(c) the proliferation and demand for body parts of PWA, particularly CWA, in neighbouring
countries;
(d) heavy caseloads and backlogs of cases facing courts in the State Party that result in inordinate
delays in investing and prosecuting cases concerning CWA; and
(e) financial and human resources constraints facing law enforcement and social welfare agencies
in order:
(i) to provide adequate psychosocial and health services in emergency situations as a
short-term strategy; to scale up community-based initiatives;
(ii) to strengthen data base, tracing, identification and reunification;
(iii) to enable local authorities to have adequate budgets for PWA, particularly CWA;
and
(iv) to draw up sufficient and clear admission criteria to special schools.
117. The State Party has undertaken a number of measures to address the foregoing challenges,
including efforts reported in para’s 114-115 above. It has also ensured that it complies with its international
law obligation, particularly through the ratification and domestication of the UN Convention on the Rights of
Persons with Disabilities that resulted to some of its citizens to refer a communication to the Committee on
the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which is still pending determination by that Committee. 51 The State
Party has further engaged in concerted consultations and collaboration with its neighbouring countries to
address the foregoing challenges from a transboundary angle.
VII. HEALTH AND WELFARE
118. The principal legislative, judicial, administrative or other measures particularly programmes and
projects, etc; the institutional infrastructure for implementing policy in this area, particularly monitoring
strategies and mechanisms; factors and difficulties encountered and progress achieved in implementing the
relevant provisions of the Children's Charter, in respect of:
(a) Survival and development (Articles 5)
119. This is well entrenched in Article 14 of the Constitution of the United Republic of Tanzania and
the Constitution of Zanzibar. This constitutional guarantee underlies all basic rights as well entrenched in the
Child Development Policy (2008) applicable in Tanzania Mainland and the Child Survival and Protection
Development Policy (2001) applicable in Zanzibar. These policies recognize, inter alia, the rights to life,
rights to development, the right to protection, the right to child participation, and the right to nondiscrimination.
120. At the legislative level, the Law of the Child Act and Zanzibar Children’s Act enlist basic rights
and fundamental freedoms of the child, which include the definition of a child, non discrimination, the right to
a name and nationality, the right to grow up with parents, the duty to maintain a child, parental duty and
responsibility, the right to parental property, prohibition of harmful employment, and the right to protection
from torture and degrading treatment. Further, in section 94 of the Law of the Child it is the duty of local
government authorities to safe-guard children in their jurisdiction and to promote reconciliation between
parents and a child.
121. Furthermore, in the Tanzania Vision 2025, “access to quality reproductive health services for all
individuals and reduction in infant and maternal mortality’’ are among the most important health service goals
51
Nos. 22/2014 and 23/2014 submitted to the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities on behalf of Mr. "X" and Mr. "Y".
Notably, one of the victims in this communication is a child.
34