Dr Harrieth P Ndumwa is a scientist holding a Medical Degree from the Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences (MUHAS) and currently working as a Research Fellow at the directorate of research and publications and the department of haematology and blood transfusion, MUHAS. She is passionate on researches of global public health importance, academia, health technology and innovation. She has conducted a number of research works on Mental health and Drug Use, HIV-AIDs, COVID-19, Anti-Microbial Resistance, Non-Communicable Diseases as well as digital health. As of now, Harrieth has 4 scientific publications, 7 manuscripts submitted to peer reviewed journals, 9 manuscripts in the pipeline, 1 book chapter under review and 4 ongoing research work. She has recently won two research grants under the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (RSTMH) and the Laerdal Foundation. She is currently coordinating two big collaborative research projects between MUHAS and the University of Oxford. Prior to this, she coordinated a collaborative implementational research project between the Association Casa Famiglia Rosetta (ACFR)-Italy, the Drug Control and Enforcement Authority (DCEA), the Tanzanian Ministry of Health and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
Abstract
Awareness in a Caring Community: A Project of Capacity building and IEC campaign on Drug Use Prevention and Treatment in Tanzania
The Associazione ‘Casa Rosetta’ Italy, UNODC Implementing Partner, has carried out a project on Drug Use Prevention and Treatment in Tanzania, in the last 2 years, with the collaboration of INL and Colombo Plan.
“Casa Rosetta” organized a Basic Level UTC 1-8 series course and a course on Treatment in the Rural Setting in Tanga and Muheza. The courses were addressed to 50 professionals (social workers, doctors, psychologists, teachers, etc.) who had experience in drug prevention and treatment. The courses were held in Tanga in two separate sessions in October 2020 and January 2021. The sessions were destined for trainees from urban (Tanga) and rural (Muheza) areas. There were four UTC Master Trainers, all Tanzanians. A fifth Master Trainer from India, held remote training sessions for the trainees from ruralareasduringthesecondsession.
The trainees, together with the local project team and volunteers campaigned in Tanga City and Muheza to “deliver awareness-raising activities on drug use disorders and drug dependence throughout the territory. The first objective of the awareness-raising activities was to reduce the stigma which people with DUD problems have in their communities, raising awareness in the community and sustaining families who are experiencing this problem.”
This community campaign, called “Awareness in a Caring Community”, lasted more than six months from April 2021 to the beginning of October 2021, when it ended with a great march of more than six hundred students through the streets of Tanga and a concluding inter-school debate.
The awareness-raising activities took place in the marketplaces, schools, religious centers with counseling activities and with the distribution of gadgets and a continually updated campaign pamphlet, etc. Many stakeholders (CSOs) and regional and local, policymakers were involved in the project - organizing meetings to share theactivities of the campaign and the ensuing results. In all these outreach activities, we were helped by volunteers from the NGO based in Tanga, called ‘Hama’ belonging to the Norwegian organization TICC. More than 25,000 students were reached by the school campaign