JAKAYA Kikwete Cardiac Institute (JKCI) experts in collaboration with the Heart Team Africa Foundation (HTAF) intend to organise a fundraising event for 1bn/- for treatment of children.

Dr Peter Kisenge, the JKCI executive director, said at a briefing in Dar es Salaam yesterday that the fundraising will complement government efforts to assure the treatment of children with cardiac challenges, by contributing 70 percent of treatment costs.

The organisers expect that the funds will be raised from various stakeholders at an event on July 6, assuring heart surgery or similar treatment for upwards of 500 children, he said, noting that scores of families fail to contribute to treatment expenses of 30 percent of cost, as heart surgery on a child is billed at 4m/- to 15m/-.

JKCI has performed heart surgeries on 357 children in the past year, where the fundraising will help increase the number of children to 500 in one year, he said.

JKCI and HTAF cooperation started last year, with intent to support treating children with cardiac challenges, he said, noting that at least one in every 100 babies is born with a heart defect.

Out of two million children born every year, upwards of 13,000 or 14,000 will have cardiovascular difficulties, where an estimated 4000 among them will need surgery, he stated.

Dr Sulende Kubhoja, head of the cardiovascular unit at JKCI, said that population increase goes in tandem with increases of people born with cardiac challenges.

From 10m people at independence the population already stood at 61.7m by August 2022, with 60 percent of the population being children under the age of 17, he said.

Linda Gideon, the HTAF acting executive director, said the fundraising event will bring smiles to hundreds of children who are suffering from various heart diseases.