Experts of the Committee on the Rights of the Child Welcome Positive Developments on Child Rights in Tanzania, Ask about Measures to Prohibit Corporal Punishment and Prevent Female Genital Mutilation
The Committee on the Rights of the Child today concluded its consideration of the sixth periodic report of the United Republic of Tanzania under the Convention on the Rights of the Child, with Committee Experts commending the State party on recent legal, policy and institutional developments promoting children’s rights, and asking about measures to prohibit corporal punishment and prevent female genital mutilation.
Cephas Lumina, Committee Expert and Taskforce Coordinator for Tanzania, welcomed the positive developments reported by the State, including measures to implement the law of the child act, the establishment of children’s council and child protection mechanisms, and efforts to expand birth registration and social protection.
Rinchen Chophel, Committee Expert and Taskforce Member, said that corporal punishment was legally permitted in schools and was a deeply rooted social norm within the State party. What measures were being undertaken to explicitly prohibit it in law in all settings and encourage positive discipline activities?
Mr. Chophel and other Experts also asked how the State party was working to address female genital mutilation and whether there was a system in place for girls to report on cases of this phenomenon.
Introducing the report, Abdallah Saleh Possi, Permanent Representative of the United Republic of Tanzania to the United Nations Office at Geneva and head of the delegation, said the Government continued to take measures to implement the Convention and follow-up on the Committee’s recommendations. It had strengthened the legal and policy framework for children's rights and made progress in several important areas during the reporting period, including in health and nutrition.
On corporal punishment, the delegation said the practice was banned in Zanzibar, and it was recommended to be banned in mainland Tanzania by the Law Commission. The National Government planned to present a bill to Parliament on the issue, but there were still divisions on it at the grassroots level, and the Government was prioritising addressing these first.
Female genital mutilation was a criminal offence that fell under the category of irreversible harm, the delegation said. The challenge in tackling female genital mutilation was not insufficient systems of reporting but was more around awareness. Work was being done across regions to engage chiefs and communities to speak more about this practice.
In closing remarks, Mr. Lumina thanked the delegation for the constructive dialogue, which had highlighted several positive developments and had also identified areas where further and sustained efforts would be required to ensure the fulfilment of the rights of all children in Tanzania. The Committee called on the State party to reflect carefully on the issues raised, he said.
Mr. Possi, in concluding remarks, said Tanzania would carefully study the Committee’s concluding observations and engage with the relevant national institutions on their implementation. It was encouraged by the progress it had made, conscious of the work that remained and determined to move forward in the best interests of every child.
In closing remarks, Committee Chair Sophie Kiladze acknowledged the changes that the State had made for children throughout the years but also noted that there was significant room for improvement. She expressed hope that in the Committee’s next dialogue with Tanzania, the State would report on many more reforms and improvements in policies and programmes for children.
The delegation of Tanzania consisted of representatives from the Ministry of Community Development, Gender, Women and Special Groups; the Ministry of Constitution and Legal Affairs; the Delegate Office of the Chief Parliamentary Draftsman; and the Permanent Mission of the United Republic of Tanzania to the United Nations Office at Geneva.
The Committee will issue the concluding observations on the report of Tanzania at the end of its one hundred and first session on 28 September 2026. Summaries of the public meetings of the Committee can be found here, and webcasts of the public meetings can be found here. The programme of work of the Committee’s one hundred and first session and other documents related to the session can be found here.
The Committee will next meet in public on Monday, 7 September at 3 p.m. to begin its consideration of the combined third to fifth periodic reports of Uganda (CRC/C/UGA/3-5)
Report
The Committee has before it the sixth periodic report of the United Republic of Tanzania (CRC/C/TZA/6)
Presentation of Report
ABDALLAH SALEH POSSI, Permanent Representative of the United Republic of Tanzania to the United Nations Office at Geneva and head of the delegation, said Tanzania approached the dialogue with openness, responsibility and the willingness to engage constructively. The United Republic of Tanzania was a united republic comprising mainland Tanzania and the Revolutionary Government of Zanzibar, meaning it had a two-Government Constitutional structure. State authority was exercised through two sets of executive, judicial and legislative organs.
