Commissioner Anthony Mtaka, Wanging'ombe District Commissioner Zakaria Mwansasu expressed gratitude to President Hassan for the development projects that are being implemented in the district.

"The people of Makoga Village had been waiting for this health centre, and now it’s a reality thanks to President Samia, who allocated Sh500 million to complete the facility,” he said.

He also noted that the residents of Makoga played a role in the construction process, contributing their labour and helping with tasks such as digging trenches and laying foundations.

The Medical Officer-in-Charge of Makoga Health Centre, Dr Joseph Chota, explained that the facility includes a maternal and child health unit, a laboratory, an operating theatre, a mortuary, a laundry unit, and staff housing.

The health centre serves a population of 9,941 residents from Makoga as well as neighbouring villages.

“During the construction, the people of Makoga contributed Sh11.06 million in cash and offered their labour to help build the foundations of the health centre’s buildings,” Dr Chota noted.

Njombe regional secretary for Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM), Mr Julius Peter, commended President Hassan for fulfilling the party’s manifesto commitment to bringing essential services closer to the people.

“This is what we promised in 2020—to improve health services,” he said.

Wanging'ombe MP, Dr Festo Dugange, reflected on the transformation of the village, noting that just four years ago, it lacked any health facility. At the time, residents relied on a small dispensary, despite the large population.