Masculinity and bodaboda driving in Tanzania : a study of rural young men engaging in motorcycle taxi in Kilosa and Mvomero districts

Abstract: In ensuring that people fight poverty they have been advised to adopt a variety of ways and strategies for boosting their economy to sustain their daily lives. In rural areas the main reliance has been agriculture for all people but due to the challenges facing agriculture, people had to look at other activities apart from agriculture in order to survive. The significant increase in motorcycle taxis has created a new chapter in life especially for rural and urban youth by being seen as an attractive option to rural young men. Studies have shown that there are limitations to finding individual perspectives on the reasons why rural people are considering that agriculture is unsuitable for them by looking at the overall challenges facing agriculture. This study has focused on gender perceptions of bodaboda activity against agriculture in rural areas of Tanzania where the targeted group was young men. By selecting two districts, namely Kilosa and Mvomero it was sufficient to complete this study due to the presence of many young people engaged in bodaboda and agriculture in different ways. The hegemonic masculinity theory has been used effectively to guide this study by analysing the social norms and socioeconomic dimensions to complete the findings in this study. The study involved the collection of empirical data from 4 focus group interviews, 11 one-to-one interviews and observation to get individual perspectives and to find out what made young men so fascinated with bodaboda driving activity. The results showed that many young men are attracted to this occupation due to its ability to provide them with daily income as part of a man's dignity in society, to show to the community that they have found a job that is understandable and visible to the public and adds prominence in society and more to make them less dependent on their parents as well as reducing the number of rural young men migrating to cities to find paying jobs and other opportunities. This thesis report concludes by suggesting that if drudgery could be addressed, creating more opportunities in rural areas, income streams become more diversified and less seasonal somehow this could re-attract youth into agriculture again as well as retaining rural young men in the villages whereby the out-migration will be reduced.