Pink Ribbon Red Ribbon Helps Provide Transportation to Cancer CentersBy Ehsanollah Bayat

Expanding its services to women with cancer in Tanzania, Pink Ribbon Red Ribbon began working with local agencies in 2015 to provide transportation for patients in rural areas to treatment centers in Dar es Salaam and Mwanza.

Image Source: http://pinkribbonredribbon.org/

Transportation

Funded through a grant from leading telecommunications company Vodacom Tanzania, Pink Ribbon Red Ribbon’s nonprofit partners and the national Ministry of Health and Social Welfare have employed 11 people to arrange transportation for women in three regions of Tanzania.

In July, the program helped its first patients as five women with cervical cancer from the Iringa region were transported to the Ocean Road Cancer Institute (ORCI) in Dar es Salaam for radiation treatment.

Quality Care

For many women living in rural areas, this program provides access to quality cancer care for the first time.

Tanzania’s growing wireless networks also have played a part by allowing workers to instantly buy women’s bus tickets through cell phones using Vodacom’s mobile money service.