The Ministry of Health, Community Development, Gender, Elderly and Children in The United Republic Of Tanzania uses the Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response (IDSR) strategy to monitor reportable diseases and conditions to detect and respond to the leading causes of illness, death, and disabilities.[4] Subsequently, reports of the spread of the virus have been actively gathered over the years and relevant policies put in place as situations unfold.
Sources: Various news sources and state health department websites. SeeTimeline for sources.
On 12 January 2020, theWorld Health Organization (WHO) confirmed that anovel coronavirus was the cause of a respiratory illness in a cluster of people inWuhan City, Hubei Province, China, which was reported to the WHO on 31 December 2019.[5][6]
In May 2020, Fatma Karume, a human rights activist, said authorities are discouraging people from going to hospitals to avoid overwhelming them, but they are not giving adequate guidance about the virus. Karume said: "When you are disempowering a whole nation by withholding information and creating doubt on how they should respond to the crisis, the outcome can be disastrous."[10]
COVID-19 related news arecensored as misinformation or disinformation. The distribution of non-governmental information has been made into a criminal offence by the government.[11] The government released a list of qualified persons to educate the public about COVID-19, and directed that all media source information only from those on the list. Multiple individuals were arrested and fined because of spreading information about COVID-19.[12] The lack of transparency and restricted freedoms have drawn criticism fromReporters Without Borders.[13]
However, on 28 June 2021, President Samia Suluhu Hassan announced COVID-19 statistics to the public for the first time since May 2020, with 100 new cases in Tanzania and 70 people in a critical state on ventilators.[14]
On 16 March, the first case in Tanzania was confirmed inArusha.[15][16] It was a 46-year-old Tanzanian who had come to Arusha fromBelgium.[17]
On 17 March, the Prime MinisterKassim Majaliwa announced a range of measures, including closing schools.[18]
On 18 March, two other cases in Tanzania were reported.[19]
On 19 March, two new cases were reported, bringing the total to six. Five cases were located in capital city ofDar es Salaam with the other inZanzibar.[20]
On 22 March, it was announced that cases had risen to 12.[21]
On 23 March, the Government announced that all incoming travelers from COVID affected countries would be placed in quarantine at their own cost for 14 days.[22]
On 25 March, it was announced thatZanzibar recorded its second case.[23]
On 26 March, the first COVID recovery was announced, of the firstArusha patient.[24]
On 28 March, a third case was recorded inZanzibar.[25]
On 30 March, there were 5 more recorded cases, including two in Zanzibar and three inmainland Tanzania, bringing the cumulative total to 19.[26]
On 31 March, the first COVID death was recorded, inDar es Salaam.[27]
On 1 April, one new case and one recovery in Dar es Salaam were announced, bringing the cumulative totals to 20 cases, two recoveries, and one death.[28]
On 3 April, a third recovery inKagera was announced, bringing the active case number to 16.[29]
On 5 April, two new cases were reported inZanzibar.[30]
On 6 April, a further two new cases were reported inDar es Salaam andMwanza, bringing the cumulative total to 24.[31]
On 7 April, two more cases recovered, bringing total recoveries to five.[32]
On 8 April, one new case was recorded.[33] PresidentJohn Magufuli urged the faithfuls to go to pray in churches and mosques in the belief that it will protect them. He said that the coronavirus is a devil, therefore "cannot survive in the body of Jesus Christ, it will burn".[34]
On 10 April, it was announced that there were five new cases on mainland, two new cases onZanzibar, and two deaths on the mainland, bringing the cumulative case count to 32, and cumulative deaths to three.[35]
On 12 April, all international passenger flights were suspended.[36]
On 13 April, it was announced that there were 64 new cases onmainland, and three new cases inZanzibar. In addition, two recoveries in Zanzibar were announced.[37][38]
On 14 April, the Prime Minister announced four more cases inDar es Salaam, bringing the cumulative total to 53 cases.[39]
On 15 April,Zanzibar health minister Hamad Rashid Mohammed, reported six more cases, two recoveries, and its first death.[40] On the same day, 29 new cases onmainland were recorded. This brought the cumulative total for Tanzania to 88, with cumulative recoveries of 11 and cumulative deaths of four.[41]
On 16 April, six people tested positive in Zanzibar, bringing the total to 94.[42]
On 17 April, 53 people tested positive, 38 inDar es Salaam, 10 inZanzibar, 1 inMwanza, 1 inPwani, 1 inLindi, and 1 inKagera, bringing the total to 147 and cumulative death of 5 people.[43]
On 19 April, 23 new cases were reported in Zanzibar, where 2 people died.[44]
On 20 April, a further 87 people were reported to be infected with the virus, including 16 fromZanzibar. In addition, 3 new deaths on themainland were reported, bringing cumulative deaths in Tanzania to 10.[45]
