Ending Tanzania’s School Ban on Pregnant Girls and Young Mothers

Summary

Summary

For years, the Tanzanian government forced girls in public schools to take pregnancy tests—and permanently expelled those who tested positive.

This case challenged these discriminatory practices, which prevented girls from finishing school and limited their futures.

It successfully argued that Tanzania’s rules discriminated against women and girls by keeping them from getting an education.

Before the case, about 15,000 girls in Tanzania left school every year because of pregnancy, according to Human Rights Watch. The country also had one of the highest child marriage rates in the world. In 2012, 37% of girls  were married before age 18–and automatically forced to leave school based on nationwide policy.

About the case

About the case

The Center for Reproductive Rights and the Legal and Human Rights Centre (LHRC) filed a complaint on June 16, 2019, with the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACERWC).

The complaint was brought on behalf of six Tanzanian schoolgirls who were expelled from school for being pregnant.

It argued that:

• The government’s regressive policies violated the human rights and gender equality of schoolgirls in Tanzania.
• These policies impeded the girls’ right to education, violating the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child and other human rights instruments.

The case also connected to the Africa Union Agenda 2063 and its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which focus on helping girls and women get an education and live free from discrimination.

The ACERWC heard the case on November 22, 2021, with the United Nations Working Group on Discrimination against Women supporting the Center as an amicus curiae. The hearing was finalized March 29, 2022.

Days after the arguments at the ACERWC, the Tanzanian Minister of Education announced that the country would end its discriminatory policy.

But the Center and LHRC continued to pursue the case to make sure the change was lasting and permanent.

About the ruling

About the ruling

On September 15, 2022, the ACERWC ruled that Tanzania’s biased education policies violated adolescent girls’ human rights. It cited numerous human rights and gender violations , including:

• Mandatory pregnancy testing.
• Expelling pregnant and married girls. 
• Barring young mothers from school. 
• Illegally detaining pregnant girls.
• Failing to give students access to reproductive and sexual health information. 

The obligations violated under the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child included:

• Non-discrimination.
• Best interests of the child.
• Protection of privacy, education, health, and health services.
• Protection against child abuse and torture.
• Protection against harmful social and cultural practices.

ACERWC recommendations

ACERWC Recommendations for Tanzania

The ACERWC’s recommendations for Tanzania included:

• Immediately ending mandatory pregnancy testing in schools and health facilities—and publicly announcing the ban.
• Taking concrete legal and policy steps to prevent the expulsion of pregnant and/or married girls.
• Investigating cases where pregnant girls were detained, and immediately releasing those under interrogation.
• Ending the arbitrary and illegal arrests of pregnant schoolgirls.
• Allowing girls who were expelled because of pregnancy and/or marriage to come back to school immediately.
• Offering special support programs to help these girls catch up on lost school time and improve their learning.
• Providing education and services about sexual and reproductive health that are friendly to young people.
• Taking steps to stop child marriage and other harmful practices affecting girls.
• Providing support and rehabilitation for survivors of sexual violence.

Case details

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