The history of Ifakara Health Institute (IHI) cannot be complete without mentioning the visit to Tanzania of Prof. Rudolf Geigy, the founder of the Swiss Tropical Institute (STI). Prof. Geigy arrived at Ifakara in Morogoro in 1949 on the invitation of the Archdiocese of Mahenge to see how the Swiss institute could assist the diocese in addressing health problems affecting the region.
At that time, Ifakara had a high prevalence of parasitic diseases such as trypasonomiasis, schistosomiasis and malaria. The focus of the visit then became that of understanding the biology of tsetse flies, termites and Aedes mosquitoes.
That Ifakara Health Institute (IHI) has come a long way in no longer in doubt.
The current Director of IHI, Dr. Salim Abdulla, reflects “Prof. Geigy would hardly recognize the organization that he founded over 50 years ago.” For instance, apart from the registered office in Ifakara, Morogoro, there are now other office facilities in Dar es Salaam (established in 1997), Rufiji (1998), Mtwara (2000), Bagamoyo (2005), and Kigoma (2007). Ifakara and Rufiji sites' host demographic surveillance systems that feed the data into the just launched project called the INDEPTH Effectiveness and Safety Studies of Anti-Malaria Drugs in Africa (INESS). Such a rapid institutional growth became a factor that necessitated the change of the corporate name in 2008 from IHRDC to IHI.

The vision of IHI has been to become a centre of excellence and innovation to maximize public health gain. Realization of this ambition is backed by a long-term strategy to develop local capacities in the area of public health research, and to provide quick and sustainable solutions to community health problems. Its current strategic plan seeks to assure “operational excellence” in all facets of IHI’s work. The results of these efforts are encouraging so far. In terms of capacity building, IHI has produced world-class leaders in research.
IHI sends at least two scientists each year for further training and specialization in the biomedical discipline, Social scientists, public health specialists, economists and management specialists. IHI hosts international specialists from a number of professional fields, a strategy which enables the organization to continue to develop Tanzanian expertise at the highest level. This nurturing environment attracts a growing number of young Tanzanians eager to develop a career in health research. At the same time, it hosts international PhD candidates to undertake their field work in Tanzania.

In terms of technological advancement, IHI has the state-of-the-art laboratories in Ifakara and Bagamoyo sites capable of analysing diverse samples ranging from blood slides to DNA analyses. In addition, IHI operates three demographic sentinel surveillance sites in Ifakara, Rufiji and Kigoma. These surveillance facilities provide continuous monitoring of age, sex and cause-specific mortality. The Bagamoyo site monitors in-patients and out-patients at the district hospital while the Ifakara site maintains an insectory of mosquitoes and a massive “screen house” to monitor the behaviour of captive mosquitoes in semi-field conditions. In Mtwara and Lindi, IHI is running three rounds of the largest health survey ever conducted in Tanzania to measure maternal and newborn health. 
IHI has contributed significantly to policy development and action at district, national and international levels. Specifically, IHI evaluated the impact of insecticide treated bed-nets in Tanzania; and it was found that the intervention has contributed to 27% improvement on child survival and has reduced malaria and anaemia episodes by 60% (The Lancet Vol.357). The findings were among the evidence to support scaling-up of the program and proposal for universal coverage of insecticide treated bed-nets in the country. In the same spirit to promote public health improvement, IHI has developed a tool to identify high risks community with urinary schistosomiasis. The tool was validated in seven African countries and it is now in the World Health Organization Schisto Manual for wider use.
The institute aims to continue conducting biomedical research, intervention research, health systems research and general program monitoring and evaluation. In a nutshell, IHI develops and evaluates health system interventions to improve the coverage, quality, equity and efficiency and effectiveness; it evaluates interventions against diseases of public health importance; understands health determinants of the leading public health problems; monitors and evaluates the impact of national and global initiatives in improving population health; and promotes evidence-based policy formulation and translates research results into public health action.
The international community has appreciated the work of IHI as one of the African institutions that have made a difference in public health improvements. The institute is the winner of the 2008 Prince of Asturias Award for International Cooperation. In the past, the institute has also received several medals and international awards including that from the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene and the Centenary Award. The President of Tanzania who visited the institute in November 2008 said he was impressed by the ongoing experiment at the institute where a certain type of fungus is being used as a biological control of malaria-causing mosquitoes.