The literature on inequality in Tanzania has been dependent on limited rounds of methodologically different household budget surveys. The literature in question seldomly goes beyond analysis of inequality trends between two rounds of surveys, thereby ignoring longer period inequality trends. This study makes use of six rounds of methodological stable Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) to present a half-century trend in education and wealth inequality in Tanzania. Education inequality persists but has been declining between rural and urban areas and particularly between Dar es Salaam and other regions. Gender inequality in education has also consistently been on the decline across different age ranges, more so for older individuals than younger ones. Wealth inequality as measured by a composite index has been declining as well-mostly an outcome of the declining proportion of households in the poorest quantile in rural areas compared to an increasing proportion of urban households in the same quantile. In other words, using the DHS's composite index of selected assets, the Tanzanian society is increasingly becoming equal in both education and wealth. The paper also discusses policy options to further reduce inequalities.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to provide generalised views on ways in which field practice in Tanzania deviates from the village savings and lending associations (VSLA) methodology. Design/methodology/approach The research applied “participant observation method” involving actual participation in the weekly meetings of the surveyed savings groups. Findings Field practices deviate from the VSLA methodology. Deviations include the tendency for the savings groups to simplify financial intermediation by regressing from using loan guarantors, relying on external enforcement to recover debts from group members (rather than depending on within group enforcement mechanisms), use of social funds to recover loans, limited attendance in weekly group meetings and accumulation of debts towards share-out dates. Research limitations/implications Results from this study are relevant to Ilala district where VSLA groups were sampled from. Cautious reading is therefore necessary when attempting to generalise findings to other areas with different social, economic and institution settings. Practical implications VSLA model needs to consider a number of issues. They include devising means to accommodate field realities; from simplification of financial intermediation activities to the dependence of the savings groups on external enforcement. Social implications Social implications include a possible improved VSLA model based on the findings from this study, to further advance the performance of community-based savings groups. Originality/value By revealing the deviation of the VSLA methodology from the practice, the study adds value to the literature which is largely dominated by economic and poverty impact of savings groups.

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The extent of inequality in material wealth across different types of societies is well established. Less clear, however,is how material wealth is associated with relational wealth, and the implications of such associations for material wealth inequality. Theory and evidence suggest that material wealth both guides, and is patterned by, relational wealth. While existing comparative studies typically assume complementarity between different types of wealth, such associations may differ for distinct kinds of relational wealth. Here, we first review the literature to identify how and why different forms of relational wealth may align. We then turn to an analysis of household-level social networks (food sharing, sex-specific friendship and sex-specific co-working networks) and material wealth data from a rural community in Pemba, Zanzibar. We find that (a) different forms of relational wealth have similar structural properties and are closely aligned, (b) relational wealth is patterned by gender differences, and (c) material wealth has distinct associations with different forms of relational wealth, which are also patterned by gender. More broadly, we show how examining the patterning of distinct types of relational wealth provides insights into how and why the social implications of material wealth are still muted in a community undergoing rapid economic change.

The extent of inequality in material wealth across different types of societies is well established. Less clear, however, is how material wealth is associated with relational wealth, and the implications of such associations for material wealth inequality. Theory and evidence suggest that material wealth both guides, and is patterned by, relational wealth. While existing comparative studies typically assume complementarity between different types of wealth, such associations may differ for distinct kinds of relational wealth. Here, we first review the literature to identify how and why different forms of relational wealth may align. We then turn to an analysis of household-level social networks (food sharing, gender-specific friendship and gender-specific co-working networks) and material wealth data from a rural community in Pemba, Zanzibar. We find that (i) the materially wealthy have most relational ties, (ii) the associations between relational and material wealth—as well as relational wealth more generally—are patterned by gender differences, and (iii) different forms of relational wealth have similar structural properties and are closely aligned. More broadly, we show how examining the patterning of distinct types of relational wealth provides insights into how and why inequality in material wealth remains muted in a community undergoing rapid economic change. This article is part of the theme issue ‘Evolutionary ecology of inequality’.