This brief draws from a research report titled “Assessing women empowerment in Tanzania: the case of the Productive Social Safety Net Programme”. The research was funded by the International Development Centre (IDRC) as part of a research programme on “Growth and Opportunities for Women” and supported by the Tanzania Social Action Fund (TASAF). It is based on the analysis of culture, religious and legal factors that affect the empowerment of women through Conditional Cash Transfers (CCTs). Its main thrust is that for women’s empowerment and disempowerment to be clearly understood, there is a need for a deeper analysis of factors that enable and constrain women’s capabilities to assert themselves as they struggle to fit into the gendered spaces and ladders of power in their households and communities. CCTs are aimed at enabling the poorest of the poor to meet their basic needs while they find ways to get out of poverty. Poverty in Tanzania is more prevalent in rural areas and among women. Evidence from this study indicates that although both women and men experience poverty, women tend to suffer more from poverty because of prevailing cultural and religious beliefs and practices, legal systems, and household leadership structures. These combine with other institutional and systemic factors to adversely affect poverty and prosperity among women.
Related Articles
Unlocking Tanzania’s potential: Youth look to jobs, entrepreneurial opportunities
On their top priorities for government action – including health, water supply, infrastructure/roads, electricity, education, and job creation – young citizens give the government positive performance reviews, and a majority see the country as moving in “the right direction.” But their assessments of economic and living conditions are less positive, and economic opportunity tops of […]
Tanzanians applaud government performance on health, but it remains their top concern
This dispatch/ policy brief presents findings from a special Afrobarometer Round 10 survey module focusing on health care. READ ON by clicking the Download.PDF button…!
Why property tax reforms fail: Lessons from Tanzania
Over the past two decades, property tax administration in Tanzania has undergone substantial changes, shifting between decentralized and centralized collection models. However, despite numerous reform initiatives, these efforts have largely failed to boost tax revenues and improve property tax administration. This CMI (in collaboration with REPOA) Insight outlines five reasons why these reforms have not […]
Strengthening Decentralisation and Local Economic Development in Tanzania: Challenges and Opportunities
The research on decentralisation and Local Economic Development (LED) in Tanzania reveals several key challenges and opportunities. One major challenge is the inconsistency between decentralisation goals and actual implementation, where local government authorities (LGAs) often prioritize service delivery over economic development initiatives. The lack of adequate funding, inadequate capacity among local officials, and insufficient coordination […]