Consumer Protection In The Digital Economy: Challenges Of E-Commerce Regulation In Tanzania

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Mussa Idris Mshanga, BBA LL.B. (Hons), LL.M., JSS Law College, Mysuru

M.C. Usharani, JSS Law College, Mysuru

ABSTRACT

The rapid evolution of Tanzania’s digital economy has outpaced the traditional consumer protection paradigms, leaving the "e-consumer" in a state of procedural and substantive vulnerability. This article provides a critical technical analysis of the regulatory challenges inherent in e- commerce, specifically focusing on the friction between the Electronic Transactions Act, 2022, and the Fair Competition Act (Amendment) 2024. It argues that while the Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, addressed privacy concerns, a significant "protection gap" remains in enforcing implied warranties in digital-only contracts. Through a doctrinal review of the Civil Procedure Code, 2019, the paper identifies that the high threshold for the "authentication" of electronic records often acts as a de facto bar to justice for small-scale e-commerce litigants. Furthermore, the study examines the 2026 regulatory shift by the Fair Competition Commission (FCC) to monitor "dark patterns" and algorithmic price-fixing, noting that the current legislative framework lacks a specific "E-Consumer Bill of Rights" to combat these sophisticated digital harms. The article concludes by advocating for a technological neutrality approach in law and the establishment of a specialized Digital Small Claims Tribunal to bridge the widening "Digital Justice Gap" in Tanzania.

Keywords: Technological Neutrality, Digital Justice Gap, Fair Competition Commission (FCC), Electronic Evidence Admissibility, Tanzania Digital Economy.

860. CONSUMER PROTECTION IN THE DIGITAL ECONOMY- CHALLENGES OF E-COMMERCE REGULATION IN TA

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