The University of Dodoma University of Dodoma Institutional Repository http://repository.udom.ac.tz Social Sciences Master Dissertations 2020 Contribution of drought coping strategies on household food availability in semi-arid area of Chamwino district in Dodoma, Tanzania Sabuni, Raymond Jackson. The University of Dodoma Sabuni, R. J. (2020). Contribution of drought coping strategies on household food availability in semi-arid area of Chamwino district in Dodoma, Tanzania (Master dissertation). The University of Dodoma, Dodoma. http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12661/2781 Downloaded from UDOM Institutional Repository at The University of Dodoma, an open access institutional repository. CONTRIBUTION OF DROUGHT COPING STRATEGIES ON HOUSEHOLD FOOD AVAILABILITY IN SEMI-ARID AREA OF CHAMWINO DISTRICT IN DODOMA, TANZANIA RAYMOND JACKSON SABUNI MASTER OF ARTS IN DEVELOPMENT STUDIES THE UNIVERSITY OF DODOMA OCTOBER, 2020 CONTRIBUTION OF DROUGHT COPING STRATEGIES ON HOUSEHOLD FOOD AVAILABILITY IN SEMI-ARID AREA OF CHAMWINO DISTRICT IN DODOMA, TANZANIA BY RAYMOND JACKSON SABUNI A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS IN DEVELOPMENT STUDIES THE UNIVERSITY OF DODOMA OCTOBER, 2020 DECLARATION AND COPY RIGHT I, Raymond Jackson Sabuni declare that this dissertation is my own original work and that it has not been presented and will not be presented to any other University for a similar or any other degree award. No part of this dissertation may be reproduced, stored in any retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior written permission of the author or the University of Dodoma. If transformed for publication in any other format shall be acknowledged that, this work has been submitted for degree award at the University of Dodoma. i CERTIFICATION The undersigned certify that she has read and hereby recommends for acceptance by the University of Dodoma a dissertation entitled “Contribution of Drought Coping Strategies on Household Food Availability in Semi-arid Area of Chamwino District in Dodoma, Tanzania, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Development Studies of the University of Dodoma. ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENT This work has benefited greatly from a number of people. Special thanks go to Almighty God who has given me life, strength and guidance to accomplish this academic work. Immeasurable thanks and sincere gratitude goes to my supervisor, Dr. Benta N. Matunga, who tirelessly corrected me, guided and encouraged me to ensure that I deliver a quality work. I also owe thanks to Mvumi Makulu Ward Officers for their permission and support during field data collection. Special thanks are extended to the University of Dodoma (UDOM) for granting me an opportunity to study a master degree. I also express my gratitude to all my lecturers in the Institute of Development Studies for the invaluable knowledge they provided to me and their inputs during the early stage of proposal development. It would be untenable not to acknowledge an immense support and assistance I received from my great friend Mr Abel Molla in this academic journey, God bless him. I also convey my thanks to my classmates for all cooperation and support they gave me throughout my study. Many thanks should also go to my fellow church members for their prayers. Finally, I would like to thank my family for the strong encouragement they provided to me to pursue this level of education. They stood by my side and supported me during my study and towards the accomplishment of this report. Special thanks go to my beloved wife, Witness N. Sangali, my father Pastor Elias Shija. Others include my daughters Rebecca and Rayness, my brother Joel J. Sabuni and my father Jackson Sabuni. Furthermore, I thank my mother Meres J. Sabuni. Moreover, I thank my sisters Ediana and Astrida, my best friends Peter Ntaki and Revocutus Vuga. iii ABSTRACT Drought is a recurrent climatic phenomenon in many parts of the world which requires urgent interventions to ensure that it does not jeopardize the lives of many people. During drought periods and beyond, semi-arid areas are left with no enough food and resources to invest in agricultural production. Despite of Tanzania‟s Government efforts together with other stakeholders‟ efforts to overcome drought, still it affects environment, agricultural production and water resources resulting into food scarcity in rural areas. Households apply various drought coping strategies to ensure food availability, though, these efforts have not been well documented. This study was conducted to assess the contribution of drought coping strategies on household food availability in Chamwino District, Tanzania. Specific objectives were: to identify drought coping strategies applied by household, to examine the contribution of drought coping strategies on household food availability and to examine the challenges that people encounter during the application of drought coping strategies. Cross-sectional research design was employed in this study where both qualitative and quantitative research were used. Sample size of the study was 92 respondents which was randomly selected and 8 key informants were purposively selected. Data were analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) computer software program version 20 for descriptive statistics. It was found that households apply various drought coping strategies involving selling labor, planting drought tolerant crops, use of short term seeds, practice small scale of irrigation, conducting small business and selling charcoal, firewood and grasses. In applying those strategies, people encounter the challenges of limited capital, minimal amount of rain, food price fluctuation, destructive pests and reluctant to apply drought coping strategies. The study revealed that, the drought coping strategies applied contribute to household food availability. However, the amount of food does not satisfy the household annually food requirements. The study recommends that there must be deliberate efforts to be taken by Government, NGOs, Private institutions and other stakeholders in provision of more education to households concerning best drought coping strategies to adopt. Also support those households with agricultural tools, inputs, and loans to produce enough food. Extension services also should be increased in rural areas to facilitate households to achieve required amount of food. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION AND COPY RIGHT ........................................................................ i CERTIFICATION........................................................................................................ ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENT .......................................................................................... iii ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................ iv TABLE OF CONTENTS ............................................................................................. v LIST OF TABLES ...................................................................................................... ix LIST OF FIGURES...................................................................................................... x LIST OF PLATE ......................................................................................................... xi LIST OF APPENDICES ............................................................................................ xii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS .................................................. xiii CHAPTER ONE......................................................................................................... 1 INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................................... 1 1.1 General Introduction .............................................................................................. 1 1.2 Background to the Study ........................................................................................ 1 1.2 Statement of the Problem ....................................................................................... 4 1.3 Research Objectives ............................................................................................... 5 1.3.1 General Objective................................................................................................ 5 1.3.2 Specific objectives .............................................................................................. 5 1.4 Research Questions ................................................................................................ 5 1.5 Significance of the Study ....................................................................................... 6 1.6 Chapter Summary................................................................................................... 6 CHAPTER TWO ....................................................................................................... 7 LITERATURE REVIEW .......................................................................................... 7 2.1 Introduction ............................................................................................................ 7 2.2 Operational Definition of Key Terms .................................................................... 7 2.2.1 Drought ..............................................................................................................