Why case backlogs drop sharply amid judicial reforms success

DAR ES SALAAM: THE Judiciary of Tanzania continues to uphold its constitutional role of justice dispensation.

According to Article 107A (1) of the Constitution of the United Republic of Tanzania, 1977, the Judiciary is the final authority in the dispensation of justice in the United Republic of Tanzania.

Its system is structured into four-tier courts, which are the Court of Appeal of the United Republic of Tanzania, the High Court of the United Republic of Tanzania, Courts of Resident Magistrate and District Courts and Primary Courts.

Article 107A (2) of the Constitution imposes a duty to the Judiciary to dispense justice without delay or hindrance by technicalities.

This constitutional duty is anchored in the second pillar of the Judiciary’s Strategic Plan (2020/2021–2024/2025), which prioritises access to justice.

The pillar underscores key strategies such as adoption of information and communication technologies (ICT), simplifying rules of practice and procedure and adopting innovative case management techniques to ensure efficient justice delivery.

A continued implementation of such strategies in 2025 was executed through various actions, including expanding the reach of court services, simplifying procedural rules and leveraging ICT.

These efforts have enhanced a citizen-centric justice. Administration of justice for the year 2025 The comprehensive performance report of the judicial functions released recently by the Chief Registrar of the Judiciary of Tanzania, Hon. Eva Nkya, shows that there was an increase of decided cases in 2025, leading to a rise in clearance rate by 3.5 percentage point (pp) and disposal rate by 5.4 percentage point compared to 2024.

“This performance contributed to a significant 24.7 per cent reduction in pending cases, underscoring notable improvement in case management. Moreover, overall backlogs for the year 2025 stood at 5 per cent, which is in-line with the Judiciary Strategic Plan target and signifies the Judiciary’s commitment to expedite justice,” reads part of the report.

The report further indicates that in 2025, cases filed were 243,848, an increase of 0.6 per cent from 2024. These cases include 105,480 civil and 138,368 with criminal nature. Cases decided were 254,793, which is 104.5 per cent clearance, comprising 109,326 civil cases and 145,467 criminals.

Pending cases are 33,379, which is 24.7 per cent from 2024, comprising 19,207 civil and 14,172 criminal cases. According to the report, the filed cases at the Court of Appeal were 3,214, which is 1.3 per cent, High Court were 21,518, which is 8.8 per cent, Courts of Resident Magistrates were 6,033, which is 2.5 per cent, District Courts were 35,144, which is 14.4, Juvenile Courts were 1,225, which is 0.5 per cent and Primary Courts were 176,687, which is 72.5 per cent.

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The decided cases with percentage in brackets, starting with the Court of Appeal were 4,405 [1.7], High Court were 22,164 [8.7], Courts of Resident Magistrate were 5,967 [2.3].

District Courts were 40,367 [15.8], Juvenile Courts were 1,372 [0.5] and Primary Courts 180,518 [70]. On pending cases, the report shows that at the Court of Appeal there were 5,039, which is 15.1 per cent, High Court 10,381, which is 31.1 per cent, Courts of Resident Magistrate 2,303, which is 6.9 per cent, District Courts 8,214, which is 24.6 per cent, Juvenile Courts 202, which is 0.6 per cent and Primary Courts 7,240, which is 21.7 per cent.

Case clearance rate According to the report, the overall case clearance rate for 2025 stood at 104.5per cent, indicating the Judiciary’s ability to dispose of more cases than those filed.

The performance reflects a 3.5 percentage point increase from 101 per cent recorded in the year 2024.

The Court of Appeal cleared 128.8 per cent of civil cases and 147.6 per cent of criminal cases, an overall of 135.9 per cent, High Court was 104.9 per cent of civil cases and 98.4 per cent of criminal cases, an overall of 103 per cent, while Courts of Resident Magistrates cleared 84.6 per cent of civil cases and 121 per cent of criminal cases, an overall of 98.9 per cent.

District Courts cleared 110.8 per cent of civil cases and 117.6 per cent of criminal cases, an overall of 114.9 per cent, while Juvenile Courts was 110.2 per cent of civil cases and 113.8 per cent of criminal cases, an overall of 112 per cent and Primary Courts was 102.2 per cent of civil cases and 102.2 per cent of criminal cases, an overall of 102.2 per cent.

Case disposal rate The report further shows that the overall case disposal rate for 2025 was 88.4 per cent.

This performance represents a 5.4 percentage point increase, compared to 83 per cent recorded in the year 2024, surpassing the Judiciary Strategic Plan target of 85 per cent disposal rate.

Court of Appeal disposed of 46.1 per cent of civil cases and 47.4 per cent of criminal cases, an overall of 46.6 per cent, the High Court disposed of 69.3 per cent of civil cases and 65.2 per cent of criminal cases, an overall of 68.2 per cent and the Courts of Resident Magistrate disposed of 65.2 per cent of civil cases and 81.6 per cent of criminal cases, an overall of 72.2 per cent.

Furthermore, District Courts disposed of 80.2 per cent of civil cases and 85 per cent of criminal cases, an overall of 83.1 per cent, while Juvenile Courts disposed of 85.5 per cent of civil cases and 88.8 per cent of criminal cases, an overall of 87.2 per cent and Primary Courts disposed of 95.4 per cent of civil cases and 96.6 per cent of criminal ones, an overall of 96.1 per cent.

Case performance to each court level compared to the year 2024 The report shows that in 2025, the Court of

Appeal demonstrated a remarkable performance, achieving a clearance rate of 135.9 per cent, equivalent to an increase of 67.9 percentage point and raised its disposal rate to 46.6 per cent, indicating a 21.6 percentage point increase compared to 2024.

