Research Articles[FSS-Eco]
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Item E-Government in marketing a country: A strategy for reducing transaction cost of doing business in Tanzania(International Journal of Marketing Studies, 2011) Kachwamba, Muhajir; Sæbø, ØysteinThere are limited studies examining the role of Investment Promotion Agencies (IPA’s) and their respective marketing techniques used in attracting Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). Using an exploratory case study approach, this article addresses this research gap by exploring the role of e-government as a promotion technique in eliminating barriers to FDI inflows in Tanzania; particularly barriers related to information accessibility and bureaucratic procedures facing foreign investors in acquiring relevant licenses and business permits. The findings indicate that foreign investors utilize information to create knowledge of business environment in the host country, though some additional information may not be found due to informational specificity of a particular investment project. In addition, the findings indicate that implementation of e-government has reduced some monetary and non-monetary transaction costs of complying with government authorities. The article contributes to the existing body of knowledge in the field of marketing by examining the role of e-government services in the public sector marketing within a macro-marketing domain.Item Internet-based information and foreign direct investment (FDI) location decision making: An information cost perspective(Acadenic journals, 2012) Kachwamba, Muhajir; Sæbø, ØysteinInformation and communication technology (ICT) is considered to play an important role to reduce information cost for potential foreign investors. While a growing body of literature has suggested such connections, conceptual clarity is yet to be achieved. This study introduces a conceptual framework based on the Information-theoretic approach and transaction cost perspective to explore how ICT may reduce information cost. To illustrate our proposed framework, we apply it to examine the role of Internet-based information, published by the Investment Promotion Agencies (IPAs) on the information needs for foreign investors intending to invest in Tanzania. The findings indicated that general information on investment opportunities and regulatory entry procedures is mainly accessible through IPA´s web pages. Nevertheless, the findings revealed that more specific information on industry competitiveness is not found, although it is important for strategic investment location choice. Public information is combined with alternative sources of information to meet the information requirement for potential investors. Our findings indicate that Internet-based sources of information can reduce part of the information cost facing foreign investors, if properly organized. Our proposed framework extends the discourse on how ICT may influence information cost for foreign investors and contributes to our knowledge on the impact of ICT in the business sector focusing on the Government to business domain. Based on our findings we propose insights into studying and developing ICT-based services for IPAs in their efforts to attract Foreign Direct Investment.Item Tourism-driven livelihood dynamics: A comprehensive empirical study of Mount Kilimanjaro National Park communities in Tanzania(International Journal of Geoheritage and Parks, 2024) Kitole, Felician Andrew; Sesabo, Jennifer KasandaTourism is pivotal for rural economic development; however, despite hosting a substantial number of tourists, many developing countries with rural landscapes face persistent poverty among local communities. This study aims to delve into the impact of tourism (geo-heritage and national parks) on local livelihoods, examining drivers for livelihood portfolios and community decisions to engage in tourism activities. The Multivariate Probit, and instrumental variable models (Instrumental Variable Probit, and Two Stage Least Squares) were employed on data from 582 respondents collected through cross-sectional questionnaires. Results highlight the significant influence of socioeconomic factors—sex, age, household size, credit access, market access, social membership, and education—on livelihood portfolio. Results show that specific tourism activities, such as accommodation services, handcrafts, catering and hospitality, and tour guiding, exert varying effects on household food security, income, and access to essential social services. Challenges hindering participation include education levels, information and awareness, service quality, cultural barriers, financial costs, government policies, competition, resource monopolisation, corruption, and infrastructure deficiencies. Recommendations include investments in skill development, infrastructure enhancement, cultural preservation, financial inclusion, regulatory frameworks, and community awareness programs. These strategies aim to facilitate household participation in tourism activities, promoting geo-tourism and enhancing the well-being of Mount Kilimanjaro National Park communities. Policymakers are urged to im plement these measures to uplift local livelihoods and foster sustainable tourism in the region.Item Examining the effect of child labour in the profitability of women owned enterprises: A case of microcredit supported enterprises in Tanzania.