The Government continued to take measures to implement the Convention and follow-up on the Committee’s recommendations. Tanzania remained committed to fulfilling its obligations under the Convention and the Optional Protocols. Some 159 children were consulted in the preparation of the report, including 100 adolescents living with HIV/AIDS.
The Government had strengthened the legal and policy framework for children's rights. Mainland Tanzania issued regulations under the law of the child act covering foster care, adoption, child protection and employment, juvenile court procedures, children's homes, day-care centres and apprenticeships. Amendments were also made to key laws, including those on education, birth and death registration, evidence, legal aid and cybercrime. In Zanzibar, several major reforms of key acts strengthened protections for vulnerable children, victims of violence, and children without birth registration.
Tanzania had made progress in several important areas during the reporting period, including in health and nutrition. Child stunting had declined from 34.4 per cent in 2014 to 31.8 per cent in 2018. Prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV services reached 96 per cent of reproductive health facilities, reducing mother-to-child HIV transmission from 12 per cent in 2011 to 4.9 per cent in 2017.
Under-five birth registration had increased from 14 per cent in 2015 to 26.4 per cent in 2018, with more than 3.5 million children registered. The productive social safety net reached 5.25 million direct beneficiaries through cash transfers and public works. The establishment of 236 juvenile courts had helped strengthen child-friendly justice and divert 788 children from detention to rehabilitation. Following the AG v. Rebecca Gyumi ruling, progress had been made towards realising the age of marriage as 18.
Tanzania had become a global pathfinding country to end violence against children and established women and children protection committees nationwide. Police gender and children desks had expanded to 420 locations, with over 7,200 officers trained. The national child helpline had handled more than 24,000 legitimate abuse reports. Protection measures were strengthened for children with albinism and refugee children, with primary school attendance among refugee children in Nyarugusu/Kigoma camps reaching 96 per cent. Fee-free basic education contributed to primary enrolment reaching 10.11 million pupils in 2018, a 22.9 per cent increase from 2014.
Despite this progress, challenges remained, including harmful practices such as female genital mutilations in some regions, while adolescent pregnancies remained a significant contributor to school dropout rates. The Government remained committed to addressing these challenges through increased investment in social protection, improved coordination and capacity building. Tanzania looked forward to a productive dialogue with the Committee.
Questions by Committee Experts
CEPHAS LUMINA, Committee Expert and Country Taskforce Coordinator, welcomed the positive developments reported, including children’s participation when preparing the report, measures to implement the law of the child act, the establishment of children’s council and child protection mechanisms, efforts to expand birth registration and social protection. There were discrepancies when it came to mainland Tanzania and the islands of Zanzibar, and it was hoped this would be addressed during the dialogue.
Could the State provide a firm timetable to set 18 as the age of marriage and to remove marriage as an exception to statutory rate; prohibit corporal punishment in every setting; and guarantee inheritance rights? What was the status of the Zanzibar children’s act review and how would aggression be prevented? When would the revised Tanzania child development policy and Zanzibar child development policy be adopted?
Could approved child-related spending by region be provided, including during fiscal and aid shocks? Considering estimates that Tanzania lost more than 1.5 billion dollars each year due to illicit activity, how much recovered and criminal assets had been redirected to fund child social sectors over the past three financial years? What measures had been taken to prevent the diversion of local government child budgets?
Were there any plans to establish an interoperable child rights data system? Who verified data quality and ensured access for civil society? Reports indicated that legal aid campaigns had reached millions of people; how many children received information, advice, representation and remedies? How could children confidentially complain in schools and care setting and obtain timely legal aid? Could the Human Rights Commission investigate military and police bodies and engage human rights organizations without approval?
How were children and civil society involved in designing and evaluating child budget measures? What was being done to protect civil society activists from reprisals? Was there a funded contingency plan to protect health, education, nutrition, water and sanitation from external financing cuts? Were there any plans to ensure mandatory child impact assessments needed to be applied to all enterprises, particularly in the extractive sectors? What strict beneficial ownership requirements were mandated for enterprises to address illicit financial flows? How were public funds for child infrastructure protected?
