Enforcement of foreign maintenance orders

I was married to a Tanzanian. Our marriage was contracted in the United Kingdom and ended having a matrimonial dispute which ended up in Court in the UK. The UK Court granted me a judgment and divorce and ordered my former husband to pay maintenance allowance to me and our three children. Immediately after the Court issued the decree, my former husband left and travelled back to Tanzania where he is currently working in one of the multinational companies. How can I enforce the maintenance order issued by an overseas Court against my former husband who is currently living and working in Tanzania?
PL, Dar

Section 141 to 144 of the Law of Marriage of Act [Cap.29 R.E 2019] prescribes the procedure for execution of maintenance orders issued by Courts of foreign jurisdictions. The first condition for execution of maintenance orders issued by a foreign Court is the existence of the reciprocal arrangement between Tanzania and the foreign country whose Court issued the maintenance order sought to be executed in Tanzania. Reciprocal arrangement is an undertaking that the foreign nation undertakes to give assistance it seeks from Tanzania in case Tanzania needs similar assistance from that foreign country. The arrangement does not necessarily need to be a bilateral treaty.

If such reciprocal arrangement exists, and in the case of the UK we believe it does (your lawyers should also double check), the maintenance order issued by the UK Court can be sent by the foreign Court which issued it to the Minister responsible for foreign affairs of that foreign country for transmission to the Tanzanian Embassy/ High Commission in that country or neighboring country. Our Ambassador/High Commissioner will transmit the order to our Minister for Foreign Affairs who will then send it to a Court in Tanzania for registration.

Where the foreign maintenance order was issued by a superior Court of the foreign country, the Minister will send it to the High Court, main registry or district registry serving the area where the judgment debtor resides or works for registration. But if the order was issued by a lower Court of foreign jurisdiction, the Minister will send the order to the Resident Magistrate’s Court having jurisdiction within the area where the judgment debtor resides or works through High Court Registrar.

Once the maintenance order from a foreign Court is registered by a local Court in Tanzania, it becomes an order of the local Court and can be executed like an order of the local Court against the former husband.

Similarly, where a spouse obtains a maintenance order from Tanzanian Court and he or she wants to execute the order against a spouse living or working overseas, the same diplomatic channel is used to transmit the decree or order to the Court of a foreign country for execution.