Date of publication:

05/27/2025

United Republic of Tanzania (the)

Do domestic laws and policies prohibit the employment of children under specified ages?

ANALYSIS

Assessment by population

Refugees
Asylum-seekers
Analysis

Tanzania has established clear legal standards to regulate child labor, setting minimum age thresholds and outlining the conditions under which children may work. The Employment and Labour Relations Act No. 6 of 2004 and the Law of the Child Act No. 21 of 2009 serve as the main statutes, aiming to safeguard children from exploitation and prohibit their involvement in hazardous or harmful work.

These laws reflect Tanzania’s commitment to child protection and align with international labor standards. In practice, they require employers to verify age and ensure that any work undertaken by minors does not interfere with education, health, or development. While enforcement varies across sectors and regions, the framework provides a legal foundation for monitoring and addressing child labor, including among vulnerable populations such as displaced or stateless children.

    LAW & POLICY

    Related provisions of domestic law or policy

    Employment and Labour Relations Act

    Legal provision

    Section 5.3 - Prohibition of child labor

    No person shall employ a child under eighteen years of age in a mine, factory or as crew on a ship or in any other worksite including non-formal settings and agriculture, where work conditions may be considered hazardous by the Minister.

    Section 5.5 - Prohibition of child labor

    Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (3), any written law regulating the provision of training may permit a child under the age of eighteen to work under supervised conditions in the course of his training.

    Section 5.1 - Prohibition of child labor

    No person shall employ a child under the age of fourteen years.

    Section 5.2 - Prohibition of child labor

    A child of fourteen years of age may only be employed to do light work, which is not likely to be harmful to the child's health and development; and does not prejudice the child's attendance at school, participation in vocational orientation or training programmes or the child's capacity to benefit from the instruction received.

    The Law of the Child Act

    Legal provision

    Section 77.2 - Prohibition of child labor

    For the purposes of subsection (1), the minimum age for employment or engagement of a child shall be fourteen years.

    Section 77.3 - Prohibition of child labor

    Subject to subsection (1), "light work" shall constitute work which is not likely to be harmful to the health or development of the child and does not prevent or affect the child’s attendance at school, participation in vocational orientation or training programmes or the capacity of the child to benefit from school work.

    Section 77.1 - Prohibition of child labor

    A child shall have a right to light work.