The State party had indicated that there had been no killings of persons with albinism recorded since the implementation of the current action plan. Could information be provided on children with albinism and children in vulnerable situations? Was the State considering enacting anti-discrimination legislation? How were children’s views obtained, weighed and recorded?
Recent public events had resulted in more than 500 deaths recorded in the State party. Could information be provided on children who were killed, injured, missing or detained? Had a full report been published? How were the members of children’s councils elected and what decisions had their views changed? What enforceable procedures were in place to hear children’s views in courts and proceedings?
TIMOTHY EKESA, Committee Expert and Country Taskforce Member, said the Committee commended the State party for decentralising birth registration to wards and local health facilities via amendment of the births and deaths registration act, increasing the number of registration points. The report indicated that handwritten birth certificates were free while computer-generated printed paper certificates were processed at a fee.
The Committee noted Tanzania's significant progress in birth registration, from 26 per cent in 2015/16 to approximately 68 per cent in 2022. However, one in three children under five still remained unregistered. Exactly how many children remained unregistered in the country and where were they located? How many had received birth certificates free of charge? What resources were being allocated by the State party to ensure no child was left without legal identity by 2030. What was the current rate of birth registration, especially in relation to the 10 per cent of children who were registered but without certificates? How did the Government ensure digitalisation of birth registration did not introduce new barriers?
How did the State identify and protect children who lacked birth certificates or other identity documentation? What mechanisms existed to restore identity rapidly where a child had lost or been deprived of documentation, nationality or family links? Was birth registration genuinely free and accessible?
Could adolescents participate peacefully in civic activities without being subjected to disproportionate restrictions? How did the State party ensure that laws and regulations governing media, online communication and public expression did not disproportionately restrict adolescents' legitimate exercise of freedom of expression? Sources informed the Committee that children and adolescents were among those present and participating in, or affected by the election-related protests in October 2025. Could the State party provide data on the number of persons below 18 who were arrested, detained, injured, killed or otherwise affected, and explain what measures were taken to protect children exercising their rights to freedom and peaceful assembly?
RINCHEN CHOPHEL, Committee Expert and Country Taskforce Member, said Tanzania had made robust legislative efforts, including the action plan to end violence against children. However, reports showed this issue was still a high social concern in the country. Were there any efforts invested to strengthen the national database to capture different forms of violence and their causes? What systems were in place to encourage mandatory recording of violence against children? How was the stigmatisation of sexual abuse, including incest, being combatted? Did victims have access to reporting channels? How were these cases reported and investigated, ensuring perpetrators were prosecuted and duly sanctioned?
Corporal punishment seemed to be a pervasive issue in Tanzania, being legally permitted in schools; it was a deeply rooted social norm within the State party. What measures were being undertaken to explicitly prohibit corporal punishment in law in all settings, and repeal all laws which tolerated it? What was being done to encourage positive discipline activities? What steps had been taken to put an end to harmful practices, including female genital mutilation? What was being done to establish 18 years as the minimum age of marriage without exception? What was being done to amend the Penal Code to expressly prohibit female genital mutilation? What protection services were available for victims of child and forced marriages, including helplines?
Tanzania faced significant challenges regarding children deprived of a family environment, with around three million children and orphans affected by poverty, HIV/AIDS and family breakdown. Was there any consideration to develop a clear national strategy for the reform of alternative care, providing clear guidelines and standards for implementation of the national strategy? What steps were being taken to expand family and community-based care options? What was the current situation pertaining to the practice of institutionalisation of abandoned children with albinism, and how was it ensured that this practice was eliminated?
Reports indicated that children of incarcerated parents faced many challenges, including the risk of living in substandard prison conditions. What steps had been taken to ensure health care and nutrition for vulnerable inmates and dependent minors? What was being done to ensure a safe living environment for minors residing with parents in prison facilities? Was data available on children living with incarcerated mothers?
Responses by the Delegation
The delegation said Tanzania was a united republic. This meant there were separate child policies in mainland Tanzania and Zanzibar, but there were efforts to ensure coordination. Issues relating to children cut across all Government ministries, including education, sport and health. All cross-cutting issues were coordinated under the Prime Minister’s Office. There were well established judicial precedents which outlawed all practices which were contradictory to the Constitution. Tanzania had 184 local governments which meant coordination could sometimes be challenging.
