The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are an important part of the campaign “to make poverty history”. What has law to do with this, except perhaps to serve as a brake on development? What can law contribute to universal primary education, infant mortality, clean water, or adult literacy? At first sight, not much. This lecture will examine obvious and not-so-obvious ways in which law may assist or frustrate the MDGs with special reference to poverty reduction strategies in Uganda and Tanzania.