Kagera Regional Commissioner Commends MSD for Timely Distribution of Health Commodities

The Kagera Regional Commissioner, Hon. Colonel Yahya Ramadhan Kido, has commended the Medical Stores Department (MSD) Kagera Zone for its timely distribution of health commodities worth TZS 29 billion, representing 86 percent of its target for the 2025/2026 financial year. This achievement has significantly improved healthcare service delivery across the regions served by the zone, namely Kagera and Geita.

Hon. Kido made the remarks while officiating the opening of the 2026 MSD Kagera Zone Customers and Stakeholders Meeting. He noted that, following the continued increase in Government funding for the procurement of health commodities under the Sixth Phase Government led by President Dr. Samia Suluhu Hassan, MSD Kagera Zone has improved the availability of health commodities across Kagera and Geita. Commodity availability has increased to an average of 75.8 percent, up from 64 percent recorded in the previous year, thereby enhancing the quality of healthcare services provided to the public.

He further stated that MSD Kagera successfully completed six distribution cycles to every health facility during the 2025/2026 financial year, resulting in improved availability of essential medical supplies and a significant reduction in public complaints regarding stock shortages.

The Regional Commissioner also noted that the availability of health commodities has continued to improve, reaching an average of 87.6 percent in Kagera Region and 86 percent in Geita Region. According to him, these achievements reflect the Government's continued efforts, through MSD, to strengthen the national health supply chain and ensure timely access to essential health commodities.

Despite these achievements, Hon. Kido observed that MSD Kagera continues to face challenges in debt recovery. As of 20 June 2026, outstanding debts stood at TZS 7.3 billion for Kagera Region and TZS 2.0 billion for Geita Region, bringing the total outstanding debt to TZS 9.3 billion—an increase of more than TZS 800 million compared to the previous year.

In light of this, he urged local government authorities and health facilities to prioritize the settlement of their outstanding debts before the commencement of the new financial year, emphasizing that delayed payments undermine MSD's capacity to sustain the timely supply of health commodities.

Furthermore, the Regional Commissioner called upon Regional and District Medical Officers, together with Regional and District Pharmacists, to strengthen oversight of health commodity utilization in order to prevent losses and ensure prudent management of government resources.