There is an enormous shortage of human resources for health across all cadres. The shortage is more severe in the rural areas. The health sector in Tanzania is seriously understaffed. The total staffing in the health sector in Tanzania stands at 38% of the actual need according to staffing norms (JAHSR,2008). The available number of professional health workers in the public sector is 35,202 and the deficit is 90,722. Shortages in the private sector especially FBOs are also immense as will be summarized in the tables below.

The capacity of health training institutions is not fully exploited yet. Consequently there is a low output of trained personnel. Training institutions have several setbacks (understaffing, neglected infrastructure, low investment etc) to match the existing demand. Staff currently in the field for example requires reliable and accessible Continuing Professional Development (CPD) to meet training needs, but capacity building of staff is often fragmented, linked to vertical programs, not targeting the right cadres.