HIV/AIDS Twinning Center Partners Conduct Series of Substance Abuse Activities in Tanzania, Zanzibar
Kathryn Utan
Twinning Center Partners in Tanzania Introduce Recovery Oriented System of Care in Dar es Salaam
PEPFAR-supported Substance Abuse and HIV Prevention Partnership Conducts Sensitization Workshop for Addicts, Families in Kinondoni District
WASHINGTON, DC, and DAR es SALAAM, TANZANIA, August 17, 2010 — The American International Health Alliance (AIHA) and its partners from the Tanzania Drug Control Commission (DCC), Ministry of Health and Social Development Department of Substance Abuse Prevention and Rehabilitation (DSAPR) in Zanzibar, and the Great Lakes Addiction Technologies Transfer Center (GLATTC) concluded today a two-day sensitization workshop designed to introduce the recovery oriented system of care (ROSC) to some 50 drug addicts and their families in the Kinondoni District of Dar es Salaam.
“Mainland Tanzania does not have these types of programs, so this ROSC workshop was very much needed,” says Alois M. Ngonyani, a chemist with the Drug Control Commission. “Introducing this program in our country will help many addicts and their families … we want them to know that addiction is a disease just like diabetes or any other condition and, therefore, it can be treated. It is a big step toward helping to solve substance abuse problems and associated negative outcomes — particularly as we plan to start a methadone assisted treatment program here in October,” he explains.
Although there are no official reports on the number of drug addicts in Dar es Salaam, unofficial estimates indicate that more than 2,000 individuals are battling substance abuse issues. Four Alcoholics Anonymous/Narcotics Anonymous (AA/NA) meetings are held in the city each week, but they are poorly attended, and more comprehensive recovery services are not available.
With support from the US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) through CDC/Tanzania, Twinning Center partners at the DCC, DSAPR, and GLATTC joined with recovering peer educators from Drug Free Zanzibar and experts from the Muslim Education and Welfare Association (MEWA) in Mombasa, Kenya, to conduct the sensitization workshop. Three local NGOs — Changamoto ni Matumaini, AA/NA, and the Tandika Youth Handcraft Group — also helped organize the event.
Partners have been highly successful at introducing the ROSC model in Zanzibar, conducting their first training for peers in recovery in January 2009. Their programming focuses on the “12 Steps Recovery Model” and the “Islamic Milati” — both of which reflect their commitment to ongoing inter-faith dialogue as a path to better understanding and addressing substance abuse and HIV/AIDS within the local community. In March 2010, partners conducted a mapping assessment to ascertain the availability and scope of available substance abuse services in Dar es Salaam. They anticipate that this first sensitization workshop will help pave the way to the establishment of recovery services on the mainland similar to those currently available in Zanzibar.
Twinning Center Partners Train Pemba Island Primary Care Providers on Recovery Oriented System of Care
PEPFAR-supported Substance Abuse and HIV Prevention Partnership Conducts Two Workshops to Raise Awareness of Addiction Treatment among Healthcare Providers
WASHINGTON, DC, and DAR es SALAAM, TANZANIA, August 19, 2010 — The American International Health Alliance (AIHA) announced today that its partners at the Ministry of Health and Social Development Department of Substance Abuse Prevention and Rehabilitation (DSAPR) in Zanzibar and the Great Lakes Addiction Technologies Transfer Center (GLATTC) launched the first of two three-day workshops to raise awareness of substance abuse diagnosis and treatment options — in particular the recovery oriented system of care (ROSC) — that can be effectively integrated into primary level healthcare services in Unguja, Pemba Island.
A total of 30 primary healthcare providers will participate in the trainings, which will run from August 19-21 and August 23-25. Currently, Unguja has only one worker trained in ROSC, although such services are in high demand.
“It is more cost effective for us to conduct these trainings onsite in Unguja than to transport all the participants to Pemba, where we have already initiated peer meetings for addicts,” says Alois Mahmoud Ibrahim Mussa, Coordinator of the Ministry of Health and Social Development’s Department of Substance Abuse Prevention and Rehabilitation in Zanzibar.
With support from the US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) through CDC/Tanzania, Twinning Center partners at the DSAPR and GLATTC have been highly successful at introducing the ROSC model in Zanzibar, conducting their first training for peers in recovery in January 2009. Their programming focuses on the “12 Steps Recovery Model” and the “Islamic Milati” — both of which reflect their commitment to ongoing inter-faith dialogue as a path to better understanding and addressing substance abuse and HIV/AIDS within the local community. They presented their work in October 2009 at a best practices conference, “Forging Active Partnerships towards a Drug Free Society” held in South Africa.
These two trainings mark the expansion of these successful programs to other areas where they are needed.
For more information about these activities, please contact:
Sally Chalamila
Country Director, HIV/AIDS Twinning Center
Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
Tel. +255 22 2126880 & 0754894357
Kathryn M. Utan
Communications Manager
American International Health Alliance
1250 Eye Street, NW, Suite 350
Washington, DC 20005
Tel. 202.719.1152
Fax 202.789.0519