From 2006 until 2009, there had been a huge problem regarding persons with albinism in the country. A protection officer, who had albinism herself, had played a key role in protecting children from harmful practices. Children were being abandoned for a variety of reasons at camps, but these were no longer in operation. More work needed to be done, particularly with the Government and civil society.
Digitalisation for countries like Tanzania also came with benefits. There were areas where it was difficult to obtain certain facilities, but it was easy to use a mobile phone in areas such as the Serengeti to obtain access to services.
Female genital mutilation was a criminal offence, and fell under the category of irreversible harm. There were 120 tribes in Tanzania and all tribes had diverse practices, with some continuing to carry out the practice of female genital mutilation.
It was hoped that corporal punishment would be abolished. It was listed in the act as a measure of last resort, but this did not mean there was encouragement to practice it. This was a cultural problem, and cultural issues could not be eroded by the law. There had been persons who were convicted for assaulting children. There were only two punishments for rape in Tanzania; either life imprisonment or 30 years imprisonment.
Questions by Committee Experts
FAITH MARSHALL-HARRIS, Committee Expert and Country Taskforce Member, asked follow-up questions, including if corporal punishment was banned in schools, and the guidance on corporal punishment? There had been a girl beaten with ten strokes in school in 2025 who had subsequently died, so this issue needed to be urgently addressed.
A Committee Expert asked about female genital mutilation and whether there was a system in place for girls to report on cases of this phenomenon. It might be beneficial to implement a steering committee to address cases of female genital mutilation and prevent their reoccurrence.
RINCHEN CHOPHEL, Committee Expert and Country Taskforce Member, said reports showed that children with disabilities in Tanzania faced significant challenges, including access to healthcare and social stigma. However, reports also indicated initiatives to improve inclusion, particularly since the adoption of several pieces of legislation and plans over the years. How had inclusive services for children with disabilities improved? What steps were being taken to address inconsistencies and ensure effective service delivery? How was access to services such as education, health and social support services ensured? What awareness raising campaigns had been conducted to combat stigmatisation of children with disabilities?
TIMOTHY EKESA, Committee Expert and Country Taskforce Member, asked if the allocated budget for healthcare for children was sufficient? How was it ensured that the allocation reached those in remote areas, as well as those with disabilities, those in poverty or other vulnerable groups? What proportion of the health budget was allocated to child health? What specific resources were allocated to adolescent health? How did Tanzania apply a child rights and equity first approach to child budgets?
The Committee noted the State’s significant investment in training health personnel, but there were still gaps in human resources; how did the State plan to close this gap? What steps were being taken to ensure the shortages of trained health workers did not affect essential services? How did the State party ensure that the direct health facility financing benefited children in rural areas? Was the State able to track this financing and ensure the budget was reaching children?
The Committee noted Tanzania's very high coverage of antiretroviral treatment for pregnant women living with HIV. What was the current mother-to-child transmission rate, and what was the State party's timeline for achieving the elimination of vertical transmission of HIV? Despite the high prevention of mother-to-child transmission coverage, children continued to be infected with HIV. How many children were newly infected annually through vertical transmission and what were the main points at which prevention was failing? What proportion of infants born to mothers living with HIV received HIV testing within the recommended period, and how quickly were children who tested positive initiated on antiretroviral services?
How did Tanzania ensure that prevention of mother-to-child transmission, early infant diagnosis and paediatric HIV treatment reached children in rural, remote and economically disadvantaged communities, including children in Zanzibar and underserved regions of mainland Tanzania? What specific measures were in place to ensure continuity of HIV treatment as children transitioned into adolescence, and how was Tanzania addressing stigma and discrimination against children and adolescents living with HIV? What specific measures had the State party taken to ensure that children living in remote and underserved regions such as Kigoma, Tabora, Katavi, Geita, Kagera and Shinyanga enjoyed equal access to qualified health personnel, essential medicines, diagnostics, emergency care and referral services as children living in urban and other better-served regions?
