Cecilia Ngaiza, PhD Candidate

Cecilia Ngaiza

cecilia.ngaiza@uni-bayreuth.de                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    

Affiliations

• Junior Fellow Bayreuth International Graduate School of African Studies (BIGSAS)
• Research Assistant University of Bayreuth Cluster of Excellence “Africa Multiple”, Research Section-Affiliations, Project: Human Rights, Corporate Social Responsibility and Interacting Markets in Africa
• Member Tanganyika Law Society (TLS)
• Member Tanzania Women Lawyers’ Association (TAWLA)
• Member Tanzania-German Centre for Eastern African Legal Studies (TGCL) Alumni Association

Biography

Cecilia Ngaiza is currently a PhD student in law at the University of Bayreuth. She holds a Post Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice from the Law School of Tanzania, a Master of Laws (LLM) in Regional Integration and East African Community Law and a Bachelor of Laws (Hons), both from the University of Dar es Salaam. She is also an Advocate of the High Court of Tanzania.

She has a dedicated interest in the fields of human rights law, family law and regional integration law. She has worked with the community based human rights non-governmental organization – Tanzania Women Lawyers’ Association (TAWLA) situated in Tanzania, before joining the University of Dar es Salaam, School of Law as an Assistant Lecturer (currently on a study leave).

Thesis

Practicability of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights in Protecting the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in Tanzania: Case Studies of the Hadzabe and Maasai 

Supervisor: Prof. Dr. Bernd Kannowski

Year of Entry: 2019

Research

This research concerns the practicability of the primary African human rights regional law at the national level in Tanzania. It is generally intended to contribute knowledge to the field of human rights in Africa, particularly on the area concerning the African Union (AU) member states’ obligation to perform regional agreements nationally.

The study focuses on the domestic practice of peoples’ rights provided for under articles 19 to 24 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, 1981 “the Banjul Charter” in Tanzania; narrowing the scope to the implementation of such rights by the government of Tanzania and the exercise of the same by the indigenous peoples. The specific rights in question are peoples’ rights to equality, existence and self-determination, free disposal of wealth and natural resources, economic, social and cultural development, peace and security and general satisfactory environment favourable for development respectively.

The research seeks to answer an overriding question as to whether peoples’ rights stated in the Banjul Charter are instrumental in promotion and protection of indigenous peoples’ rights in Tanzania, drawing specific examples from the Hadzabe and Maasai communities.

This research involves both desk and empirical research. Desk research entails visits to the libraries and relevant documentation centres as well as the online resources to obtain significant information for the study. As to the empirical research, structured and semi-structured interviews shall be engaged to interact with legal experts, officers in the governmental and non-governmental organisations and representatives from the selected Hadzabe and Maasai communities in acquiring the intended empirical data.

In the end, the researcher expects to have established, explained and described in details: the foundation for the inclusion of peoples’ rights in the Banjul Charter and their relationship with the indigenous peoples; indigenous peoples’ insights and experiences on the relevancy of peoples’ rights to their own communities and the status quo of Tanzania’s fulfilment of her domestic duty to promote and protect (indigenous) peoples’ rights in the country respectively. Ultimately, the study intends to provide viable recommendations as to the best practice of peoples’ rights for the benefit of the indigenous communities in Tanzania particularly and beyond.

Publications

-Ngaiza Cecilia et al, “Towards Coordinated Legal Aid Services in Tanzania”,1(1) The Tanzania Legal Aid Journal, 2019, pp. 85-118.

Available at https://www.tls.or.tz/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/LEGAL-AID-JOURNAL-2019.pdf

-Ngaiza Cecilia, “A Legal Aider vis-à-vis Quality Legal Aid Services: A Peek of Experience”, 1(1)The Tanzania Legal Aid Journal, 2020, pp.70-98.