Evidence Action is launching its Deworm the World program in Tanzania, partnering with the government to combat parasitic worm infections.
More than 10 million children across the country are currently at risk of or infected with soil-transmitted helminths and/or schistosomiasis. Through technical assistance — including support for mass drug administration planning, follow-up surveys, and the first nationwide prevalence survey in over 20 years — the program will support Tanzania's efforts to eliminate parasitic worms as a public health problem by 2030, the disease-specific target set by the World Health Organization.
"These infections represent a significant barrier to children's health, education, and long-term economic prospects," said Kate McCracken, director of Evidence Action’s Deworm the World program. "Our partnership focuses on providing the evidence and strategic support the government needs to ensure treatments reach the children who need them most — while continuing to build systems that work without external partners long-term. We are thankful to partner with a government that is fully on board and committed to an evidence-based, decentralized program design."
This work in Tanzania is made possible through generous support from Founders Pledge.
Precision targeting through evidence
Tanzania has traditionally targeted all 184 district councils and over 10 million school-age children for treatment. However, recent surveys across select district councils reveal generally low infection rates for soil-transmitted helminths (3.4% overall STH prevalence) but dramatic variation in schistosomiasis infection rates at sub-district levels (9.3% overall SCH prevalence with 63% SCH prevalence in high-risk communities).
Evidence Action's support will help reshape the national treatment strategy, enabling Tanzania to shift from country-wide treatment to focused delivery in high-burden areas and directing resources to the children who need them most.
"We're taking a different approach than our traditional deworming programs," McCracken said. "Rather than supporting a full mass treatment campaign, we're investing in what Tanzania needs most right now — the evidence to make their own program more cost-effective and sustainable."
Government leadership and proven impact
The program launches as Tanzania pioneers an innovative approach where all 184 district councils now budget for their own deworming campaigns, an essential shift after external funding for the program was suspended in 2025. The government is targeting 60% domestic financing of NTD interventions by 2026 and successfully integrated deworming with a Vitamin A campaign in three districts in June 2025.
Evidence Action anticipates that comprehensive survey results will enable Tanzania to halve the number of districts requiring mass treatment, freeing resources for other health priorities while ensuring children in high-burden areas receive the care they need.
About Deworm The World
Since 2012, Evidence Action's Deworm the World program has supported governments to deliver over 2 billion deworming treatments to children globally at an estimated cost of less than $0.50 cents per child per treatment. The program is estimated to generate $23 billion in lifetime productivity gains by 2042 as healthier children become more productive adults.
