Tanzanian Journal of Population Studies and Development

Reforestation for Mitigation and Adaptation to Climate Change in North-Eastern Highlands of Tanzania: Beyond Carbon Sequestration

Leonia John Raphael — 2025-02-21

Reforestation has been emphasized as an authoritative intervention for climate change mitigation because of its carbon storage potential. Reforestation can also play other frequently overlooked—but important—roles in helping society and ecosystems adapt to climate variability and change. For example, reforestation can amend climate-associated impacts of altered hydrological cycles in watersheds, protect coastal areas from increased storms, and provide habitat to reduce the probability of extinction of species under a changing climate. Consequently, reforestation should be managed with both adaptation and mitigation objectives in mind, so as to maximize synergies among these diverse roles, and to avoid trade- offs in which the achievement of one goal is detrimental to another. Management of increased forest cover must also incorporate measures for reducing the direct and indirect impacts of changing climate on reforestation itself. Here, the focus is on ‘climate-smart reforestation’, defined as reforesting for climate change mitigation and adaptation, while ensuring that the direct and indirect impacts of climate change on reforestation are anticipated and minimized.

The Influence of Social Networks on the Livelihoods of Urban Refugees in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

Faraja Daniel Namkesa — 2025-02-21

This study examined the influence of social networks in enhancing the livelihoods of urban refugees in Dar es Salaam City, Tanzania. It focused on the key actors within the social networks of urban refugees, as well as the effectiveness of these networks on enhancing the livelihoods of refugees in Dar es Salaam City. Social network and actor network theories guided this study. Using a qualitative approach, data was collected through focus group discussions and document reviews. Four focus groups were organized, involving Burundian men, Congolese men, Congolese women, and a mixed group of Congolese and Burundian youth. Thematic analysis was employed to identify key themes and patterns in the data. Findings revealed that urban refugees rely on various social networks, both formal and informal, ranging from government to non-government organizations, international organizations, families, and friends. Actors in the formal networks included Dignity Kwanza, Tanganyika Christian Refugee Services (TCRS), Relief to Development Society (REDESO), Church World Services (CWS), UNHCR, and the Refugee Department under the Ministry of Home Affairs, which provides training, financial, and legal support. In addition, informal networks that refugees have established include family and friendship within the host community; offering critical moral, social, and material support. The results suggest that, while formal network support in the form of training has not significantly improved the livelihoods of refugees due to policy restrictions, informal networks, specifically those made up of family and friendship ties, were effective in enhancing the livelihoods of these refugees in Dar es Salaam. The study recommends tailoring training initiatives for refugees within Tanzania’s refugee policy context, to optimize their impact on their livelihoods.

Socio-Economic Impacts of Internal Migration Dynamics in Morogoro Municipality, Tanzania

Faraja Daniel Namkesa — 2025-02-21

Volunteering in Disaster Management for Development in Africa: Reflections from Bukoba District, Tanzania

Egidius Kamanyi — 2025-02-21

Volunteering is an old phenomenon; but it never gets obsolete. It plays a pivotal role in disaster management and development, particularly in resource-constrained settings. This article explores the critical contributions of community volunteers during the 2016 earthquake in Bukoba, Tanzania; highlighting their agency in handling the crisis. Drawing on the social construction of reality theory, this article examines how volunteers externalize their intentions, objectify their roles, and internalize their experiences to create a resilient community response that fills institutional gaps. The paper draws from a qualitative study that applied key informant interviews, focus group discussions, participant observation, and documentary review to unearth the lived experiences of earthquake survivors’ interaction with community volunteers. Findings reveal that volunteers provided immediate rescue and medical assistance; including quick excavation and transfer of casualties to health facilities, navigated bureaucratic challenges, and fostered community resilience and economic recovery. The article underscores the need for integrating volunteer efforts into formal disaster management frameworks to enhance effectiveness and sustainability, especially in disaster-prone settings and poor neighbourhoods. The article concludes that by recognizing the diverse contributions of volunteers, both formal institutions and community initiatives can better address disaster risks and promote development outcomes.

Maternal Mortality in Tertiary Health Facilities in Edo State, Southern Nigeria

Rebecca O. John-Abebe — 2025-02-21

Nigeria ranks high in maternal mortality among developing countries despite the effort to reduce it. This paper is based on a ten-year study from 2008 to 2017 on maternal mortality from two public healthcare facilities in Edo State that have the most referrals. A facility- based survey design was used to determine the maternal mortality ratio, level of obstetric utilisation (booked and un-booked patients), number of caesarean sections, and causes of maternal deaths. Information on maternal deaths was collected from the University of Benin Teaching Hospital and the Central Hospital. The number of maternal deaths was 350 with 54,124 live births; and the maternal mortality ratio (MMR) was 674 per 100,000 live births during this ten-year review. The findings show an increase of 11,780 caesarean sections among pregnant women during the delivery period. The major direct causes of maternal death were eclampsia and haemorrhage, while the indirect causes were HIV/AIDS, and other complications. The high number of pregnant women with no antenatal registration (un-booked) in these facilities depicts delays in receiving effective maternal healthcare services. Hence, there is need for early registration and basic/comprehensive emergency obstetric care (EMOC) at all tiers of health facilities, which will decrease the risk of mortality and morbidity. The study recommends that to prevent delays in offering maternal healthcare services, there should be effective EMOCs at all healthcare facilities. Also, there is a need to encourage early antenatal registration that could reduce caesarean sections at health facilities for most pregnant women.

Exploring Migration as a Climate Change Adaptation Strategy for Agro-pastoralists in Kasulu District: Benefits and Challenges

Saumu I. Mwasha — 2025-02-21

Migration is acknowledged, promoted and widely regarded as one of the adaptation strategies to environmental change in different parts of Africa. However, its benefits and challenges have not been contextually examined and exhaustively analysed. This study employed the push and pull migration theory to investigate opportunities and challenges that result from migration to understand its strengths and weaknesses, and how its implications are linked to issues of migrants’ climate change adaptations in Kasulu District, Tanzania. Purposive sampling was used to select the study district, participants for focus group discussions, and key informants. Observation, key informant interviews and six separate FGDs were conducted to both agro-pastoralists and farmers. The findings demonstrate that agro-pastoralists exploited opportunities in the places of destination through asset accumulation and by performing different livelihood activities. However, in pursuit of their livelihoods, they also contributed to resource degradation and conflicts with local farmers; which were a result of the migrants’ inappropriate integration in the host society, and which were influenced by different actors, including individuals from both host and migrant communities, as well as institutions in host societies. All this challenges the notion that agro-pastoralists migration is an effective form of adaptation to environmental change in general, and climate change in particular. Migration has a potential of being an effective climate change adaptation strategy; however, it requires the government to coordinate the movement and regulate its activities to reduce conflicts with host communities, as well as resource degradation.