The Role of Non-Governmental Organizations on HIV/AIDS Mitigation in Morogoro Municipality, Tanzania

Abstract

HIV/AIDS pandemic has caused widespread negative socio-economic impacts in Tanzania. The epidemic is restraining development efforts of many households and the nation at large. Despite the mushrooming number of NGOs established to combat the epidemic, the prevalence of HIV infection is still high. This study was conducted so as to assess the effectiveness of NGOs on HIV/AIDS mitigation in Morogoro Municipality. A cross-sectional research design which employs a survey method was used. A sample 120 respondents was picked randomly and 17 NGOs were picked with the aid of table of random numbers. Purposive sampling was used to select members for a FGD and key informants. Data was collected using questionnaires, interview guide, FGD and key informants. Quantitative data were analysed using a Statistical Package for Social Sciences program. To determine the effectiveness of NGOs, descriptive and inferential statistics were employed. Structural and content analysis was used to analyse data from FGD and key informants. The study revealed challenges constraining the performance of NGOs which include; operating under meagre funds and donor dependency, incompetent staff, inappropriate approaches on HIV/AIDS message delivery, and poor networking. The study concludes that, NGOs are very important for mitigating HIV/AIDS despite the shortcomings revealed.

Key words: HIV/AIDS, NGOs, mitigation