An appraisal of legal deposit laws in Tanzania

Abstract

This paper addresses issues concerning legal deposit laws of Tanzania. Currently under the existing legislation two libraries have been accorded a status of legal deposit of the country's national heritage. However, one wonders whether it is reasonable to place all national heritages in two places only. The paper argues further that, a vast country like Tanzania needs to have national heritage in various geographical locations to enable the majority of its people to have access to such information. This paper highlights and makes an appraisal of the current position of legal deposit in the country. It draws experiences from other countries with reference to legislation on such deposits and concludes with recommendations on how to improve their scope of operation.


(University of Dar es Salaam Library Journal: 2003 5(1): 34-45)