More than 7.4 million women will benefit from a cancer project initiated by the Aga Khan Foundation in partnership with France through the Agence Française de Development group and Gates Foundation.
The collaborative initiative is led by Aga Khan Health Services.
AKHS says cancer rates in Kenya and Tanzania are on the rise, with nearly 100,000 new cases and 60,000 deaths annually.
The burden is heavier for women, who represent 61 per cent of cancer cases in East Africa, hence a pressing need to strengthen cancer care and treatment across the region.
French ambassador to Tanzania Anne Sophie Avé said the collaboration is a shining example of how international cooperation can drive transformative progress in healthcare.
“Reflecting on the knowledge sharing component of the project, she added that “By combining French expertise with the local knowledge and capacity of Tanzanian institutions, we are not only building stronger health systems but also fostering a relationship of mutual respect and learning,” she said.
Rémy Rioux, AFD group CEO, said, “For over 15 years, we have stood alongside the government of Tanzania to support the country’s sustainable development across various sectors including water, energy, transport, and now health.
"Sharing the conviction that health is a common good, we are proud to collaborate with the Aga Khan Development Network and the internationally renowned French cancer centre, Institut Curie, around the launching of this East Africa Comprehensive Women Cancer Project .”
The project will benefit approximately 7.4 million people through cancer awareness campaigns and provide breast and cervical cancer screening for 400,000 women.
It will also target 200,000 nine-yearold girls in Tanzania with HPV vaccination and 600,000 girls aged 10–14-years in Kenya annually.
The Sh1.4 billion grant is mainly funded by AFD along with Gates Foundation and the Aga Khan Foundation for a period of four years, with the goal of vaccinating 800,000 girls in Tanzania and 2.4 million girls in Kenya over the programme’s duration.
During the signing ceremony. Zeenat Sulaiman Khan, regional chief executive officer, Aga Khan Health Services, said the East Africa Comprehensive Cancer Project is a unique and unified four-year project, to be implemented in four counties in Kenya: Mombasa, Kisumu, Kilifi and Homa Bay, and six target regions in Tanzania: Dar es Salaam, Mwanza, Dodoma, Arusha, Kilimanjaro and Zanzibar.
This will be impeolented through AKHSboth in Kenya and Tanzania together with the Aga Khan Foundation in Tanzania and the Aga Khan University.
“We have a long-standing partnership with France and their support
has been invaluable over the years.
This project will significantly advance cancer care in collaboration
with the implementing partners,
the ministries of health of both
countries, as well as the Ministry of
Health in Zanzibar, and other hospitals including Ocean Road Cancer
Institute, Bugando Medical Centre,
Benjamin Mkapa Hospital, Mount
Meru Regional Referral Hospital,
Kilimanjaro Christian Medical Centre, Amana Regional Referral Hospital, Nyamagana District Hospital and
selected 100 health facilities from
former Tanzania Comprehensive
Cancer Project,” Khan said.
