TANLAP was established following realization of the need to have an active and independent network of legal aid providers to build the capacity of legal aid providers, to harmonize legal aid services and ethical conducts of legal aid providers and to have a collective forum for participation in policies and law reforms.
The founding legal aid providers comprised the following: The Comprehensive Community Based Rehabilitation in Tanzania (CCBRT); the Disabled Organization for Legal Affairs and Social Economic Development (DOLASED); Lawyers Environmental Action Tanzania (LEAT); Legal and Human Rights Centre (LHRC); Tanzania Women Lawyers Association (TAWLA); Women in Law and Development in Africa (WiLDAF); Women’s Legal Aid Centre (WLAC); and the National Organization for Legal Assistance (nola).
The main objectives of TANLAP are as follows:
- To strengthen the capacity building on legal literacy among legal aid providers.
- To extend and improve legal aid provision in the country.
- To initiate, promote, support as may be deemed expedient, any proposed legislation or other measure affecting the interests of its members.
- To build mutual understanding and coordination amongst legal aid providers and legal aid clients in the country.