Impact of Income Poverty on Livelihood Strategies of Rural Households Headed by Physically Disabled Parents in Kigoma District Council, Tanzania.

Abstract

This article presents the impact of income poverty on the livelihood strategies of rural households headed by physically disabled parents in Kigoma District, Tanzania, using information collected in 2011 through questionnaires administration, interviews, observations and documentary; and analysed by using Microsoft excel for graphical representations. Specifically, the study looked on the extent to which income-poverty affects livelihood strategies, efforts taken in the fight against it, constraints faced and the search for workable measures for improving the situation. Findings indicated that a majority of the studied families had very low income to live on. Efforts to fight against the problem included farming, livestock and beekeeping with less success to get income to live on. The constraints to their success included disability, social exclusion, and lack of education. Therefore, it is recommended that the government should provide social welfare services, evaluate the options for enhancing livelihood security, involve NGOs and CSOs to introduce development assistance to people with disabilities, fund development projects, and provide necessary tools.