Tanzania plans to allow HIV self-testing

Minister for Health, Community Development, Gender, Elderly and Children Ms Ummy Mwalimu responds to a question in Parliament on Wednesday. Photo | Edwin Mjwahuzi

What you need to know:

Earlier, deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Office Mr Anthony Mavunde said the government plans to launch a special campaign to stimulate testing of HIV.


Dodoma. The government said on Thursday that it is planning to review the law and allow Tanzanians test HIV on their own.

Minister for Health, Community Development, Gender, Elderly and Children Ms Ummy Mwalimu said currently the laws do not allow individuals to test themselves. 

"We have communicated with the Attorney General to bring the proposals for amendment and that will enable individuals to test HIV themselves within 15 minutes," said Ms Mwalimu. 

She was responding to a supplementary question asked by Mr Masoud Salim (Mambile-CUF) who wanted to know what the government was doing to ease identification of people with HIV at a time when HIV prevalence has doubled in Dodoma. 

Earlier, deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Office Mr Anthony Mavunde said the government plans to launch a special campaign to stimulate testing of HIV.