Tanzania, June 15 -- Dar es Salaam. Tanzania's Universal Health Insurance (UHI) programme faces a major financing challenge, with Parliament's Budget Committee warning that the scheme is currently short of about Sh489.5 billion annually, raising concerns over its long-term sustainability as implementation begins.

Presenting the committee's report in Parliament, Budget Committee chairman Mr Mashimba Mashauri Ndaki said that while the government has established dedicated funding sources for the scheme, current revenue streams are insufficient to support its full rollout.

"The government should use households identified in the first phase as a pilot for implementing UHI and assess the financial sustainability of the fund before expanding t...