The issue of human rights in Tanzania, a nation with a 2012 population of 44,928,923,Population Distribution by Administrative Units, United Republic of Tanzania, 2013, page 1 is complex. In its 2026 Freedom in the World report, Freedom House declared the country "Not Free".
Human rights concerns The United Nations Human Rights Council in October 2011 at its meeting in Geneva completed a Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of the human rights situation in Tanzania. At this UPR, the United Nations Country Team (UNCT) and several countries addressed various problems in Tanzania.
Gender equality The UNCT said, National reviews and assessments of equality between men and women ... have identified a range of challenges ..., which continue to prevail. These include the persistent and increasing burden of poverty on women; inequalities in arrangements for productive activities and access to resources; inequalities in the sharing of power and decision-making; lack of respect for and inadequate promotion and protection of the human rights of women; and inequalities in managing natural resources and safeguarding the environment. ... Particular attention should be drawn to the widespread marginalization of the girl child in different spheres of life, including education, and the total exclusion caused for many by early and forced marriage. ... Gender-based violence is prevalent. According to a 2005 World Health Organization survey, 41 percent of ever-partnered women in Dar es Salaam have experienced physical or sexual violence at the hands of a partner.
Tanzania expressed support for Denmark's recommendation to, "Put in place a comprehensive strategy and effective legislation to eliminate practices that discriminate against women..."Report of the Working Group on the Universal Periodic Review: United Republic of Tanzania", United Nations Human Rights Council, Nineteenth Session, 8 December 2011, A/HRC/19/4, accessed 16 November 2014 Tanzania also supported Ghana's recommendation to, "Put in place a comprehensive strategy ... to modify or eliminate cultural practices and stereotypes that discriminate against women...
Indigenous peoples The UNCT said, The rights of indigenous peoples to access ancestral lands have been denied or limited for economic exploitation, in particular in game reserves. ... [T]he Government would be urged to reconsider its policy by which the notion of indigenous peoples is unrecognized and to take steps to ensure their right to practice their own culture in parity with the majority population. The Government should also consider developing human rights-based standard operating procedures for evictions, clearly setting it out as a matter of last resort to resolve disputes over land use between public interests, private investors, and pastoralists.
During the UPR, Finland noted the forceful and unlawful evictions of indigenous people. It also asked Tanzania about its actions to implement the recommendations of the Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples and whether the government would take legislative measures to effectively protect the rights of indigenous peoples. Denmark was concerned by the denial or curtailing of indigenous people's rights to ancestral lands, resulting in numerous forced evictions.
Same-sex relations
The UNCT said, Homosexuality is considered contrary to cultural norms; same-sex sexual relations are criminalized. Group arrests in connection to peaceful assemblies, non-attendance to HIV patients, as well as forcible evictions of persons due to their sexual orientation by local and religious communities have been reported. Moreover, representatives of the groups and other human rights defenders may not be willing to make public statements in favor of tolerance and decriminalization for fear of reprisals. The Government is urged to take a proactive stance ... and repeal any criminal provision against persons based on their sexual orientation.
During the UPR, Sweden noted that the "criminalization of sexual minorities contributed to the stigmatization and vulnerability of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons". Slovenia expressed concern that consensual same-sex sexual acts remained criminalized.
Workplace discrimination The UNCT said, Although the Convention on Equal Remuneration ... and the Convention on Discrimination in Employment and Occupation ... have been ratified and domestic laws to their effect have been introduced, the Government has yet to elaborate measures to address wage discrimination and disparities between job values in the private and public sectors. ... [D]espite the Government has put in place the HIV/AIDS (Prevention and Control) Act 2008 and the Employment and Labour Relations (Code of Good Practice) Rules 2007, HIV/AIDS-related discrimination remains institutionalized in the workplace in both the public and private spheres.
Commercial sex workers The UNCT said, Commercial sex workers are another group at risk of social exclusion and harsh treatment by law enforcement. Considered as an offense under applicable criminal law, commercial sex continues to fuel harassment and abuse. The Government is encouraged to study the effects of the arrests of these workers, the majority of whom are women.
