TZW
The revelation was made by the Head of Cooperation at the Canadian High Commission in Tanzania Ms Sue Steffen during a celebration to mark the International Women’s Day held in Sumbawanga municipality at regional level.
“Nearly 1 in 3 girls experience sexual violence before they are 18 years old ... this continues into marriage - nearly half of Tanzania married women say they have been subjected to intimate partner violence,” she added.
Ms Steffen said that Tanzanian girls are getting into primary schools now, but they are not completing secondary school education as often as boys are, adding that the more years of education a girl is in, the healthier she and her children will be.
She further noted that young women need to be given the tools to reach their full potential and that for those who choose to become mothers need to be healthy to deliver healthy babies; adolescents need support navigating the transition to adulthood.
According to Ms Steffen, the government of Tanzania has excellent policies in place including a National Plan of Action on Violence against women and children, that the robust implementation of the said policy, throughout the country would go far in improving the lives of women and girls so that they can fulfill their potential and contribute to the country’s development.
The Programme Director for Uzazi Salama project, Mr Benatus Sambili said that the project aimed to improve health outcomes of women, adolescent girls and newborns through enhancing access to and raising awareness of Newborn Mortality and Newborn and Sexual Reproductive Health and Right including family planning.
He further noted that it also aims at reducing Maternal and Newborn Mortality and Morbidity in all three districts of Sumbawanga, Kalambo and Nkasi in Rukwa region with a total of 354 villages
. The five year project, worth over 13m US dollars, is running from December 2016 to June 2020 by Plan International Tanzania in consortium with Jhpiego and Africare through generous funding from Global Affairs Canada and other Canadian development partners