TZ moves to cut 2.6tri/- pharma imports, create jobs

TANZANIA: TANZANIA is working out a strategy that will end its long-standing reliance on imported medicines and medical devices.

At that heart of the strategy is an ambitious push to transform the country into a regional pharmaceutical manufacturing hub, with a target of achieving 80 per cent local production of health products by 2030.

President Dr Samia Suluhu Hassan’s administration intends to slash the country’s annual pharmaceutical import bill of approximately 1 billion US dollars (about 2.6tri/-), create thousands of jobs and strengthen national health security.

Inaugurating the 13th National Assembly on November 14, 2025, President Dr Samia committed to boosting domestic pharmaceutical production and ensuring local manufacturers have a guaranteed market through the Medical Stores Department (MSD).

“The government will come to you with proposals on how to implement the Universal Health Insurance pilot,” she told MPs, urging support for reforms that will expand access to quality health services.

Turning point

Tanzania currently imports more than 80 per cent of its pharmaceutical products and medical devices.

Registered pharmaceutical projects rose from zero in 2021 to 14 in 2025, with capital inflows jumping to over 87 million US dollars (about 231bn/-) last year. However, local production still meets only 10 to 20 per cent of national demand.

Presenting his docket’s 2026/27 budget proposals in the National Assembly in May this year, Minister for Health Mr Mohamed Mchengerwa said the government was committed to ensuring that MSD gives priority to purchasing medicines manufactured locally that meet the standards set by the Tanzania Medicines and Medical Devices Authority (TMDA) before importing.

“This step aims to promote local industries, create employment and strengthen the national economy,” he said.

In line with the target, the government has set up the Pharmaceutical Investment Acceleration Task Force (PIAT), which is a highpowered body mandated to remove bottlenecks and attract world-class manufacturers.

Under PIAT’s ‘Green Lane’ fast-track mechanism, approvals relating to licensing, land acquisition, taxation, regulation and product registration are processed simultaneously rather than sequentially.

Mr Mchengerwa has emphasised that “the pharmaceutical sector cannot wait for slow, conventional decision-making”.

The task force has already begun delivering results. The government is receiving growing interest from large international firms, including a Shanghai Stock Exchange-listed Chinese company planning to invest in the production of generic medicines.

MSD’s role in the transformation

MSD, which procures health commodities worth approximately 491 million US dollars (about 1.3tri/-) annually for more than 8,800 public health facilities nationwide, is at the heart of this transformation.

MSD’s corporate customer service lead, Mr Michael Bajile, articulated the department’s renewed focus on supporting local production. Speaking at a recent ‘Window Shopping’ event engaging corporate clients, he said: “We decided to organise this event to put a spotlight on our major corporate customers, to foster collaboration and to unequivocally assure them that we possess all necessary equipment and the capability to supply.”

He emphasised the calibre of MSD’s extensive supplier network, noting that suppliers “meet international standards and can provide advanced technological equipment, including AI and highly sophisticated machinery”.

MSD Logistics Director Victor Sungusia reinforced the department’s commitment to ensuring that every health facility has access to the right medical supplies at the right time.

“The substantial government investment, coupled with our enhanced supply chain capabilities and advanced technology, positions us strongly to meet the growing demands of both public and corporate sectors,” he said.

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Benefits for citizens

For Tanzanian citizens, the pharmaceutical transformation promises tangible benefits. The availability of essential health commodities has increased from 58 per cent in the 2021/22 financial year to 88 per cent as of March this year.

The government has set a target of producing at least 50 per cent of hospital medicines and medical equipment locally.

Pharmacists have welcomed the initiative. Pharmaceutical Society of Tanzania Vice-President Mary Kisima described the strategy as ‘a transformative step’ that would strengthen national health security and create employment opportunities for Tanzanians.

A strategic asset for regional health security

Mr Mchengerwa, speaking recently at the Ministers’ High-Level Meeting on Local Production of Medicines and Health Technologies in Algiers, challenged African states to align with the continental framework for strengthening local production.

“We must confront a hard truth: If we continue acting as 55 separate markets, we will continue importing 99 per cent of our vaccines. Our strength will come from harmonisation, pooled procurement and shared industrial planning,” he said.

As Tanzania positions itself as a pharmaceutical manufacturing hub, the message from the government is clear: The era of dependence on imported medicines is ending.

Under President Dr Samia’s leadership, what was once a vulnerability is becoming a strategic strength; creating jobs, saving foreign exchange and ensuring that Tanzanians have reliable access to quality medicines.