Albinism
The killing and mutilation of people that suffer from albinism continue. Some witch doctors believe the witchcraft to be more powerful if the victim screams during an amputation. Navi Pillay, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, said in March 2013 that prosecutions for these crimes are rarely successful with only five known cases of convictions out of the 72 murders of people with albinism documented in Tanzania since 2000."U.N. condemns 'abhorrent' attacks on Tanzania albinos", Reuters 5 March 2013
The UNCT said, From 2006 to 2010, at least 58 persons with albinism were killed, the majority of whom were children. Also, there were nine cases of attempted murder and reports of the desecration of graves. ... Efforts have been made to prosecute the murderers. Tackling the national and international trade in body parts is also essential to ending the killings. In terms of protection, the Government has established special shelter centers for children with albinism. However, in the long-term, this measure results in the children's isolation from society and separation from family. Therefore, the Government should explore alternative ways of protecting people with albinism, including options that promote social inclusion and tolerance.
Maternal mortality Maternal mortality is very high in Tanzania. Many of these deaths are related to being provoked by indirect or direct obstetric causes.Hanson, C., Cox, J., Mbaruku, G., Manzi, F., Gabrysch, S., Schellenberg, D., ... & Schellenberg, J. (2015). Maternal mortality and distance to facility-based obstetric care in rural southern Tanzania: a secondary analysis of cross-sectional census data in 226 000 households. The Lancet Global Health, 3(7), e387-e395.
The UNCT said, Maternal health outcomes have shown slow improvement over the past two decades. ... [A]n important recommendation is that the Government increase access to and availability of basic emergency obstetric care services, skilled health workers – currently attending less than 50 percent of live births – as well as supplies. Access to family planning could reduce maternal deaths by a third and child death by as much as 20 percent. ... Also needed is a consideration of the current restrictiveness of safe abortion services, which, under the Penal Code, is considered illegal. Reports suggest that this restrictiveness costs the lives of many women and girls seeking to conduct the act secretly, without professional guidance and under unhygienic conditions.
Under-five child mortality The UNCT said, After more than a decade of stagnation during the 1980s and 1990s, major gains in child survival have been reported since mid-2000. ... This progress is equivalent to saving nearly 100,000 children every year. ... Nonetheless, the toll of under-five deaths still amounts to roughly 155,000 deaths per year – more than 400 deaths in Tanzania every day.
Forced labor The UNCT said, The Local Government (District Authorities) Act (1982) allows the Government to compel individuals and groups to forcibly work for purposes of economic development. Many laws also permit the imposition of forced or compulsory labor as a punishment for a range of offenses, including the expression of political views and the failure to engage in socially useful work. ... These provisions are incompatible with relevant International Labour Organization conventions and the Government should revise these provisions as a matter of priority.
Trafficking in persons The UNCT said, Tanzania is a source, transit, and destination country for men, women, and children subjected to trafficking, specifically under conditions of forced labor and forced prostitution. The incidence of internal trafficking is higher than that of transnational trafficking, largely from rural to urban areas, affecting primarily children for their exploitation in domestic servitude, petty trade, and prostitution. Family members and friends who offer assistance with education or lucrative employment in urban areas usually facilitate trafficking. The use of young girls for forced domestic labor continues to be the country‟s largest human trafficking problem. Due to the lack of establishment of an Anti-Trafficking Committee, the governmental agencies tasked with prevention and protection are unable to implement 2008 Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act as there are no regulations for them to follow. Thus, most government officials remain unfamiliar with the Act's provisions, and no budgetary resources allocated to combating the crime and assisting the victims have been secured... Law enforcement officials often fail to see human trafficking as a crime but rather a moral issue that can be remedied by financial compensation. ... From the enactment of the law to the end of January 2011, three cases were successfully prosecuted...
Incarceration, prisons, and access to justice The UNCT said, There is an acute shortage of courts, as well as judges and magistrates to preside over cases, severely affecting access to competent tribunals. Pointedly, [33.6 percent of] ... cases ... in the primary and district courts ... have been pending for 2 years or more. Likewise, the number of cases pending in the High Court (for murder, serious offenses, and appeals) is rising due to fewer court sittings. Besides, justice is further delayed by prolonged investigations by the police, the courts' adjourning of cases based on flimsy technical grounds, and the non-appearance of witnesses. There is also a dearth of lawyers who are qualified to provide representation in court, the great majority of whom are based in Dar es Salaam. ... While the law allows for legal aid in criminal cases, those accused of murder and treason are provided with free representation in practice only. Detention facilities struggle to cater to the basic needs of the ever-growing number of inmates, most of whom are remandees. Convicted and unconvinced are mixed together, often under inhumane conditions. Some prisons are housing more than twice their capacity, as is the case with the Ruanda Central Prison, which has a capacity of 400 prisoners and holds 838.
In its 2013 human rights report, the United States State Department said,