On part of the High Court, a solid performance was sustained, recording a clearance rate of 103 per cent confirming that, case resolutions continued to keep pace with incoming filings.

While the pending cases declined by 5.9 per cent, the disposal rate improved to 68.2 per cent.

Notably, backlog cases dropped by 30.2 per cent from 175 cases in 2024 to 121 in 2025, underscoring effective backlog reduction efforts and reinforcing the court’s capacity to effectively manage caseloads while maintaining operational stability.

The Courts of Resident Magistrate maintained a stable performance, with a clearance rate of 98.9 per cent, indicating near balance between cases filed and decided.

The disposal rate improved to 72.2 per cent, reflecting strengthened case resolution capacity.

Notably, backlog declined by 25 per cent, demonstrating effective backlog reduction efforts, while overall workload remained manageable despite a modest increase in pending cases.

The report further shows that District Courts recorded efficiency gains, achieving a clearance rate of 114.9 per cent and an improved disposal rate of 83.1 per cent, indicating that case resolutions outpaced new filings.

Pending cases declined sharply by 38.9 per cent, and backlog dropped by 57.1 per cent, reflecting effective case backlog management.

These results underscore sustained operational improvements and enhanced capacity to effectively handle caseloads.

Moreover, the report indicates that the Juvenile Courts demonstrated case resolution efficiency, achieving a clearance rate of 112 per cent and an improved disposal rate of 87.2 per cent, indicating that dispositions exceeded filings.

Pending cases declined significantly by 42.1 per cent, reflecting effective case management. Meanwhile, these courts maintained a zero-case backlog, underscoring the courts’ overall effectiveness in maintaining timely and responsive juvenile justice services.

Primary Courts continued to demonstrate operational efficiency, achieving a clearance rate of 102.2 per cent and an improved disposal rate of 96.1 per cent, indicating sustained capacity to resolve cases in-line with incoming filings.

The pending cases declined by 34.6 per cent, while backlog declined by 83.3 per cent, reflecting a highly effective case backlog management.

Extension of Court services The report shows that in 2025, the Judiciary strengthened access to justice by establishing new Primary Court sittings.

These are Msangano (Momba District), Kanga (Songwe District), Ng’anzo (Bukombe District), Mondo (Kishapu District) and Uyui Urban (Uyui District). Others were Terrat (Arusha District), Ngoheranga (Malinyi District), Wazo Hill (Kinondoni District), Lagangabilili (Itilima District), Kitunda and Kipili (Sikonge District), Kilole (Korogwe District), Minepa (Ulanga District), Kitumbeine (Longido District) and Msomera (Handeni District).

According to the report, the expansion reduced geographical barriers and ensured that communities previously underserved by the justice system gained closer, more affordable, and timely access to court services thereby reducing travel burdens and reinforcing the principle of justice for all.

Mobile Court services The report further shows that Mobile Courts continued to be a flagship innovation in 2025, with its services expanding to Tabora following a successful service in Dar es Salaam, Mwanza and Mbeya.

Such achievement propelled the Judiciary to venture into new mobile court innovations by introducing a mobile justice tent (Haki Hema).

The launch of the justice tent addressed the growing desire for a rapid and accessible justice mechanism tailored to community needs.

Through the innovations, 850 cases were filed and 34 were carried forward from 2024, bringing the total workload to 884. By the end of year, 876 cases had been resolved, equivalent to 103 per cent of all filed cases.

The initiative directly benefited 9,069 citizens, including 4,619 men and 4,450 women by reducing travel costs, shortening case resolution time, and expanding access to justice in underserved areas.

In addition to adjudication of disputes, Mobile Courts played an important role in providing auxiliary services such as legal awareness on court services, receiving feedback, assisting potential litigants in filing cases, and accessing Judiciary of Tanzania electronic Case Management System.

Public feedback and complaints handling The report shows that the number of feedback registered in 2025 increased to 2,716 from 2,671 in the year 2024. A total of 2,183 feedback out of 2,716 registered, equivalent to 80.4 per cent were received at the Judiciary Customer Services Centre (the Centre).

Further, eight feedbacks, equivalent to 0.3 per cent, were channeled through the Judiciary website and 525 feedbacks equivalent to 19.3 per cent were received through complaint desks at various courts.

Out of 2,721 feedbacks (including five carried forward from the year 2024) were processed; and 2,718 feedbacks, equivalent to 99.9 per cent, were handled marking an increase of 0.1 percentage point over 99.8 per cent scored in 2024.

Additionally, a total of 1,365 complaints were received and five were carried forward from the year 2024, marking a total of 1,370 processed complaints in 2025.

Out of 1,370 complaints, 1,365 (equivalent to 99.8 per cent) were handled, marking an increase of 0.1 percentage point compared to previous year 99.7 percentage.

The increase surpassed the Judiciary Strategic Plan target of 95 per cent. Supervision and inspection of subordinate Courts, Prisons The report indicates that in 2025, a total of 1,027 out of 1,036 subordinate courts were inspected, which is equivalent to 99.1 per cent.

Meanwhile, a total of 125 out of 130 prisons were inspected, equivalent to 96.2 per cent, marking an increase of 21.1 percentage point compared to previous year where 75.2 per cent of prisons were inspected.

Major inspection findings included improper filling of court registers, non-issuance of cause lists, and delay in issuance of copies of court decisions and proceedings.

Other issues were non-adherence of procedures in criminal and civil cases, probate and administration of estate matters, matrimonial causes and execution of court decree or orders.