CEPHAS LUMINA, Committee Expert and Country Taskforce Coordinator, asked what timebound national targets, budget and accountability frameworks were in place to address child poverty and its drivers? How were children’s lived experiences being used to design and evaluate policy? Could the rates of inclusion and exclusion be provided, including for children in vulnerable situations? How many children received regular nutritious meals, and who paid for this? What was the current data for food insecurity, stunting, malnutrition and breastfeeding? What safeguards were in place for food price shocks? Could data be provided on children who were homeless, in street situations, or affected by flooding or unsafe housing? What income support reached families with children?
FAITH MARSHALL-HARRIS, Committee Expert and Country Taskforce Member, commended efforts by the State party to develop and execute climate strategies. It was commendable that the State party had domesticated the 2015 Paris Agreement, passed the environmental management act and the Zanzibar environmental act, and set up the national adaptation programme of action; these were laudable initiatives. However, concerns persisted, including around inadequate disaster preparedness, particularly for excessive rainfall, which led to damage of infrastructure and even deaths. What plans were there to increase disaster resilience? Was there sufficient attention provided on the issue of water? The Committee welcomed the excellent policies and strategies, but there was a need for greater implementation at the community level.
The State was now offering 12 years of compulsory education for free; was this really the case? Despite this being granted on paper, there were barriers to access for children, including long journeys to school for rural children, the deficits in the student teacher ratio, and the lack of materials such as books and desks. Could the delegation comment on the mandatory pregnancy testing of girls? Girls’ education seemed less than beneficial to them, and they were often subjected to sexual abuse, providing them no real incentive to stay in school.
Children had said food from the school feeding programme was inedible and prepared unhygienically. Students had also sometimes not received the food. Could the delegation comment on this? Despite the policy which stated that there should be inclusive education, there was a lack of assistive devices and a lack of understanding of children with special needs. Could the delegation comment on this? Was there consideration to provide safe, green spaces for children to play, particularly in urban areas?
It was reported that several refugee camps were established in the country, in collaboration with United Nations agencies, but the conditions there were unsatisfactory, including lack of protection from abuse of children, a lack of food and limited access to education. Could the State party comment on this?
Child labour was a continuing problem, driven by poverty and exacerbated by a lack of labour inspections, among other issues. There had been reports that children were forced to carry heavy loads, or were being severely whipped by employers. The low age of criminal responsibility was concerning; the Committee would like to see this raised to the age of 14. Could statistics be provided on the State’s campaign to provide legal aid for children? Were the juvenile courts meeting the minimum standards required in child friendly courts?
It was noted that urban drift was causing more children to leave the rural areas, where they were not accessing enough social care and jobs, for cities, where they sometimes ended up on the streets. The State should be commended for initiatives undertaken to assist these children; however, it seemed the majority of work carried out in this area was done by civil society. What was the role of the Government in this area? The State needed to conduct a thorough analysis of children on the street to understand the root causes and adequately deploy social services.
Responses by the Delegation
The delegation said the Government had engaged a non-governmental organization to assist children with referral mechanisms. Work was being done across regions known to practice female genital mutilation to engage the chiefs and communities to speak more about this practice. There had been significant improvement in this area.
An initiative had been launched by the Government to ensure that legal aid services were accessible at the community level. The legal aid act was enacted in 2017. Paralegals were trained by the Government and worked at the local level, but were not available in all villages. The Government had established legal aid desks in 184 councils. The legal aid services provided assistance in drafting documents, visited detention facilities, and conducted legal awareness raising efforts, including for children and women. The first phase of the campaign had been completed, with the second phase to be implemented up to 2030. The first phase had been very successful, and there had been an increase in instances of reporting against cases of gender-based violence and violence against children. Traditional and religious leaders were also engaged throughout the campaign.
In 2024, three laws had been amended, which resulted in the broadening of the legal framework to combat child sexual abuse material in the digital environment, the introduction of mandatory pre-trial bail for children, and the development of provisions for the right of children to receive legal aid services.
