Young Women’s Narratives of Lived Experience in Face of Multiple Constraints and Barriers in Tanzania

Abstract

Young rural women in Tanzania lack opportunities to speak about themselves and their lived experiences. This study employed participatory narrative inquiry (PNI) to afford a space for young rural women who relocate to urban centres for a better life to tell stories of their lived experiences. In relocating to urban centres, young rural women hoped to find decent work to earn an income but the lack of qualifications required for employment in the formal sector in the urban centres expose them to unconventional and dehumanizing livelihood strategies, including sex work. The study gives an insight that patriarchy in rural areas of Tanzania creates gender inequality to the extent that young women lack opportunities for self-actualization and for a better life. Hence there is a need to comprehend and disrupt unfair structures that limit and prevent opportunities and independence for young rural women in Tanzania.