Consultative Workshop on Development of a Guideline for Health Research Coordination

In our country, the Tanzania Commission for Science and Technology (COSTECH) is responsible for reviewing and approving all research. The National Institute for Medical Research (NIMR) is responsible for overseeing the National Health Research Ethics Committee (NatHREC) together with the Medical Research Coordination Committee (MRCC) which respectively are responsible for enforcing ethics and coordinating health research national wide. The Tanzania Medicine and Medical Devices Authority (TMDA) approves, oversees and inspects clinical trials. Both NIMR and TMDA are agencies of the Ministry of Health, Community Development, Gender, Elderly and Children (MoHCDGEC). These agencies have clear guidelines on how to execute their mandate at national and sub-national levels.

Conducting research in Tanzania, specifically health research, requires coordination with local government officials following the acquisition of ethical clearances and approvals from NIMR and TMDA. This is because they have been placed to manage the affairs of the state and ensure the people’s safety. However, there is no clear guideline on how to engage these authorities and operationalize health research. To some extent, this may deter attempts to conduct health research by healthcare managers and providers. It therefore prudent to establish clear national guidelines that will remove ambiguities in the sub-national process of health research after attaining ethical clearance and approvals from relevant agencies. These guidelines will also goad healthcare managers to set research targets, as well as encourage and avail resources for implementation of health research among their ranks in order to solve local problems and ultimately achieve UHC in Tanzania.

In advancing this agenda, the MoHCDGEC, PO-RALG in collaboration with AAPH convened a consultative workshop with stakeholders from government agencies, higher learning institutions, research institution, development partners, RHMT and CHMT to lay a foundation by discussing the mandates, experiences, and gaps in coordination and implementation of health research in Tanzania.