The establishment of the Department of Veterinary Medicine and Public Health can be traced back to 1976 when veterinary training started in Tanzania. At that time, department of Veterinary Anatomy, included Medicine and Public Health under the division of Veterinary Science, Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry of the University of Dar es Salaam. After establishment of Sokoine University of Agriculture in 1984, the department of Veterinary Medicine and Public Health was formed under the then Faculty of Veterinary Medicine which was later elevated to the College of Veterinary Science and Biomedical Sciences (CVMBS) in 2016.
Since its establishment, the department has been headed by ten (10) professors enjoying their esteemed commitment and visionary leadership making the department one of the most successful in terms of training, research, publications, extension services and consultancy in the area of veterinary and public health nationally and internationally. The following is a list of heads of department and their tenure in office.
HEADS, DEPARTMENT OF VETERINARY MEDICINE AND PUBLIC HEALTH
| S/N |
NAME |
PERIOD SERVED |
| 1 | Prof. Cathbert Kombo | 1976 – 1984 |
| 2 | Prof. Peter M. Msolla | 1984 – 1989 |
| 3 | Prof. Michael Shoo | 1989 – 1992 |
| 4 | Prof. Dominic M. Kambarage | 1992 – 1998 |
| 5 | Prof. Rudovick R. Kazwala | 1998 – 2000 |
| 6 | Prof. Madundo Mtambo | 2001 – 2005 |
| 7 | Prof. Lughano B. Kusiluka | 2005 –2008 |
| 8 | Prof. Lesakit S. Mellau | 2008 – 2014 |
| 9 | Prof. Sharadhuri I. Kimera. | 2014 – 2017 |
| 10 | Prof. Amandusi P. Muhairwa | 2017 – 2018 |
| 11 | Prof. Helena A. Ngowi | 2018 – |