(Springer, 2018) Tundui, Charles S.; Tundui, Hawa P.This paper examines the effect of child labor in the profitability of women owned enterprises. The study covered 429 women respondents who had access to microcredit in Morogoro and Iringa towns. We used the Ordered Prohibit to model the relationship between the predictors and the outcome variable. The findings show that the use of child labor plays a more significant role in the profitability of women businesses than any variable included in the analysis. Results have also shown that owners who possess business skills, who have access to markets and those who do not separate business resources from household resources are more likely to experience a profit increase in their enterprises than otherwise. On the other hand, access to loans doesn’t seem to translate into increases in enterprise profit. From these results, we gather that as a poverty alleviation strategy, microcredit access and micro enterprising are not a panacea, but will require other supporting policies and services to enable women to find their way out of poverty. It is also important that job creation and employment patterns of microcredit supported enterprises are studied and valued accordingly.Item Microcredit, micro enterprising and repayment myth: The case of micro and small women business entrepreneurs in Tanzania(World Scholars, 2013) Tundui, Charles S.; Tundui, Hawa P.The aim of this article is to examine the sources and determinants of loan repayment among women microcredit clients in Tanzania. We surveyed a random sample of 286 business owners who were PRIDE microfinance programme clients in Morogoro and Iringa towns. The study focused on loan conditions, household characteristics and business management experience, skills and management practises by the business owners. Loan repayment difficulties were reported among 19.6 per cent of borrowers. Logistic regression results have shown that loan size, interest rate and duration of membership in the programme do not predict loan repayment. Instead the results have demonstrated that business skills and management practises play a very significant role. We also found household size, the number of household members with fixed salaries and decision making regarding loan use to have a significant influence on loan repayment. From the results, it is established that the factors that limit growth of women businesses are also liable for their repayment difficulties. These results may imply that for the borrowers to increase their avenues for loan repayment, it is imperative that the measures used by microfinance programmes to ensure that borrowers repay their loans they also include support services that enable clients to expand their businesses; increase profit levels and generate enough surplus for loan servicing and re-investment in the business. Such services could include training in business skills and management. This further suggests that there is a need for an integrated and holistic policy approach in supporting and promoting micro enterprising among the women rather than piecemeal initiativesItem Performance drivers of women-owned microcredit funded enterprises in Tanzania(Emerald publishing, 2020) Tundui, Charles S.; Tundui, Hawa P.The purpose of this paper is to investigate performance drivers of women-owned businesses that are funded primarily through microcredit. It draws on Storey’s theory of small business growth and family embeddedness axiom to examine the factors that drive the performance of businesses that are funded primarily through microcredit. The paper uses a cross-sectional survey that covered 208 women business owners who had access to microcredit. The authors use a logistic regression analysis to model the relationship between independent variables and enterprise performance. The paper demonstrates that microcredit plays a significant role in business performance. The credit amount has the most significant influence on the enterprise capital base, whereas the effect on profits is insignificant. Also, owners are more likely to report growth in profits if they possess skills in business management. In addition, younger business owners and necessity entrepreneurs are more likely to report success in their businesses. Other factors that have a significant effect on business performance are product cycle, loan use and family support. Many women in Tanzania are entering business ownership and depend on microcredit as their primary source of capital for starting and growing their businesses. However, just a few businesses grow into small and medium-sized enterprises. For informed policy decisions, it is important that the factors influencing the performance of funded businesses are known and well understood. This understanding will help the government and development practitioners assist women in achieving business growth rates that could warrant their empowerment and poverty reduction prospectsItem Social capital and willingness to pay for community based health insurance: Empirical evidence from rural Tanzania(Science and Education Centre of North America, 2014) Tundui, Charles; Macha, RaphaelThis study examines the effect of social capital on willingness to pay (WTP) for health services provided through community based health insurance schemes (Community Health Fund) in Tanzania. The study covered 274 household heads. We use prohibit regression analysis to model the relationship between the predictors and our outcome variable. Our results have shown that with the exception of religion, all other social capital variables have a positive and significant impact on the WTP for the Community Health Fund (CHF). Specifically, membership in social organizations and networks, trust among community members and trust of community members on scheme management are positively and significantly related to WTP. On the other hand, the age, education level, household size and number of children and participation in health insurance are not predicting WTP for CHF. Taken together, these results suggest that enhancing access to health care services in the rural areas and the sustainability of CHF would require building appropriate forms of social capital at individual and community levels. Specifically, CHF may increase enrolment through the existing social organizations and associations. Similarly, CHFs