Context:
Health insurance coverage in Tanzania remains low. More than 85% of the population pays for health services directly out of pocket. This creates financial pressure on households and may lead people to delay or avoid necessary treatment. Poor and vulnerable households, people working in the informal sector, women, persons with disabilities and rural households are particularly affected.
The governments of Mainland Tanzania and Zanzibar have initiated important reforms to establish and strengthen statutory health insurance. On the Mainland, the Universal Health Insurance Act has been adopted; in Zanzibar, the Zanzibar Health Services Fund has been established. Despite strong political commitment, the responsible ministries, insurance institutions and regulatory authorities continue to face capacity constraints. Limited financial resources, insufficient use of data and weak incentives for enrolment also hinder the expansion of insurance coverage, particularly among poor households and informal sector workers.
Objective:
The responsible institutions in Tanzania implement statutory health insurance in a gender-responsive, poverty-oriented and more financially sustainable manner, especially for the benefit of vulnerable population groups.
Approach:
The project strengthens approaches to expand health insurance coverage in Dodoma and Tanga regions as well as in Zanzibar. This includes gender-responsive awareness campaigns, simplified registration processes and group registration approaches for economic groups in the informal sector.
The project improves the organisational conditions for implementing statutory health insurance. It advises responsible institutions on more efficient core processes, supports digital solutions and promotes needs-based training and South-South exchange formats.
The project also strengthens evidence-based and financially sustainable management of health insurance. It supports tools for financial analysis and planning, develops the skills of specialists