The Influence of Conditional Cash Transfer Program in Promoting Household Gender Equality in Pangani District, Tanzania

Abstract

The study sought to assess the influence of Productive Social Safety Net conditional(PSSN) cash transfer on gender equality at household level using TASAF[1] III Productive Social Safety Nets in Pangani District, Tanzania. Specifically the study aimed at examining roles of men and women in the PSSN conditional cash transfer, examining participation of men and women in household decision making on spending of cash transfer and determining challenges faced by PSSN program in promotion of gender equality. The target population of the research was 3939 households that benefiting from TASAF III program through Productive Social Safety Net Component and those involved in the implementation of the program in Pangani district. Various techniques of sampling was employed that included; purposive sampling, cluster sampling and simple random sampling used to draw the sample. Research design engaged both qualitative and quantitate research approaches to triangulate information collected. The sample size of 253 was drawn from population of TASAF III PSSN cash transfer recipients. 179 respondents was random selected from 5 villages of the study while 74 respondents was purposively selected from key program informants 45 CMCs, 24 PAAFs, 5 VCM's. Respondents from the households and village leaders were interviewed using well-structured questionnaires while focus group discussions were conducted to PAAFs and CMCs. The data analysis used both qualitative and quantitative data analysis techniques. Quantitative data was analysed using descriptive statistics (mean, frequencies and percentages) and presented in figures and tables while qualitative data was thematically analysed. Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) software and Microsoft excel used to undertake qualitative data analysis. The study found that the gender roles were mostly inclined to women, they were more responsible of majority of tasks that are attached to cash transfer compliance. Power of decision making in most of households is done through discussion between husband and wife however there is still some households with decision fixed on men. There are some common challenges to gender equality but the main identified was program being silence on gender Mainstreaming. The study recommend that in order the program to be engendered should thing on involvement of men in the program and think of strategically include gender  in all of its components and capacitate all staff on gender issue so that can be gender sensitive program.