EACOP Injects TSh2.8B into Health Projects in Tanga, Geita
The East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) is investing more than US$1 million in healthcare infrastructure in Tanzania, targeting gaps in primary and emergency healthcare services in Geita and Tanga regions. The investment will finance the construction of two new health centres in Bukombe District, Geita Region, and Chongoleani Ward in Tanga City, as well as a new Emergency Medicine Department at Bombo Regional Referral Hospital in Tanga. The funding agreements, signed in Dar es Salaam, are part of EACOP’s Social and Economic Investment (SEI) programme, which supports infrastructure and essential services in communities along the pipeline corridor.
Under the agreements, US$350,000 will be allocated to the construction of Bukombe Health Centre, while a similar amount will be allocated to finance a new health centre in Chongoleani Ward. A further US$363,000 will support the Emergency Medicine Department at Bombo Regional Referral Hospital. The investments come as some communities along the pipeline corridor continue to face limitations in access to healthcare. In Bukombe District, only seven of the 17 wards currently have health centres, leaving 10 wards without adequate access to primary and referral-level services. Residents in these areas often have to travel considerable distances to access maternal, child health and emergency services. The new Bukombe facility is expected to provide antenatal and postnatal care, safe delivery services, child immunisation, family planning, nutrition and outpatient treatment. It is also expected to reduce pressure on existing facilities serving neighbouring communities.
In Chongoleani Ward, the investment is similarly aimed at addressing growing demand for healthcare services. The area is among the rapidly expanding peri-urban parts of Tanga City, with the new facility expected to serve more than 6,000 residents in Putini, Ndaoya and surrounding areas. The health centre will provide maternity and outpatient services, alongside water and sanitation infrastructure and other facilities built in line with Ministry of Health standards. Its development is expected to reduce the distance residents travel to access healthcare while supporting maternal and child health and disease prevention.
The third component of the investment focuses on emergency healthcare at Bombo Regional Referral Hospital, the main referral facility in Tanga Region. Despite having a design capacity of 600 beds, the hospital’s emergency department has continued to operate under significant infrastructure constraints. In 2024, the department handled approximately 24,775 emergency patients despite having only three treatment rooms, two adult resuscitation rooms and one paediatric resuscitation room. Its emergency theatre is also currently non-operational due to structural issues. The department has 30 healthcare workers, including two emergency physicians.
The proposed Emergency Medicine Department is therefore expected to improve the region’s capacity to manage trauma and other critical cases. It could also reduce the need for patients requiring specialised emergency care to travel outside the region, including approximately 196 kilometres to Dar es Salaam or 296 kilometres to Kilimanjaro. The investment highlights the wider role that large infrastructure projects can play in supporting public services in host communities. For EACOP, which stretches 1,443 kilometres from Kabaale in Uganda to the Chongoleani Peninsula in Tanga, such investments form part of its broader social and economic commitments.
However, the long-term impact of the projects will depend on more than the construction of the facilities. Staffing, medical equipment, operational funding and integration into the public healthcare system will determine whether the new infrastructure can sustainably expand access to quality services. As EACOP moves forward, the healthcare investments demonstrate how community infrastructure is becoming an important component of the project’s wider development footprint, particularly in areas where existing public services face capacity and accessibility constraints.
(Source: Daily News)