On 22 April, the Prime Minister announces the case count had risen to 284, with 11 recovered and the death toll remaining at 10.[46]
On 24 April, 37 more patients had recovered,[47] while 15 more were infected with the disease inZanzibar.[48]
On 28 April, 7 patients in Zanzibar tested positive.[49]
On 29 April, 196 more people were infected, bringing the total to 480, where 167 had recovered and 16 died.[50]
On 2 May, opposition leaderFreeman Mbowe called for the suspension ofParliament for at least three weeks after the deaths of three MP's (Gertrude Rwakatare,Richard Ndassa andAugustine Mahiga) of unknown causes in the previous eleven days. He blamed the deaths on COVID-19 and asked for testing for all MP's, parliament staff and family members.[51]
On 4 May, PresidentJohn Magufuli suspended the head of testing at Tanzania's national health laboratory and fired its director after the lab allegedly returnedfalse positive test results. Magufuli said he had deliberately submitted biological samples from apapaya, a quail and a goat to test the laboratory's accuracy; the lab diagnosed these samples as positive for coronavirus.[52]
On 7 May, it was announced that forZanzibar, the cumulative total of recorded cases was 134, the cumulative number of recoveries was 16 and the cumulative numbers of recorded deaths was 5. Of the active cases, 41 were at health facilities and 72 were cared for and followed up at home.[53]
TheU.S. embassy in Tanzania issued a warning on 13 May that the risk of contracting COVID-19 inDar es Salaam was extremely high. It believed cases were growing at an exponential rate in Dar es Salaam and other places and expected hospital capacity to be insufficient.[54] Private local broadcaster Kwanza Online TV was subsequently taken off air for 11 months by the regulator for having posted the embassy's warning on its Instagram account.[55]
Tanzanian authorities stopped reporting case numbers in May.[56][57] When the reporting stopped, the number of confirmed cases stood at 509, the number of recovered patients was 183, and 21 patients had died.[58]
Several truck drivers tested positive at theKenya border, and Kenya closed the border for non-cargo.[59] The two countries agreed to supply testing and facilities for truckers.[60]
On 21 May, the President announced that colleges will reopen and form six secondary school students will return to school from 1 June, sports will resume from 1 June, and that international flights will resume, without any quarantine, from 27 May.[61]
Opposition activists accused the government of covering up the true scale of the pandemic, claiming that, while the official stats remained stuck on 509 cases and 21 deaths, with no test results being reported since 4 May, at least 412 have died inDar es Salaam alone, and that 16,000 to 20,000 people have been infected countrywide.[62]
The lack of official data on testing, recoveries, active cases and fatalities generated an interest from epidemiologists and modellers to estimate the true extent of COVID-19 infection in Tanzania. Pearson et al. estimate that Tanzania reached 1000 infected patients at some point between 6 April and 2 May 2020, and 10,000 infections not before 20 April and no later than 26 May 2020.[63] Modelling results published by theMRC Centre for Global Infectious Disease Analysis atImperial College London suggest that the true number of infections in Tanzania between 29 April and 26 May 2020 was 24,869. Pearson et al. calculate that after three months of no mitigating measures being taken, Tanzania should expect between 5,900 and 19 million symptomatic cases, and up to 16,000 additional deaths due to COVID-19.[64] Similarly in 2022, modeling by WHO's Regional Office for Africa suggested that the true number of infections in 2020 was around 14 million and the true number of COVID-19 deaths in 2020 was between 1069 and 12,000.[65]
Local artist creating Corona awareness mural (June 2020)
On 8 June, President Magufuli declared Tanzania to be free of coronavirus, which he attributed to the prayers offered by its citizens.[66] There are reports that several COVID-19 test centres shut down following the announcement and that patients displaying symptoms have been denied testing on account of Tanzania having no virus.[67]
On 16 June, the president announced that schools at all levels would re-open on 29 June.[68]
In July, the government adopted and published new subsidiary legislation introducing mandatory registration of bloggers, online discussion forums, radio and television webcasters, as well as criminalizing the publication of "information with regards to the outbreak of a deadly or contagious diseases in the country or elsewhere without the approval of the respective authorities".[69][70]
On 6 August,John Nkengasong ofAfrica CDC expressed his concerns over the lack of data from Tanzania and the detrimental impact on the development and implementation of an Africa-wide strategy.[71]
In August, the government adopted and published new subsidiary legislation banning all local media from broadcasting foreign content without prior government permission, including content relating to COVID-19 in Tanzania.[72]
