Govt committed to strengthening health training institutions-PM
DAR ES SALAAM: PRIME Minister Kassim Majaliwa said yesterday that in efforts to improve the provision of health services in the country, the government has strengthened health education and training institutions, purposely to produce competent and skilled personnel in the sector.
He said the state has been increasing budget for higher learning students through the Higher Education Students’ Loans Board (HESLB) to ensure more students are enrolling for health-related courses in the available institutions in the country.
The Premier was Speaking during the opening of the Second National Conference on Human Resources for Health organized by Benjamin Mkapa Foundation (BMF).
He said the government has expanded health training institutions to be able to enroll more students. According to Mr Majaliwa, with improved health institutions, which include nursing, midwifery and medicine colleges, there has been a growing number of students who enroll for the health related courses.
“Currently, we have a total of 182 health institutions in the country of which 137 are private owned institutions. A total of 40,000 students were enrolled for various health courses in these institutions in the 2023/2024 financial year alone,” he noted.
According to Mr Majaliwa, students who study health courses in higher learning institutions are given priority of getting full loans by 100 per cent.
“Those who qualify for health related courses get 100 per cent loan, this is our area of priority, we need these experts in the country,” he noted.
The Premier said so far the government has recorded great achievement in providing quality health care at district level and now it is eying at improving primary health care services at the council level.
“We have strengthened basic services; we have strengthened district hospitals and now we are building Council hospitals and health centres, this will help the citizens to access health services in the nearby areas,” he noted.
He added that the government is also improving referral hospitals in various regions including the Dodoma’s Benjamin Mkapa Hospital (BMH) and Bugando Medical Centre (BMC) in Mwanza.
The Premier added that the improvement of infrastructure and purchase of modern equipment go in hand with hiring of medical officers and specialist doctors.
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He said during the three years of the sixth phase government, a total of 30,000 workers have been employed in the health sector and allocated to various working stations including rural areas. He said the number include doctors, nurses and midwives.
“Our focus is on employing more experts in this sector, which is critical for the country’s development,” he noted.
Earlier, the Minister for Health, Ummy Mwalimu said the Benjamin Mkapa Foundation (BMF) has organised the conference as part of commemorating the late President Benjamin Mkapa but also to emphasise the need to develop human resources in the health sector.
On his part, the Zanzibar Minister for Health, Mr Nassor Ahmed Mazrui emphasised for improved health services and infrastructure to promote medical tourism.
On her side, Mkapa Foundation Chief Executive Officer, Dr Ellen Mkondya said the meeting has brought more than 800 participants from inside and outside Tanzania.
She said under its health programme, the foundation has managed to reach more than 32 million people and have provided more than 13,000 jobs in the health sector.
