MAXIMIZING POSITIVE SYNERGIES - World Health Organization

The health system struggles with a severe shortage of health care workers, particularly in the rural
parts of the country, and suffers from weak infrastructure. In mainland Tanzania, the public health
sector (56%) is complemented by a private sector comprising private for-profit groups (14%), as
well as non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and faith-based organizations (FBOs) (30%) [5]. In
Zanzibar, most health facilities are publicly run. Traditional medicine remains an important part of
Tanzanian rural life [5].
In recent years government expenditure on health has increased, reaching 13.3% by 2006, but this
figure remains shy of the Abuja target of 15% [6]. As of 2006, external resources made up 45.4% of
the total expenditure on health [6]. In 2002, 44.5% of physicians worked in urban areas, although
only an estimated 23% of the population lived in cities [7].
In the meantime, the overall health budget has grown significantly, principally as a result of large
amounts of official development assistance (ODA). In 2006, ODA was US$ 1.8 billion. Tanzania’s
total external debt in the same period was US$ 4.2 billion, 29.9% of GDP [1,8].
Table 1 Basic Socioeconomic, Demographic and Health Indicators (*)
(*) Full data sources for all indicators are provided in Annex 1.
Indicator Value Year Source
Population (thousands) 40,432 2007 World Bank
Geographic Size (sq. km) 885,800 2007 World Bank
GDP per capita, PPP (constant 2005
international $)
1,140.96 2007 World Bank
Gini index 34.62 2000 World Bank
Government expenditure on health (%
of general government expenditure)
13.7 2007 WHO NHA
Per capita government expenditure on
health (current US$)
11 2007 WHO NHA
Physician density (per 10,000)