Arusha. The government has launched new national treatment guidelines and an essential medicines list to standardise healthcare quality and ensure patients receive consistent care, regardless of the facility they visit.
Health Minister Mohamed Mchengerwa launched the seventh edition of the Standard Treatment Guidelines and National Essential Medicines List (STG/NEML) 2026 in Arusha on Tuesday, November 10, 2026.
The launch coincided with the handover of the guidelines to healthcare facilities, the Medical Stores Department (MSD) and the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF), during celebrations marking the centenary of Mount Meru Regional Referral Hospital.
Mr Mchengerwa said the guidelines were designed to harmonise treatment practices, medicine procurement and distribution, and reimbursement of healthcare services nationwide.
They incorporated scientific evidence, contributions from healthcare professionals and stakeholders, patient safety considerations, and the costs of recommended medicines and services.
The aim, he said, was to ensure patients receive appropriate treatment wherever they seek care, while giving healthcare professionals a reference for informed clinical decisions.
“This seventh edition reflects the country’s commitment to evaluating its healthcare system through science and making the necessary corrections,” he said.
Effective implementation would guide MSD on medicines to procure and distribute, ensure safe treatment and enable health insurance schemes to reimburse services recognised under the guidelines.
“With Universal Health Insurance, this is an important foundation. Insurance without treatment guidelines is a promise without a measurable standard,” he said.
He directed healthcare facilities to use the guidelines when prescribing medicines and treating patients.
MSD should use the National Essential Medicines List to forecast demand and guide procurement and distribution, ensuring listed products remained available.
Medicine availability nationwide stood at 95 percent, he said, urging MSD to improve the figure and address complaints about shortages.
“Medicines included on the list should never be out of stock at health facilities. Availability currently stands at 95 percent, and I do not expect to continue hearing complaints about medicine shortages following the launch of these guidelines,” he said.
The minister said NHIF should align reimbursements with treatments specified in the guidelines so that services provided to patients were paid for according to established standards.
On Mount Meru Regional Referral Hospital, Mr Mchengerwa said the government regarded it as a strategic gateway for medical tourism, attracting patients from neighbouring countries for specialised and super-specialised care.
He urged the institution to strengthen research and publish findings to expand local medical knowledge.
‘Revenue from medical tourism would help the hospital acquire modern equipment and technology, benefiting Tanzanians as well,’ he said.
Mr Mchengerwa urged district commissioners to mobilise communities to exercise regularly to help reduce non-communicable diseases and the cost of treating them.
More than 57 percent of treatment expenditure by insured Tanzanians went towards managing such diseases, he said, placing an additional burden on the healthcare system.
Mount Meru Regional Referral Hospital Medical Officer-in-Charge, Dr Alex Ernest, said the institution began as a facility for treating casualties during the World Wars before becoming a regional hospital and later a referral hospital.
The government had invested significantly since its elevation to referral status, including more than Sh5 billion allocated to improve infrastructure and buy modern medical equipment, he said.
‘A major achievement is the introduction of cancer diagnosis and treatment services, including chemotherapy, reducing the need for patients from the Northern Zone to travel to national hospitals. A pathology unit has strengthened diagnosis through laboratory examination of patient samples, while chemotherapy enabled patients to begin treatment within the region,’ he said.
Other improvements included enhanced emergency services, modern diagnostic facilities, endoscopy services and an oxygen generation plant costing more than Sh1.752 billion.
Arusha Member of Parliament Paul Makonda congratulated the hospital on its centenary and announced plans to recruit 154 community health workers to promote uptake of Universal Health Insurance.
The workers would be deployed across streets in Arusha City to link patients with major hospitals and encourage residents to enrol in and use the scheme, he said.
“To begin with, the MP’s office will recruit more than 154 community health workers who will be deployed across every street,’ said Mr Makonda, who also serves as Minister of Information, Culture, Arts and Sports.
“Their responsibility will be to link patients with major hospitals and, more importantly, encourage residents to enrol in and use Universal Health Insurance, making Arusha a leading example,” he added.