Adopting a Combination of Labour-Saving Mechanisms for Increasing Rural Women’s Participation in Livelihood Strategies in Busega District in Tanzania

Abstract

Abstract The paper aims at examining rural women’s adoption of a combination of labour-saving mechanisms such as improved water supplies and harvesting techniques, cooking facilities and means of transport for household chores with its implications in diversifying livelihood strategies in Busega District of Tanzania. The study adopted Diffusion of Innovations Theory to explain the importance of adopting labour-saving mechanisms to reduce rural women’s workload and save time for diversifying livelihood strategies. The study employed cross-sectional research design to collect data from 210 rural women. Household survey, interviews, focus group discussions and non-participant observations were used to collect primary data. Cross-tabulation, One-way ANOVA, five point Likert scale and multiple logistic regression were employed to analyse quantitative data. Content analysis was employed to analyse qualitative data. The study revealed that, 61.43% of rural women were limited to adopt any kind of labour-saving mechanisms. In addition, the multiple logistic regression revealed significant differences at p-value of 0.05 for the likelihood of diversifying livelihood strategies. As such, rural women’s participation in livelihood strategies differed greatly based on the ability to adopt labour-saving mechanisms for reducing the workload of household chores. The study recommends that development stakeholders should implement development programmes centred on increasing prospects of adopting a combination of labour-saving mechanisms for reducing the burden of household chores to save time for diversifying livelihood strategies.