Corporal punishment was banned in Zanzibar, and it was recommended to be banned in mainland Tanzania by the Law Commission. The challenge in tackling female genital mutilation was not insufficient systems of reporting, but was more around awareness. For some people, the fear of shame and stigma was pushing them away from reporting, but the systems to protect them were there. There had been areas to build specific boarding schools for girls in areas where this practice was prevalent.
The persons with disabilities act took the principles of the Convention into consideration. For the first time in 2022, disability had been included as a question during the census, which provided a starting point in collecting data.
While Governments were continuing efforts to ensure access to assistive devices, there was a lack of access to these in the country. It was important to have increased multilateral engagement in this area.
Tanzania had a refugee law which prohibited non-refoulment. Recently, due to budget cuts, the United Nations Children’s Fund and other organizations which were the major providers in refugee camps had reduced their services. In some areas, the Government was able to step in, but it was a question of resources. International solidarity was important. The concern for Tanzania was when conflicts in neighbouring countries were forgotten.
Further progress was required regarding the minimum age of marriage and corporal punishment in schools. Meaningful public consultations were needed to ensure that reforms in this regard were sustainable. In addressing female genital mutilation, the State party was combining law enforcement with community engagement, working to bring about lasting social change. Female genital mutilation had been recorded in around 20 tribes out of the more than 120 tribes in the country. It was not necessarily common in the 20 tribes in which it was recorded.
In the case of Rebecca Gyumi versus the Attorney General, the High Court found that the marriage act, which prescribed different minimum marriage ages for boys and girls, was discriminatory and inconsistent with the Constitution. The Court also rejected the proposition that marriage could automatically shield conduct that would otherwise constitute statutory rape. The education act prohibited the marriage of primary and secondary school pupils. Consultations were ongoing regarding the development of a new marriage act. There were cases in which criminal courts had handed punishments and rejected the defence of marriage in cases of rape of girls.
Tanzanian legislation regulated rather than prohibited corporal punishment. It prescribed the circumstances and manner in which corporal punishment could be administered. Punishments needed to be reasonable, considering the gravity of the offence and the age, sex and health of the pupil. The law did not authorise arbitrary or excessive use of force. There were restrictions on who could administer corporal punishment, and the number of strokes was limited. A 2019 case found a teacher responsible for the death of a primary school pupil. The police were working to promote a safe learning environment and to prevent violence.
On equal inheritance rights, gender-based discriminatory practices were struck down in a 2015 High Court case. In this case, it was ruled that all the legal wives of the deceased and his children needed to be treated equally in the distribution of the property of his estate.
The under-five birth registration initiative offered free registration and immediate certification. As of 2026, some 11.7 million children had been registered through this programme. The State party would continue to expand universal birth registration in all regions, decentralising registration services to local health authorities.
The child act established children’s councils in every village and region and at the national level. There were now over 8,000 councils across the country.
A 2024 survey found that the rate of girls who faced sexual violence had dropped from 33 per cent in 2011 to 11 per cent in 2024, and for boys from 21 per cent to five per cent over the same period. The rate of girls who faced physical violence had dropped from 76 to 24 per cent. The State had amended the cybercrimes act to penalise digital child sexual violence and abusive material. It had established 15,000 child protection desks within police stations, 20 safe houses providing shelter to 1,300 survivors of violence, and trained over 500 facilitators on providing online safety education, which had been provided to more than 18 million students.
The State party implemented a national alternative care reform strategy in 2019, which prioritised family-based care over institutionalisation. Some 267 children who had been placed in foster care had been successfully reunified with their biological families over the reporting period. The State now ran only two children’s homes, accommodating 300 highly vulnerable children. The rate of accommodation was decreasing through adoptions and the reintegration of children in their families.
The prison act permitted infants born to incarcerated mothers to reside in female prisons. After a certain period, these children were integrated into their families. The admission of pregnant offenders remained rare.
The education sector development plan of 2023 included initiatives to remove barriers to education, including social and economic norms, and to promote greater inclusion of children with disabilities. Educational inclusion was governed by the revised persons with disabilities act of 2023 and the national strategy of inclusive education.
The protection of children with albinism was regulated by the national plan on the rights and welfare of persons with albinism, which ran until 2029. It targeted high-risk regions; there had been zero cases of ritual killings or violence against persons with albinism since the plan was launched in these regions. Public facilities provided free sunscreen and protective clothing and sunglasses to children with albinism, as well as other assistive devices.
