Roosa Lambin and Milla Nyyssölä on social policy trajectories and women in Tanzania

The virtual conference Social Policy in Africa is organized 22-24 November 2021 by University of South Africa (UNISA) in the City of Tshwane in South Africa. On 22 November researchers Roosa Lambin and Milla Nyyssölä give a presentation in the conference on their upcoming research paper Social policy trajectories and women in Tanzania – driving for gender inclusive development?

The online conference gathers researchers focusing on social policy in Africa. This year the event is dedicated to the late Thandika Mkandawire. Keynote is given by Jayati Ghosh on Making Social Policy effective in an Ever More Unequal World. The break-away session on gender and social policy, where Lambin and Nyyssölä present their paper is hosted by Marianne S. Ulriksen.

Other themes discussed during the conference include: reflections on the oeuvre of Thandika Mkandawire, social policy for inclusive and democratic development, on social policy responses to the COVID-19 pandemic, poverty and inequality in Africa, perspectives on social protection, non-formal social provisioning: the African experiences, and land and agrarian reforms.

The paper presented by Lambin and Nyyssölä examines social policy trajectories in mainland Tanzania over the past two decades with a gender   lens,   to   better   understand   the   contributions   of   these developments to inclusive development. Through a holistic approach the paper examines the implications of past and current policy developments and their design on working-age women’s wellbeing in the areas of health policy, social protection, and employment policy. 

The findings indicate that despite significant advancements in the legal frameworks and important policy ambitions, Tanzanian social policy delivery remains two-tiered with significant differences in provisions for women in the formal and informal sectors. Additionally, women continue to be largely overlooked in the broader industrialisation and development strategy, which hinders the achievement of inclusive development in Tanzania.

The presentation is part of the Sustainable development solutions for Tanzania – strengthening research to achieve SDGs project.