The International Council of Voluntary Agencies (ICVA), an advocacy association representing over 70 nongovernmental agencies, has added its voice to those warning against the mass repatriation of Burundi refugees from Tanzania.

A leading AIDS activist organisation in Tanzania has expressed concern at the country's religious leaders recent statement that they were implacably against the use of condoms in the fight against HIV/AIDS, a key tenet of national policy on tackling the disease.

The UN refugee agency in Tanzania has denied allegations of corruption and intimidation by officials dealing with refugees, saying that many of the claims are slight and give little to investigate, while others are untrue.

The United States government has expressed disappointment at what it regards as a general deterioration of human rights in Tanzania last year, despite notable government efforts to engage in dialogue with the opposition.

Course designed to develop practical skills in resolving specific problems and issues that policy makers and managers confront when they reach the implementation phase of health reforms. The two week AAHPTI ESA regional course builds basic competencies in reform implementation, and focuses on specific issues facing countries throughout the ESA region.

The European Union (EU) has allocated €27-million in support of humanitarian operations for refugees in Tanzania this year. This is in addition to €4-million issued earlier this year to non-governmental organisations working in refugee camps in the country, and administered through the European Commission's Humanitarian Office (ECHO).

The Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS) has expressed its concern that Burundi refugees may effectively be forcibly repatriated, contrary to international law, following repeated calls from Tanzanian President Benjamin Mkapa on them to go back to safe zones in Burundi.

Tanzania has confirmed that it will press ahead with a controversial British contract to buy a £28m air control system despite objections from the World Bank that it is too expensive and inappropriate to the country's needs.

Sebastian Chuwa, an environmentalist who has long been active in implementing educational and tree-planting programs for sustainable development on Mt. Kilimanjaro, has received the "Spirit of the Land" award during Olympic ceremonies in Salt Lake City, USA. This award, presented by the Salt Lake Olympic Committee, was given to 10 US and 5 international recipients for their work in promoting environmental educational efforts during the year 2001.

A local human rights group has accused the Tanzanian police of committing human rights violations during last week's riots involving Muslim youths in Dar es Salaam, the Tanzanian capital, in which two people were killed.

The African Malaria Vaccine Testing Network (AMVTN) African Malaria Network Trust (AMANET) is inviting applications from African scientists in the employment of African institutions/ Ministries of Health to participate in a one week workshop.

The Canadian government has announced the cancellation of all US $83.6 million in debt it is owed by Tanzania. "Tanzania's debt load is unsustainable, and cancelling these debts will enable it to invest more in critical areas such as health care, HIV/AIDS prevention and primary education," Canadian Finance Minister Paul Martin said in a statement on 11 February.

Representatives of the ICRC and the Tanzania Red Cross Society are taking part in the "Tanzanite" military peace-support exercise organized by France and Tanzania in coastal areas near Dar es Salaam and Tanga. "Tanzanite" brings together armed forces from 16 African countries and military observers from across the world. Involving more than 2,000 troops, the exercise aims to improve coordination between various African armies and to enhance the ability of governments to cope with political and humanitarian crises.

The Tanzanian government plans to launch a campaign to convince the international community that trade in tanzanite, a rare gem mined in the country, has no links to Osama bin Laden's network, Energy minister Maokola Majogo has said.

The management and employees of the state-owned Tanzania Railways Corporation (TRC) want a 25-year government contract to manage the firm, now in the process of being privatised. The management and employees said they would contribute the money demanded by the government from their pension dues, estimated to be Tsh60 billion ($60.6 million).

Refugees in camps in Tanzania will soon be able to communicate with their far-flung relatives from purpose-built telecommunications centres installed in or near their camps, the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) have announced.

Efforts by the Tanzanian government to offer free basic education to the ountry's school-age children are being hampered by a serious shortage of education facilities, the BBC reported on 22 January.

The office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has agreed to help those among the 345,000 Burundi refugees in Tanzania return home, but said it was not calling for an immediate repatriation because of continuing insecurity in Burundi.

More than 1,000 elephant tusks stolen by poachers have been recovered in the Tanzanian port of Dar es Salaam, police have said.

AIDS researchers have discovered simian immunodeficiency virus, an HIV-like virus, for the first time in the wild in a Tanzanian chimpanzee, the AP/New York Times reports. The findings "bolster" the theory that HIV originated in chimps, Dr. Beatrice Hahn, a molecular geneticist at the University of Alabama-Birmingham, said in her report that appears in the journal Science.