Tanzania’s President, Samia Suluhu Hassan, has expressed concern over the high birth rate in the East African country.

According to her, it is necessary for the citizens to take up birth control measures. She revealed that high birth rate could likely impact development projects in the country.

President Samia, by virtue of this, confronted the country’s baby boom while visiting the western region of Geita.

”I was told in Buselesele ward in Geita region, one (health) centre produces 1,000 children a month. Now, how many classes will be needed after three years? What of health centres – how many will be needed to serve all these children? How many tonnes of food will be needed? Let’s reduce the speed and have a control on this.”
Samia Suluhu Hassan

President Samia’s position on increasing birth rate in the country is a major reversal from the position of her predecessor, the late John Magufuli, who openly encouraged women not to use contraception.

In 2018, while at a rally in the western part of Tanzania, former President Magufuli described those who use contraception as lazy. He indicated that people were “afraid they will not be able to feed” their children.

Justifying his stance, he stated that persons who use contraception “do not want to work hard to feed a large family”. This, he explained, is the reason they opt for birth controls and end up with one or two children only.

Magufuli, who has two children, noted that it was “important to reproduce” and warned Tanzanians against what he said was bad advice provided by outsiders.

Critics of Magufuli’s statement

Legislators, on the other hand, criticised the comments, saying they are not consistent with national policy.

Cecil Mwambe, an MP, indicated that the country’s health insurance scheme can only accommodate a maximum of four children from one family.

Also, Speaker of Parliament, Job Ndugai, underscored that Magufuli’s comments were advisory and did not represent a governmental position.

Prior to this, in 2016, after the launch of free primary and secondary education in the country, the late President was quoted to have stated that: “Women can throw away their contraceptives. Education is now free”.

According to a 2020 World Bank estimate, Tanzania’s fertility rate was at 4.8 births per woman. The high birth rate was attributed to early marriages and low contraceptive use.

While it has been falling over the last 30 years, it has not declined as fast as other countries in the region such as Kenya and Ethiopia.

Sustained progress in expanding women’s economic opportunities has contributed to Tanzania’s success in growth and poverty reduction over the last 20 years.

However, persisting constraints hinder women from realizing their full economic potential, such as wage differentials by gender, inequitable access to land and assets and gender disparities in the agricultural sector.

Tanzania has a population of around 60 million people, with 49% of them living on less than $2 (£1.77) a day.