Dodoma. Tanzania is set to build a bridge that will connect mainland to the Islands of Zanzibar to ease movement of goods and people, which if undertaken, the 50 km bridge will be the first in Africa
This was said by the deputy minister of Works and Transport Geofrey Kasekenya in Parliament today April 28, adding that talks that began on March 11, 2023 are in advanced stages.
Kasekenya said that the two parties had met with the prospective investors of M/S China Overseas Engineering Group Company (COVEC) who have shown interest in building the bridge.
He has said that the outcome of the meeting is still being worked on by both parties in mainland Tanzania and Zanzibar, noting that the plan for the construction of the bridge will involve a partnership with the private sector.
He was answering a question that was asked by Mwantum Dau Haji (CCM Special Seats) who wanted to know when the construction of the bridge would kick off.
The idea of the bridge first came up in 2020 when some Tanzanians in diaspora introduced a plan to construct a sea bridge to link Unguja Island and Dar es Salaam.
The idea sparked a lot of debate among citizens with some arguing it is a day dream. But science and technology has proved that the project to construct about 50 km Zanzibar/Dar es Salaam Bridge is possible if funds are available.
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Tanzania Declares End of Marburg Virus Disease Outbreak
Tanzania today declared the end of Marburg virus disease outbreak after recording no new cases over 42 days since the death of the last confirmed case on 28 January 2025.
The outbreak, in which two confirmed and eight probable cases were recorded (all deceased), was the second the country has experienced. Both this outbreak, which was declared on 20 January 2025, and the one in 2023 occurred in the north-eastern Kagera region.
In response to the latest outbreak, Tanzania’s health authorities set up coordination and response systems, with support from World Health Organization (WHO) and partners, at the national and regional levels and reinforced control measures to swiftly detect cases, enhance clinical care, infection prevention as well as strengthen collaboration with communities to raise awareness and help curb further spread of the virus.
Growing expertise in public health emergency response in the African region has been crucial in mounting effective outbreak control measures. Drawing on experience from the response to the 2023 Marburg virus disease outbreak, WHO worked closely with Tanzanian health authorities to rapidly scale up key measures such as disease surveillance and trained more than 1000 frontline health workers in contact tracing, clinical care and public health risk communication. The Organization also delivered over five tonnes of essential medical supplies and equipment.
“The dedication of frontline health workers and the efforts of the national authorities and our partners have paid off,” said Dr Charles Sagoe-Moses, WHO Representative in Tanzania. “While the outbreak has been declared over, we remain vigilant to respond swiftly if any cases are detected and are supporting ongoing efforts to provide psychosocial care to families affected by the outbreak.”
Building on the momentum during the acute phase of the outbreak response, measures have been put in place to reinforce the capacity of local health facilities to respond to potential future outbreaks. WHO and partners are procuring additional laboratory supplies and other equipment for disease detection and surveillance and other critical services.
Marburg virus disease is highly virulent and causes haemorrhagic fever. It belongs to the same family as the virus that causes Ebola virus disease. Illness caused by Marburg virus begins abruptly. Patients present with high fever, severe headache and severe malaise. They may develop severe haemorrhagic symptoms within seven days.
In the African region, previous outbreaks and sporadic cases have been reported in Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ghana, Kenya, Equatorial Guinea, Rwanda, South Africa and Uganda.
Source: allafrica.com
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