The rate of children aged five to 17 engaged in labour had decreased from 33 per cent in 2014 to 25 per cent in 2024. Labour inspectors conducted interventions in high-risk zones, rescuing 5,300 children from tobacco farms and supporting children in street situations. The State party had assisted more than 5,200 victims of trafficking from 2022 to 2026.
The 2025 child act supplement introduced community rehabilitation, warnings and mediation as alternatives to detention for minor offenders. Community rehabilitation programmes had since supported around 170 juvenile offenders. Currently, no children were serving sentences in adult prisons.
Questions by Committee Experts
FAITH MARSHALL-HARRIS, Committee Expert and Taskforce Member, said that the visionary child law discouraged the detention of children. Why then were there nearly 500 children in detention? Police desks for gender and children were a good initiative but were reportedly not adequately resourced. Was the State addressing this? What support was given to children who were recruited or used in armed conflicts? How was the State discouraging the recruitment of children?
Tanzania had excellent laws on anti-trafficking. When would it update its national action plan on combatting trafficking, which had expired two years ago? State legislation authorised border authorities to send children back at borders without assessing their best interests, which amounted to refoulement. Could the delegation comment on this? Did the State still plan to discontinue English as a language of instruction in secondary schools? Was age-appropriate sexual and reproductive health education provided at schools?
RINCHEN CHOPHEL, Committee Expert and Taskforce Member, asked about how the State party was working to address female genital mutilation. Some children felt that the children’s councils in the State were not effective and did not have sufficient support or resources. How was this being addressed? What measures would the State party take to ensure that pregnant and post-partum girls could go back to school? How was bullying of these girls being addressed?
TIMOTHY EKESA, Committee Expert and Taskforce Member, said that as of 2022, only 26 per cent of children had birth certificates. There had been a great improvement since, with 11 million children issued certificates. However, some 10 million children still did not have these certificates, and the birth registration rate was still below 50 per cent. What strategies did the Government have in this regard? What role had children played in the violence that took place last year in the context of elections, in which many children died? How was the State protecting children and promoting their right to freedom of expression?
One Expert commended the work the State had done in strengthening confidential reporting of cases of violence against children and awareness raising on this issue. Another Expert praised the State party for setting up children’s councils across the country. A third Expert commended the State party’s new children’s act and the setup of promising child protection infrastructure.
Committee Experts asked follow-up questions on the number of child victims of violence who benefited from State support services; whether the State intended to ban corporal punishment in all circumstances; whether the State provided birth certificates to unregistered members of children’s councils; whether the State recorded the number of child refugees and children born in refugee camps and provided them with access to nationality; measures to support stateless children; measures to support children’s mental health and combat drug addiction among children; and the prevalence of tuberculosis among children.
Experts also asked about the extent to which madrasas were supervised by the Government and the requirements for setting up such schools; the substantive issues dealt with by children’s councils; whether there were safe facilities for children to report sexual abuse and for interviewing child victims; whether child victims were subjected to multiple interviews and whether they could provide testimony to courts remotely; steps being taken to support women who were victims of obstetric fistula; measures to protect girls from being abused while commuting to school; whether support programmes for children with albinism covered remote areas; and steps in place to protect children from sex tourism.
Responses by the Delegation
The delegation said it was not correct that there were 500 children in custody in Tanzania. There were no children in prisons; there were around 200 children in retention facilities, but they could only be held in such facilities for up to six months. This system sought to ensure that child offenders could continue with their lives.
Tanzania did not allow the recruitment of children in the army. Labour laws did not allow the employment of children under 18 in hazardous employment, such as in the military or in shipping. Recruitment of children occurred in neighbouring countries with internal conflicts but not in Tanzania.
The State party was working with international organizations to protect and support unaccompanied minors and ensure that they were not criminalised. The refugee act of 1998 prohibited non-refoulement. Tanzania had a long history of hosting refugees. Services for refugees had been impacted by the withdrawal of support from international donors.
