Christian Aid in Tanzania

Since gaining independence in 1964, Tanzania has been one of Africa’s more stable countries. But with over half the population still living on less than a dollar a day, erratic power supplies and a lack of public services, many needs remain for Tanzania’s government to address urgently.

Rural communities: outside Tanzania’s cities many people lack of access to basic public services such as sanitation, electricity, clean water, education and healthcare.

Education: though Tanzania has higher adult literacy rates than many other African countries, one in every four adults have not received basic primary education. This creates a barrier for people to engage in local and national politics and prevents people from holding their government to account over the services they need.

Refugees: while Tanzania enjoys political stability, neighbouring countries including the Democratic Republic of Congo continue to be plagued by conflict. Tanzania today hosts thousands of refugees from the DRC and other countries in the Great Lakes region.

Our work

Ensuring that local and national government listens to and responds to its people’s needs is critical for Tanzania’s development. Christian Aid supports work helping communities to demand transparent and accountable decision making by authorities within Tanzania.

Our partners

Our partner Hakikazi Catalyst receives funding from DFID to support marginalised communities in rural areas to understand how policy issues affect their standard of living and how they can influence them.

It has established Centres for Development Learning and Action to provide the resources people need to understand these issues in a relaxed environment.

Through publishing ‘plain language guides’ with cartoons on current issues, relevant laws and government initiatives Hakikazi Catalyst gives people the knowledge and confidence to demand their rights.