In December there were reports that a number of patients at theAga Khan, Shree Hindu Mandal, and Rabininsia Memorial hospitals inDar es Salaam were coming in with symptoms of coronavirus and subsequently tested positive for COVID-19. Moreover, conspiracies that funerals were taking place in secret at night, and that former presidentBenjamin Mkapa's cause of death was not heart attack as officially stated, but COVID-19.[73]
In the first week of 2021, aDanish resident returning from Tanzania tested positive for theB.1.1.7 variant of COVID-19.Denmark'sStatens Serum Institut noted it was not possible to tell where the infected person had caught the virus.[74] Two more Danish residents returning from Tanzania tested positive for the501.V2 variant on 19 January, representing only the second and third confirmed cases of the 501.V2 variant in Denmark.[75]
On 19 January, theInternational School Moshi announced that one of its students had tested positive for COVID-19 and was isolating, while the class of the student would be taught online until 1 February. Two days later the school issued an apology for issuing false information and stated that the operations of the school had not been halted.[76]
On 26 January, the President of theTanzania Episcopal Conference, Archbishop Nyaisonga in a letter addressed to archbishops, bishops and retired bishops warned against a "possible new wave of coronavirus infections".[77]
On 27 January, PresidentJohn Magufuli expressed doubts about theCOVID-19 vaccines during a speech inChato, Geita Region. "If the white man was able to come up with vaccinations, then vaccinations forAIDS would have been brought,tuberculosis would be a thing of the past,vaccines for malaria andcancer would have been found", he declared.[78] His speech was rebuffed by the regional WHO directorMatshidiso Moeti who urged Tanzania to ramp up public health measures and vaccination.[79] Magufuli also rejected lockdown measures, reasoning in a broadcast speech: "I don't expect to announce any lockdown because our living God will protect us. We will continue to take other health precautions, including steam therapy."[80]
On 1 February, Health MinisterDorothy Gwajima said that Tanzania has no interest in taking part in a vaccination programme, despite encouragement from the WHO to do so.[84] Instead she reiterated the government's suggested hygiene practices, which include drinking plenty of water and taking local herbs.[85]
On 10 February, theUnited States warned that Tanzanian health facilities are in danger of being overwhelmed following a sharp increase in cases in January.[86]
On 11 February, concerns were expressed by Member of Parliament Zacharia Issaay over the high number of deaths due to pneumonia and other respiratory diseases in his constituencyMbulu Urban.[87]
On 12 February, it was reported that major hospitals inDar es Salaam were inundated with patients who had COVID-19 symptoms. Intensive care units at these hospitals were full, and beds, oxygen, and respirators were in short supply.[80]
On 15 February, the Medical Association of Tanzania issued a statement linking an increase in respiratory illness deaths to ongoing outbreaks of various diseases including COVID-19. The statement also urged health practitioners to educate patients and urged citizens to visit healthcare facilities as soon as they experience symptoms.[88]
On 15 February, theOman Minister of Health said that 18 percent of travelers arriving from Tanzania tested positive for COVID-19, a number he described as "very high". He also said that Oman was considering halting flights from Tanzania.[89]
On 17 February,Seif Sharif Hamad, 77,Vice President of Zanzibar died of acute pneumonia related to COVID-19.[90] A top aide to President Magufuli, Chief Secretary John Kijazi and Namibia's third secretary to Tanzania Selina Tjihero also died during the same week. Sources close to the matter said they had contracted COVID-19.[91]
On 18 February, the bar association of mainland Tanzania,Tanganyika Law Society, issued a statement calling on the government to acknowledge the presence of coronavirus in the country.[92]
On 20 February, WHO Director-GeneralTedros Adhanom called on Tanzania to start reporting COVID-19 cases, share data, implement tried-and-tested public health measures, and prepare for vaccination.[93]
On 21 February, President Magufuli urged Tanzanians to take precautions against the spread of coronavirus in the country. The Ministry of Health followed up later in the day with a statement saying that people should take precautions including hand washing, eating healthy, exercising, protecting the elderly, and wearing face masks.[94]
On 3 March, the General Secretary of the Tanzania Episcopal Conference said that over a period of two months more than 25 priests and 60 nuns had died from various causes including respiratory challenges.[97]
On 10 March, aKenyan newspaper reported that an African leader was being treated for COVID-19 at aNairobi hospital, leading to a widespreadconspiracy theory that it may be President Magufuli, who had not been seen in public since February.[98]
On 11 March, WHO regional director Matshidiso Moeti praised Tanzania for the action taken on 21 February but called for COVID-19 testing procedures recommended by the WHO to be followed, a return to transparency and data sharing, and a roll-out of vaccines.[99]