may well increase their membership if the avenues for trust building are created and nurturedItem The effects of foreign direct investment on economic growth (Gross Domestic Product) in Tanzania(Economic Insights – Trends and Challenges, 2024) Utouh, H.M.L,; Mchukwa, E.W.; Tibuhinda, R. N.This study aims to analyse the effects of Foreign Direct Investment on Economic Growth (Gross Domestic Product) in Tanzania. The World Bank’s data on foreign direct investment and gross domestic product from 1988 to 2021 was employed to achieve the purpose of the study. The Vector Autoregressive Regression (VAR) Model was selected, in which a neoclassical growth model was applied to the implementation of this model. According to the findings of the research that was carried out, the Gross Domestic Product was primarily influenced by its prior values, which suggests that the economy is capable of some degree of self-sufficiency in terms of driving changes in the economy. According to the findings, foreign direct investment had a relatively minimal direct impact on gross domestic product, which suggests that other factors played a more significant role in influencing economic performance. There was no bidirectional causal relationship between gross domestic product and foreign direct investment; they both functioned independently of one another. It has been established that endogenous shocks have a significant role in driving changes in both GDP and FDI, which underscores the impact that internal forces have on the economic system. The importance of taking into account internal factors while analyzing economic growth has been brought to light as a result of these findings, which have contributed to a better understanding of the complex relationship that exists between GDP and FDI.Item External debts as panacea to economic growth challenges in selected Eastern African countries: An application of the autoregressive distributed lag mode(Science Mundi, 2024) Utouh, Harold M.L.; Tile, Augustino; Sesabo, Jennifer KasandaForeign aid has significantly influenced medium- and long-term development initiatives in Eastern African countries. Project aid and non-project aid are the two main categories that describe foreign economic assistance (loans, credits, and grants). The primary aim of foreign aid has been to supplement the internal resources needed to quicken the economic development of the nations in Eastern Africa. This study investigated the influence of external debt on the economic growth of Eastern African countries (Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, and Tanzania) using the autoregressive distributive lag mode and panel data (1970–2020). The findings revealed that external debt had a significant adverse effect on economic growth. In Burundi, an increase in external debt reduces GDP by 5% in the short run, while in the long run, it reduces GDP by 19%; in Tanzania, it decreases GDP by 22%; and in Kenya, it reduces the GDP by 13%. Conversely, the findings indicated that the increased level of external debt positively influenced Uganda's GDP (0.03%) but was not statistically significant. Therefore, it is recommended that Eastern African countries source their income, apart from more external concessional debt, through bilateral or multilateral arrangements to plug into their budget deficits. Also, it is recommended that East African governments develop their external debt initiatives that offer further profitable investment opportunities to repay their foreign debt gradually. Moreover, strategies in the East African countries must be geared towards strengthening revenue mobilization to provide avenues to balance their external debts. For instance, improving the informal sector in these countries is a viable base for increasing revenue through taxesItem Foreign direct investment (FDI) and its impact on employment creation: The case of manufacturing sector in Tanzania(International Journal of Current Innovation Research, 2016) Utouh, Harold M.L.; Rao, M KoteswaraThe purpose of this paper is to provide an analytical insight into Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) on employment creation in Tanzania, centring on the manufacturing sector which is held as a conduit for social economic development. It analyses the concerted efforts on the part of the government in attracting conspicuous FDI, and in particular, the relationship between the increase in FDI and employment generation. Tanzania started to adopt economic reforms and open policy in the mid-1980s. However, the speed of the Tanzanian government's established policy to attract FDI was more felt in the 1990s and since then the degree of successful efforts to attract FDI has increased. Methodology - The data used in this study consists of total employment, GDP and inward foreign direct investment (FDI). These annual data covered the period from 1980 to 2012 because it is only in this period that the data is available. The methodology to test the effects of the variables i.e., FDI, GDP and Employment creation has been confined to the least squares technique. The co-integration of the variables has been ascertained via the application of the Augmented Dickey-Fuller Test and is found to hold in the long run. Findings – the findings indicate that FDI has a positive and significant effect on employment generation in Tanzania and GDP is translated to have influenced the economic growth. Practical implications – A conducive business environment, a more liberalised economy, institutional restructuring and enhanced private sector-led development will lead to an increase in foreign investment. Local entrepreneurial capacity should be empowered if the country wishes to have sustainable growth and employment creation. Originality - The paper presents original findings based on research related to FDI and employment creation in the sector of manufacturing industries.