Africa-Press – Tanzania. DEPUTY Permanent Secretary responsible for Health Services at the President’s Office – Regional Administration and Local Government Dr Grace Magembe, has hailed the Kizazi Kipya project for leaving an indelible mark on the lives of orphans and vulnerable children (OVC) and their caregivers across the country.
Dr Magembe said the best legacy lasts because Kizazi Kipya was able to establish self-sufficiency methods.
“This initiative was crucial in improving our country’s comprehensive case management system. The recipients have been guided along a route out of poverty, helped to develop resilience, and shown how to utilise local resources as a result of this approach,” she said during the national closeout meeting for the project.
Kizazi Kipya project funded by the United States Agency for International Development/ US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (USAID/PEPFAR) enables Tanzanian OVC, young people affected by HIV and their caregivers to utilise age-appropriate HIV-related and other services.
With the achievements of the Kizazi Kipya project, USAID Tanzania Mission Director Kate Somvongsiri stated, “It is now obvious that we have made a step toward self-reliance.”
“We believe a stable and resilient future has been created among those served by the project. The American people, through USAID, will continue to contribute to similar interventions for a more prosperous future for Tanzanians and an even stronger bond between our two countries,” she said.
The meeting brought together officials from the government of Tanzania, USAID, civil societies, beneficiaries of the Kizazi Kipya project, and other stakeholders.
The meeting discussed achievements and the future for OVC programming in the country, amongst others.
Kizazi Kipya aimed to improve the lives of one million Tanzanian OVC, their caregivers, and young people to utilise age-appropriate HIV-related and other services.
These services sought to improved care, health, nutrition, education, protection, livelihoods, and psycho-social wellbeing of the household members.
For five years, the project has been able to serve 1,700,000 OVC and their caregivers among its target population.
Cumulatively, the project has been implemented in 152 councils across 26 regions of Tanzania.
Moreover, Kizazi Kipya has supported and established about 12,238 savings and lending groups, namely WORTH Yetu, which have cumulative savings of Tanzanian shillings 26,587,540,321.
Nearly 93,000 vulnerable households with a total reach of over 360,000 beneficiaries were linked to the improved Community Health Fund (iCHF).
They were supported with the medical insurance cover to meet the costs of general health services. 9,894 youth were supported with vocational scholarships and income-generating start-up toolkits.
106,450 children received education subsidies to meet their scholarly needs. The project provided training and ongoing technical support to over 28,940 Community Case Workers.
