Tanzania’s fertility care capacity grows as IVF center expands advanced treatment options

Dar es Salaam. Tanzania’s growing demand for fertility treatment is driving investment in advanced reproductive healthcare, as specialists say improved local capacity could reduce the need for patients to seek expensive treatment abroad.

Local infertility consultant and the director of NuLife Advanced Fertility Centre Dr Madhav Hirani said advancements in in-vitro fertilisation (IVF), genetic screening and minimally invasive surgery are making treatment more accessible for couples facing infertility challenges.

Speaking in Dar es Salaam over the weekend the expert said Tanzania has made significant progress in building local expertise and infrastructure in artificial reproductive technology (ART), supported by government efforts to improve the sector.

“The government has been extremely supportive, not only to us but to the entire field of artificial reproductive technology,” Dr Hirani said.

He said one of the landmark developments came in 2023 when the government engaged both private and public fertility centres to help develop a national framework for ART services.

According to him, NuLife helped facilitate a six-to-seven-day technical workshop in Dar es Salaam that brought together 27 government representatives from across the country to draft working guidelines for fertility treatment services.

Dr Hirani said the government is also working to address one of the major barriers to fertility care  the high cost and limited access to IVF drugs.

“IVF drugs are comparatively much more expensive than many other pharmaceutical products. The government is trying to ease supply pressures so that the cost of treatment can come down,” he said.

Speaking at the event, renowned Indian fertility expert Dr Nayana Patel, who has more than 40 years of experience in infertility treatment and regenerative medicine, said advances in reproductive science have dramatically improved treatment outcomes.

“What was basic IVF four decades ago is now a totally different ball game,” Dr Patel said.

She said modern fertility medicine now includes advanced diagnostic and treatment options such as genetic screening, blastocyst biopsy and preimplantation genetic testing (PGT), which help identify viable embryos and reduce the risk of repeated miscarriages.

“There are couples who experience repeated miscarriages. Today we can investigate the cause, whether it is genetic, immunological or linked to the quality of the egg or sperm, and provide targeted treatment,” she said.

“Fibroids and endometriosis are a huge problem in Tanzania and many African countries,” she said.

She noted that changing social trends, including delayed marriages and couples postponing childbirth until they are financially stable, are further affecting fertility outcomes.

“Many couples wait for years before trying to conceive, and by then egg and sperm quality may have declined due to age, environmental toxins, stress and unhealthy lifestyles,” she said.

According to her, one of the biggest opportunities for Tanzania lies in bringing world-class fertility care closer to patients, sparing them the financial and emotional burden of travelling overseas.

“When treatment is available at their doorstep, couples are more encouraged to seek help. They no longer need to incur travel costs, lose work hours or go through the stress of travelling abroad,” she said.

She said the model of transferring technology and medical expertise to local teams is helping expand access across underserved markets.

“We may not be able to reach every couple from India or the US, but by exporting the technology and training local teams, patients can benefit while staying at home,” she said.