Issues regarding children in rural areas should not be viewed in isolation from the general challenge related to resources faced by developing countries such as Tanzania. In recent years, however, Tanzania had significantly improved education infrastructure in rural areas and worked to ensure that children did not need to walk long distances to attend school. There were no plans to discourage English as a medium of instruction but there were plans to promote Kiswahili, the State’s first language, as a medium of instruction.
To combat female genital mutilation, the State party was implementing law enforcement measures and measures to address poverty as well as conducting awareness-raising campaigns. Traditional leaders in remote communities were being supported to engage in alternative income-generating activities such as farming, which had helped to prevent the practice.
The State encouraged girls who fell pregnant to return to school and was conducting awareness-raising campaigns to minimise stigma against these girls, who could choose whether to return to the school they had attended before or go to a new school.
There had been progress in tackling corporal punishment, which had been prohibited in Zanzibar. The National Government planned to present a bill to Parliament on the issue, but there were still divisions on it at the grassroots level, and the Government was prioritising addressing these first. Courts were not tolerant of people who violated children’s rights.
Currently, 68 per cent of children in Tanzania were registered. Tanzanian nationality laws did not provide citizenship by birth. The judiciary had not been confronted with a case of a stateless person.
The Government guaranteed the right of people to worship but did not propagate religion or manage religious education. It rather coordinated with religious authorities to ensure that trained teachers were providing general education at madrasas. These institutions were not above the law.
Names of children and victims in court cases were not disclosed publicly. All testimonies from children in civil and criminal cases were collected remotely via camera. Social workers needed to be present when officials interacted with children. There were measures such as trial bargains and mitigation to prevent cases involving children from being heard in court.
A special criminal investigation commission had been set up to investigate cases of violence against children occurring in October last year in the context of elections.
Work was underway to harmonise children’s council structures between the Tanzanian mainland and Zanzibar. These councils were independently formed by children themselves in schools, with children electing representatives. The Government had set up a specialised unit to consolidate opinions submitted by these councils at local and national levels and channel them to respective Government institutions for intervention.
Concluding Statements
CEPHAS LUMINA, Committee Expert and Taskforce Coordinator, thanked the delegation for the constructive dialogue, which had highlighted several positive developments and important steps taken by the State party to advance the rights of children. The dialogue had also identified areas where further and sustained efforts would be required to ensure the full implementation of the Convention and the fulfilment of the rights of all children in Tanzania. The Committee called on the State party to reflect carefully on the issues raised. It stood ready to support Tanzania as it built on the progress already achieved and continue its efforts to ensure that every child could fully enjoy the rights guaranteed in the Convention.
ABDALLAH SALEH POSSI, Permanent Representative of the United Republic of Tanzania to the United Nations Office at Geneva and head of the delegation, thanked the Committee for the constructive and engaging dialogue, during which a wide range of issues affecting children in Tanzania were discussed. Tanzania remained firmly committed to promoting and protecting the rights of every child. That commitment was reflected in the progress that had been presented in health and education, birth registration, child protection, access to justice, the fight against violence and harmful practices, and the strengthening of institutions and services for children. The State was investing in children and ensuring that national development translated into meaningful improvements in their lives.
There were still areas where further progress was required, including regarding the minimum age of marriage and corporal punishment in schools. The delegation had presented the progress underway in this regard. The State party would carefully study the Committee’s concluding observations and engage with the relevant national institutions on their implementation. These would contribute to continuing national efforts to strengthen the protection and welfare of children. The Government could not achieve this alone; all stakeholders, including parents and children themselves, had a role to play. The State was encouraged by the progress it had made, conscious of the work that remained and determined to move forward in the best interests of every child.
SOPHIE KILADZE, Committee Chair, thanked the delegation for the constructive spirit in which it had engaged with the Committee. The responses it had provided would inform the Committee’s concluding observations. The Committee acknowledged the changes that the State had made for children throughout the years but also noted that there was significant room for improvement. It hoped that in its next dialogue with Tanzania, the State would report on many more reforms and improvements in policies and programmes for children, which had already improved the lives of children in the United Republic of Tanzania. In closing, she conveyed best wishes to the children of Tanzania.
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