Regulatory control of low level radiation exposure in Tanzania

In Tanzania, the radiation protection law was issued in 1983. Under this law, the National Radiation Commission is responsible for safe uses of ionizing radiation. The regulatory control of the resulting doses from the uses of radiation sources in medicine, industry, research and teaching is presented. The system of control reflects the existing interactions between the National Radiation Commission and users through the established radiation protection infrastructure. From the national dose registry data, it is found that the highest annual individual doses over 10 years ago, came from less than 5% of total monitored workers and were in the range 10 - 15 mSv y-1. The experienced radiation levels in uncontrolled areas of potential workplaces is less than 1 μSv h-1. The possibility for associating such low dose levels to the effectiveness of the existing regulatory dose control framework is discussed. Despite of this achievement, the need to improve further the radiation protection and safety programs is found necessary. (author)