Tanzania. Clinic staff provide information to mothers on how to make healthy choices when it comes to nutrition, hygiene and sanitation.
The lush hills of Tanzania’s Uluguru mountain range have many things to offer: 100 plant species found nowhere else in the world, a forest-capped peak towering at 2,630 metres high and rushing rivers that form the main source of water for the urban population of Dar es Salaam.
But there is one feature strikingly absent for many Tanzanians who live in villages along the flanks of the Ulugurus: a health clinic.
With more than 70 percent of Tanzania’s population living in rural and remote areas, many are unable to access basic health services, such as vaccines or ultrasounds during pregnancy, because the time and expense to travel to a clinic is simply out of reach for many families.
This problem is reflected in the statistics: there is a 1-in-38 chance that a woman will die due to complications in pregnancy or labour. (In Canada, that statistic is one in 5,200.) And for every 1,000 births in Tanzania, 54 children will die before they celebrate their fifth birthday.
Many maternal deaths in Tanzania are preventable, but a skilled birth attendant (such as a doctor, nurse or midwife) attends fewer than half of births in the country. Similarly, life-threatening illnesses for children, such as diarrhea and pneumonia, can be easily avoided with access to proper care and preventive measures.
Working with the national and local governments as well as community partners, Aga Khan Foundation Canada (AKFC) and Aga Khan Health Services in Tanzania are tackling these challenges head-on by providing better access to high-quality care, particularly for remote and rural populations. The program is supported by Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Canada as part of the Muskoka Initiative on maternal, newborn and child health announced by Prime Minister Stephen Harper in 2010.
“Improving global health, particularly the health of mothers and their children, has a ripple effect over the long term,” says Khalil Z. Shariff, CEO of AKFC. “Healthy women give birth to healthy children and healthy children grow to become productive members of their community.”
By facilitating health fairs and mobile clinics in remote communities, the project in Tanzania is helping rural families access health care services such as HIV testing, pregnancy care, immunizations and vaccinations for children, and advice for parents on age-appropriate care for children, including the importance of breastfeeding.
Since the program began in January 2012, health fairs and mobile clinics have reached more than 15,000 people (including more than 10,000 women) in the targeted regions of the country.
The project staff members also train health professionals and upgrade existing health facilities with equipment and new technology. Video conferencing links, for example, allow doctors in rural areas to consult with specialists in major population centres.
AKFC supports many health initiatives across Asia and Africa, in addition to projects in education, rural development and civil society. Aiming to provide a strong foundation for communities to guide their own development over the long term, AKFC concentrates its work on the fundamental building blocks that a society needs to drive its own development: a healthy population, access to education from early childhood to adulthood, strong civil society institutions and access to opportunities — even for those living in remote rural areas.
As a member of the worldwide Aga Khan Development Network, AKFC is part of a group of development agencies with individual mandates that address a broad swath of social, economic and cultural dimensions of development.
In carrying out its work, AKFC recognizes the considerable resources that Canadians have to share with the rest of the world. These are not only financial resources, but also a wealth of knowledge and skills. In addition to spearheading two of the country’s largest fundraising events in support of international development — the World Partnership Walk and the World Partnership Golf Tournament — AKFC facilitates opportunities for Canadians to contribute their expertise overseas through long- and short-term placements.
Headquartered at the Delegation of the Ismaili Imamat on Sussex Drive in Ottawa, AKFC regularly hosts seminars, lectures and other events on topics of global importance that are open to the public. Visit akfc.ca to learn more.
Rosemary Quipp is a public affairs officer at Aga Khan Foundation Canada.
