Good Samaritan law

First Aid & CPR Tanzania

The Good Samaritan: compassion and protection

Drawn from the Bible (Luke 10:25-37), the parable of the Good Samaritan tells of a traveller left for dead who is rescued by a stranger that tends to him and sees to his care. Beyond its religious context, it carries a universal message: the moral duty to help others in danger, through compassion and altruism.

Inspired by this principle, many so-called Good Samaritan laws have been enacted around the world to protect those who assist in good faith during an emergency from legal action. The exact scope of that protection, however, varies from one jurisdiction to another: here is what the law applicable to your region provides.

Statute citation

Governing act No dedicated Good Samaritan Act and no general duty to rescue. As a common-law jurisdiction, the Penal Code (Cap. 16), ss. 206–210, imposes only narrow relationship- or charge-based duties. The Road Traffic Act, 1973, s. 57, requires a driver involved in an accident to stop, give particulars and report the accident. The WHO (2023) confirms Tanzania has no Good Samaritan law.
Scope of protection No offence targets a bystander who fails to assist a stranger in danger. Duties to act are confined to persons in charge of another, the head of a family, a master toward an apprentice, those who undertake a dangerous act, control of dangerous things, and a driver involved in an accident.
Duty to rescue No
AED liability protection No
No legal duty to rescue

Your protection under the law

Tanzania has no dedicated Good Samaritan Act and no general duty to rescue a stranger, as the World Health Organization (2023) confirms. As a common-law jurisdiction, it measures a good-faith rescuer against reasonable conduct in an emergency; the Penal Code (Cap. 16), sections 206–210, sets only narrow duties based on a relationship or a charge. The Road Traffic Act, 1973 (s. 57) requires a driver involved in an accident to stop, give particulars and report the accident.

No duty to act, but every reason to

No offence targets a bystander who fails to assist a stranger in danger: in Tanzania, helping is a choice, not a legal obligation. Duties to act are confined to persons in charge of another, the head of a family, an employer toward an apprentice, control of dangerous things, and a driver involved in an accident. Someone who nonetheless chooses to step in, in good faith and with care, has no cause to fear being treated harshly for the act.

Why training matters

The absence of a legal duty does not pause the medical countdown: in cardiac arrest, the chance of survival falls by roughly 10 percent with every minute without resuscitation. In Tanzania, where help can be delayed, especially outside the main cities, the person on the scene becomes the first link in the chain of survival. Training in CPR and first aid gives you the ability to act where waiting would cost everything. A few hours of learning today can become, tomorrow, the reason someone goes home alive.