Dar es Salaam – The World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Director for Africa, Prof. Mohamed Yakub Janabi, is in the United Republic of Tanzania on an official visit representing WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus to advance high-level dialogue and action on maternal, newborn and child health.

The visit reflects the strong and longstanding partnership between the Government of the United Republic of Tanzania and WHO and underscores Tanzania’s leadership in prioritizing maternal and newborn health as a cornerstone of national development, human capital, and health system transformation.

During a high-level engagement at State House, H.E. Samia Suluhu Hassan, President of the United Republic of Tanzania, expressed appreciation for WHO’s continued technical and strategic support, noting the Organization’s critical contribution to advancing national health priorities and strengthening the health system.

The President also recognized the important role played by non-governmental organizations and development partners in complementing government efforts to improve health outcomes. She specifically acknowledged the Doris Mollel Foundation for its leadership in mobilizing resources to support the construction of the neonatal care unit at Kwimba District Hospital, expanding access to lifesaving care for newborns at district level.

While noting Tanzania’s significant progress in reducing maternal mortality, President Samia emphasized the need to accelerate efforts to reduce childhood mortality, highlighting this as a priority area requiring continued  focus and intensified investments. She further underscored the importance of strengthening  research  to generate local evidence that informs effective policies and programming.

Commending the President’s leadership, Prof. Janabi acknowledged Tanzania’s ongoing health sector transformation, including progress in the rollout of universal health insurance, local pharmaceutical production, enhanced health security capacities, and advancements in digital health. The WHO Regional Director reaffirmed the WHO’s commitment to providing normative and technical support in line with Tanzania’s national health priorities. Ms Susan Ngongi-Namondo, the UN Resident Coordinator in Tanzania, who accompanied Prof Janabi, indicated the readiness of the United Nations system to jointly support Tanzania’s digital health strategy.

On Saturday 28 February 2026, the WHO delegation traveled to Mwanza Region for the inauguration of the Kwimba District Neonatal Care Unit (NCU), a facility whose construction was supported by Doris Mollel Foundation. The NCU, is designed to provide specialized care for small and sick newborns, including the management of prematurity, neonatal infections, birth complications, and provide Kangaroo mother care. The unit strengthens access to quality care closer to communities and contributes to closing the maternal and newborn “quality gap.”

The Regional Director further highlighted WHO’s efforts to promote regional knowledge exchange across the African Region, emphasizing the importance of strengthening primary health care. Particularly through community health workers and advancing more integrated service delivery models, in the context of declining overseas development assistance.

WHO continues to support the Tanzania through technical assistance, workforce capacity building, quality-of-care standards, strengthened referral systems, improved data use, and research support to translate political commitment into measurable survival and equity gains for women, newborns, and children.