· Also worth highlighting is the Sexual Offences (Special Provisions) Act No. 4 of 1998 which redefined the term ‘child’ in order to provide more legal protection for persons under 18 years. In Zanzibar the Sexual Offences Special Provision Act No. 7 of 1998 was reviewed to increase the age of protection from fifteen to eighteen years . Other pieces of legislation (for example, the Primary School (Compulsory Enrolment and Attendance Rules) of 1979) define a ‘child’ as one who has attained the age of 7 years but is not yet 13. The Adoption of Children Act uses the term ‘infant’ to refer to a person under 21 years of age. Zanzibar Children’s Policy on Survival, Protection and Development divides ‘childhood’ into infancy (age 0-1); early childhood (1-6 years); adolescence 7-14, and puberty (12 for girls, 14 for boys). Efforts are underway to consolidate laws relating to children and to provide a uniform definition of a child as recommended by the Law Reform Commission Report of 1994. 4: General Principles Non-Discrimination Article 3, 12 and 26 Article 12 of the URT Constitution states that: “all human beings are born free, and are all equal” and that “every person is entitled to recognition and respect of his dignity”. Article 13 states that “all persons are equal before the law and are entitled, without any discrimination to protection and equality before the law.” The Constitution of Zanzibar also incorporates a Bill of Rights reaffirming the fundamental protection of rights and personal freedoms including the right to equality without discrimination. Despite the above, there are a number of laws which hinder the realization of equality, including the laws of succession and inheritance. 11