Dr. Gemini Mtei is a health economist with over 18 years of experience in health financing and public financial management (PFM) systems. He specializes in implementing research and systems-strengthening interventions to improve health outcomes and service delivery.
As the Tanzania country director at Results for Development (R4D), Dr. Mtei oversees all R4D projects and activities in Tanzania, providing strategic leadership in health financing. He plays a pivotal role in guiding the design and implementation of initiatives within Tanzania and contributes to projects in other countries.
Dr. Mtei has an extensive portfolio of publications and has shared insights at international conferences and forums, focusing on health financing and PFM. His expertise has been instrumental in refining provider payment mechanisms and extending financial management systems to frontline service providers, significantly enhancing service delivery in Tanzania. He also fosters strong collaborations with policymakers, development partners, technical working groups, and stakeholders at national and sub-national levels across both public and private sectors.
Before joining R4D, Dr. Mtei spent nine years at Abt Global (formerly Abt Associates), serving as public financing systems director and later as deputy chief of party for the USAID Sector Systems Strengthening project in Tanzania. During this time, he led efforts to strengthen public sector systems, focusing on strategic purchasing, resource tracking, revenue collection, budgeting, planning, reporting, expenditure management and citizen engagement. His work also supported the Government of Tanzania in implementing digital solutions to improve efficiency and accountability in public service delivery.
Dr. Mtei has over nine years of experience as a senior researcher conducting collaborative studies on health care financing policy, equity in health care access, health insurance, strategic purchasing, social protection and financial risk protection. His research has informed critical policy decisions, including the development of Tanzania’s Health Financing Strategy and the Universal Health Insurance Act.
He holds a PhD in health financing from the University of London’s London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and a master’s degree in economics from the University of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Dr. Mtei is fluent in English and Swahili.
