Key Challenges in Tanzania & Our Response
Tanzania is a beautiful country that many tourists visit each year, but it’s also home to millions of children living in devastating poverty. People in impoverished communities face many challenges that Compassion is working to fight.
Lack of Prenatal and Medical Care Hurts Children
According to recent data, Sub-Saharan Africa has the world’s highest infant mortality rate: 27 deaths per 1,000 live births. Many of the reasons behind these deaths can be linked directly to poverty.
For example, many moms in impoverished communities can’t afford or even find the prenatal care they need for healthy pregnancies and births. And when children are born, the same lack of quality medical care puts them at risk of preventable disease and malnutrition. These can hurt children’s growth and have lifelong consequences.
Our Response: Programs That Help Moms & Babies Thrive
Compassion partners with local churches in impoverished communities to provide Survival programs. These programs offer critical care like prenatal vitamins, food packs and medical checkups for pregnant moms. They also cover the cost of delivery and ensure a birth attendant is present to care for the mom during childbirth.
When the little ones are born, mom and baby continue receiving medical care, training and support until the baby’s first birthday. Then, the child can join our child sponsorship program, where they continue receiving care that sets the foundation for bright and healthy futures.
Child Marriage Places Young Girls at Serious Risk
Child marriage is when one or both spouses are under the age of 18. According to recent data, 29% of girls in Tanzania are married before they turn 18. And 5% of girls are married before they even turn 15. Child marriage prevents girls from going to school and reaching their potential. And in some cases, it places them at risk of abuse and violence.
Unfortunately, child marriage is made more common by poverty. When families are trapped in poverty, they’re unable to afford necessities like food and even shelter. However, in Tanzania and other African countries, a husband will pay a price to marry a bride.
Because of this, some parents see having a child married as the only way they can feed and shelter their families.
Our Response: Protecting Vulnerable Girls From Harm
At Compassion, we provide girls registered in our program with the essentials they need to thrive, from malnutrition monitoring to medical care and education support. This lessens the burden on a child’s family, removing the desperation that can lead to child marriage.
Instead, girls are welcomed into safe communities at their local churches, where our staff and volunteers are trained in child protection and know how to intervene in cases of abuse. With safe adults who advocate for them, girls are protected from child marriage and offered opportunities to grow into their God-given potential.
Caption: Photo by: Eric D. Lema
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Caption: Photo by: Eric D. Lema.
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Caption: Photo by: Eric D. Lema
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Caption: Photo by: Eric D. Lema
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