Tanzania COVID-19 poverty monitor: urban and peri-urban areas
Loading...
Date
2022
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Chronic Poverty Advisory Network
Abstract
Tanzania had its first and most serious wave of Covid-19 from March to June 2020,
and adopted the policy responses of partial lockdown, school and international
border closures, and banned mass gatherings except religious ones which could
be attended with social distancing. In June 2020 some of the strict measures like
closing bars, hotels, schools, social events and other businesses were relaxed with
some precautions while hygiene and sanitation practices remained in place. The
then President of Tanzania, John Pombe Magufuli, instructed to stop publishing
data on Covid-19 cases and deaths in late April 2020 for several reasons. First,
he was sceptical about the corona testing kits, the process and the integrity of
the laboratory technicians. Second, giving data to the citizens was of no help but
created fear and panic. He declared that people should pray and rely on God and
on traditional medicines while doubting Covid-19 tests. The second and third
waves of the pandemic occurred from November 2020 to March 2021 and from
June 2021 to October 2021 respectively. The fourth wave occurred from November
2021. President John Pombe Magufuli passed away on 17th March 2021. After his
death his successor, President Samia Suluhu Hassan, resumed the publication of
Covid-19 cases and deaths and committed Tanzania to a vaccination programme.
She also opened up for external financial assistance to support government’s
efforts in overcoming the Covid-19 pandemic in the country. While lockdown was
short lived and partial, the fears induced by the pandemic lived on in people’s
cautious healthcare practices through to the end of the second wave of Covid-19
(November 2020 to March 2021). The healthcare practices included wearing a face
mask, washing hands with soap and running water and avoiding handshakes. And
some of the effects of the lockdown, healthcare practices changes resulting from
the pandemic, and global economic pandemic related trends have lived on till the
present. The third and fourth waves of the pandemic occurred from June 2021 to
October 2021 and from November 2021 to the time of the research on which this
bulletin is based (March 2022) respectively.
Description
Working Paper
Keywords
COVID-19, Urban areas, Peri-urban-areas, Tanzania, Poverty monitor