Strong partnerships can secure medicine independence
DAR ES SALAAM: WE must admit it that Tanzania stands at a pivotal moment in its development journey. For decades, the country has relied heavily on imported medicines, vaccines, and medical supplies, exposing citizens to high prices, shortages, and vulnerability during global crises.
However, recent government investment in local pharmaceutical production signals a welcome shift toward self-reliance. Yet public funding alone will not deliver the scale, technology, and speed required. To succeed, Tanzanians must actively partner with experienced foreign investors and manufacturers.
This is because local drug production is not simply an economic ambition; it is a national security priority. For instance, the Covid-19 pandemic showed how fragile international supply chains can be, leaving developing countries at the back of the queue. For that matter, building factories, laboratories, and skilled workforces at home can protect lives, save foreign exchange, and create thousands of jobs.
But pharmaceutical manufacturing is capital-intensive and highly regulated. It demands advanced technology, global certification, and strict quality control. Foreign investors already possess many of these assets. They bring financing, technical expertise, research capacity, and access to international markets.
Tanzanian entrepreneurs, cooperatives, and institutions bring local knowledge, labor, land, and an understanding of domestic demand. When these strengths are combined through joint ventures, licensing agreements, and public-private partnerships, both sides win. However, partnership must be strategic, not submissive. Tanzanians should negotiate from a position of confidence, guided by clear national interests.
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Agreements must include technology transfer, skills training, local sourcing of raw materials, and fair ownership structures. Government agencies should support citizens with transparent regulations, predictable incentives, and strong intellectual property protection to attract credible investors while safeguarding public health.
Universities and research institutes also have a role. By collaborating with foreign pharmaceutical firms, they can strengthen research, develop new formulations, and train scientists, pharmacists, and engineers.
Such collaboration ensures that Tanzania is not only assembling medicines, but gradually innovating and exporting them. Citizens, too, must adjust their mindset.
Foreign investment should not be viewed as a threat, but as a tool. Countries like India and Bangladesh built strong pharmaceutical industries by opening their doors to global partnerships, then steadily building local capacity.
Tanzania can follow a similar path, learning while producing, and producing while learning. The government’s push to expand medicine production is timely, but its success depends on collective action.
Business leaders must seek partners beyond borders. Financial institutions should design products that support joint ventures. Youth should pursue skills relevant to pharmaceutical manufacturing. Civil society should demand transparency and quality, not reject collaboration.
