The NAHEPOS Initiative in

Tanzania

Peter KamuzoraInstitute of Development Studies

University of Dar es SalaamTanzania www.hpsa-

africa.org

@hpsa_africa

www.slideshare.net/hpsa_africa

What is NAHEPOS?• National Health Policy and Systems Research Hub• A network of academic and research institutions in Tanzania• It was founded in 2013 by 2 academic institutions: IDS (UDSM),

SPH & Soc. Sci. (MUHAS) and 2 research institutions (NIMR, IHI)• It consists of 12 members including:

– National Institute for Medical Research (NIMR)– Ifakara Health Institute (IHI)– Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences (MUHAS)– University of Dar es Salaam – Mzumbe University– Catholic University of Health and Allied Sciences (CUHAS)– Hubert Kairuki Memorial University– KCMC University College– Tanzania Food and Nutrition Centre– Research on Poverty Alleviation (REPOA)– Sokoine University of Agriculture– University of Dodoma (UDOM)

How does it work?• Currently the Hub members are networking through meetings• The Hub has a coordinator established within the National

Institute for Medical Research (NIMR)– To provide national coordination

• NAHEPOS will establish institutional Nodes and a Secretariat– Institutional nodes will work with the secretariat to implement the Hub’s

plans– The secretariat provide administrative and logistic support and will work

closely with MoH and other stakeholders interested in NHEPOS products• National Coordination Committee:

– to be composed by Chief Executive Officers of the Collaborating Institution

– This committee will meet once annually to deliberate and endorse annual plan activities of the NAHEPOS

• Next in the plans is a meeting to network with policy makers

Proposed NAHEPOS structure

What is the purpose of NAHEPOS Network?

1) Coordinate health policy and systems research to foster evidence based decision making in the health sector

2) Identify health policy and systems research questions of priority to policy makers and propose appropriate approaches to address them

3) Make resources (health information, research tools and a pool of researchers) easily available for use by policy makers

4) Mobilize a range of stakeholders including policy implementers and policy advocates to address problems requiring health systems research for evidence based decision making

5) Provide an opportunity to researchers to work in a coordinated way to efficiently handle health systems research issues

6) Facilitate translation and dissemination of research findings to various local audience

What has been achieved

• Realization that there is a need to raise health policy and systems research profile

• The need to put use of evidence in policy making on the agenda (formation of the Hub)

• The need to address fragmentation in the research community and start working together (consultative meeting)

• The growing interest among researchers to engage with the policy-making community closely

• NAHEPOS is working with MoHSW to support formulation of Health Sector Strategic Plan IV (2015-2020) HSSP-IV

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The CHEPSAA partners

University of Dar Es SalaamInstitute of Development Studies

University of the WitwatersrandCentre for Health Policy

University of GhanaSchool of Public Health, Department of Health Policy, Planning and Management

University of LeedsNuffield Centre for International Health and Development

University of Nigeria Enugu Health Policy Research Group & the Department of Health Administration and Management

London School of Hygiene and Tropical MedicineHealth Economics and Systems Analysis Group, Depart of Global Health & Dev.

Great Lakes University of KisumuTropical Institute of Community Health and Development

Karolinska InstitutetHealth Systems and Policy Group, Department of Public Health Sciences

University of Cape TownHealth Policy and Systems Programme, Health Economics Unit

Swiss Tropical and Public Health InstituteHealth Systems Research Group

University of the Western CapeSchool of Public Health