On 17 March, Vice-presidentSamia Suluhu Hassan announced that President Magufuli had died of heart complications. Opposition politicians claimed he had contracted COVID-19.[100]
On 1 April,John Nkengasong, head of the African health agencyAfrica CDC, said that a new variant with as many as 40 mutations had been found inAngola among travelers from Tanzania.[101]
On 6 April, PresidentSamia Suluhu Hassan signalled a change in approach from her predecessor, proposing an evaluation of Tanzania's response to COVID-19, a more science-based approach and a return to regular publishing of data.[102]
On 8 April,ChangeTanzania published an interim report from an online survey carried out in February and March 2021. The results pointed to a rise in deaths and cases from late December, worsening in January and February.[103]
On 17 May, the evaluation committee that President Samia Suluhu Hassan proposed on 6 April delivered its evaluation and recommendations. According to the evaluation, Tanzania had experienced two waves of coronavirus and risked a third. The committee recommended resuming regular reporting of cases to the World Health Organization and submitting the necessary documentation for joiningCOVAX.[104]
On 29 May,Zanzibar's PresidentHussein Mwinyi announced that the semi-autonomous region would start importing and administering COVID-19 vaccine. Activists on themainland urged the government to follow suit.[105]
On 17 June, World Health Organization representatives announced that Tanzania had applied to joinCOVAX.[106]
On 19 June, the director of prevention from the Ministry of Health warned about signs of an emerging third wave of infections in Tanzania and issued instructions to wear face masks, use sanitizer and wash hands.[107]
In the semi-autonomous region ofZanzibar, 390 persons tested positive between 25 June and 10 August, while 15 persons died.[108]
On 28 June, President Samia Suluhu Hassan referred to 100 new COVID-19 cases in Tanzania, 70 of whom in a critical state on ventilators.[109]
On 6 July,Zanzibar began administering theCoronaVac vaccine to frontline workers following aChinese donation of 110,000 doses.[110][111]
On 7 July, President Samia Suluhu Hassan warned against a third wave of the virus, citing cases recently reported inDar es Salaam,Arusha,Mwanza and many other parts of the country.[112]
On 10 July, Health Minister Dorothy Gwajima revealed that there had been 408 new cases of COVID-19, 284 of whom were on ventilators.[113]
On 14 July, Health Minister Dorothy Gwajima announced an agreement reached with COVAX to supply 300,000 vaccine doses. She also undertook to resume publication of twice-monthly COVID-19 statistics.[114]
By 21 July, the reported number of COVID-19 cases had risen to 682, followed by an additional increase of 176 cases over the next two days. The reported death toll rose to 29.[115] As a consequence of the rising number of cases and deaths, new restrictions on movement and gatherings were introduced.[116]
By 7 August, 105,745 persons had been vaccinated.[118] A week later, the number had risen to 207,391.[119]
By 8 August, the reported number of COVID-19 cases had shot up to 16,970. The reported death toll remained unchanged.[120] A week later, the reported number of cases remained 16,970 while the reported death toll had risen to 50.[121]
In the semi-autonomous region ofZanzibar, 876 persons tested positive between 10 and 27 August, while the region's death toll increased to 40.[108]
By 28 September, the reported number of COVID-19 cases had risen to 25,647 and the reported death toll to 714.[122]
By 5 October, the reported number of COVID-19 cases had risen to 25,846 and the reported death toll to 719.[123] A week later, the reported number of cases had risen to 25,957 and the reported death toll to 723.[124]
By 19 October, the reported number of COVID-19 cases had risen to 26,034 and the reported death toll to 724.[125] Three days later the reported number of cases had risen to 26,154 and the reported death toll to 725.[126]
By 29 October, the reported number of COVID-19 cases had risen to 26,196. The reported death toll remained unchanged.[127]
By 5 November, the reported number of COVID-19 cases had risen to 26,208 while the reported death toll remained unchanged.[128]
By 12 November, the reported number of COVID-19 cases had risen to 26,227 and the reported death toll to 727.[129]
By 19 November, the reported number of COVID-19 cases had risen to 26,261 and the reported death toll to 730.[130]
By 26 November, the reported number of COVID-19 cases had risen to 26,270 while the reported death toll remained unchanged.[131]
By 3 December, the reported number of COVID-19 cases had risen to 26,309 and the reported death toll to 734.[132]
By 10 December, the reported number of COVID-19 cases had risen to 26,483 while the reported death toll remained unchanged.[133]
By 24 December, the reported number of COVID-19 cases stood at 29,306 and the reported death toll was 737.[134]
By 31 December, the reported number of COVID-19 cases stood at 30,564 and the reported death toll was 740.[135] Modeling by WHO's Regional Office for Africa suggests that due to under-reporting, the true cumulative number of infections by the end of 2021 was around 26.3 million while the true number of COVID-19 deaths was around 33,000.[65]
