WHO selects Tanzania to implement special programme on emergency care services

ARUSHA: TANZANIA is among four African countries selected by the World Health Organisation (WHO) to implement a special programme aimed at strengthening emergency care services, expanding access to treatment and saving lives.

The other countries participating in the initiative are Ethiopia, Rwanda and Uganda.

The programme, known as Emergency Care Transformation and Improvement through Basic Emergency Care (ACTxBEC), seeks to strengthen health systems by ensuring the effective delivery of basic emergency care services at health centres and hospitals.

Speaking about the initiative during the Eighth African Conference on Emergency Medicine (AfCEM 2026), currently taking place in Arusha, WHO Headquarters ACTxBEC Programme Lead, Professor Teri Reynolds, said the four countries had invested in emergency care services for more than a decade but continued to face challenges in ensuring adequate access to these services across all communities.

She said research and evidence from various countries in Africa and Asia had demonstrated that quality emergency care services could save lives, adding that the programme aims to expand access to such services and reach more people.

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Meanwhile, Dr Erasto Sylvanus from the Ministry of Health’s Emergency and Disaster Management Unit said specialised emergency care training was essential in equipping healthcare workers with the practical skills and knowledge needed to save patients’ lives in different situations.

He said such services were critical in managing emergencies arising from road accidents, pregnancy and childbirth complications, infectious diseases and heart conditions.

Dr Sylvanus added that approximately 50 per cent of hospital deaths could be prevented if emergency care systems were strengthened and patients arriving at hospitals in critical condition received timely treatment.

He said the measures would help reduce preventable deaths and improve patient treatment outcomes.