The Accountancy and Business Review

The Influence of Exchange Rate Unpredictability and Trade Balance on Tanzania’s Economic Performance

2024-08-26T11:36:36+03:00

Understanding Tanzania's economic performance requires an analysis of trade balance dynamics and exchange rate fluctuations. The country's efforts to stabilize the Tanzania shilling through Bank of Tanzania interventions and monetary policy adjustments are aimed at promoting a positive balance of trade, which is critical in reducing dependence on foreign aid and improving economic stability. This study focuses on exchange rate unpredictability from 2014 to 2023, examines its impact on trade balance, inflation and macroeconomic performance. The study used a quantitative research approach and a longitudinal research design using descriptive statistics, correlation analysis and multiple regression models with the assistant of IBM SPSS Statistics 26. The results show that exchange rate volatility has a significant negative effect on GDP growth, with a correlation of -0.483 and a beta coefficient of -0.460. A strong positive correlation of 0.902 between exchange rate fluctuations and trade balance. The study underscores the critical need for stabilizing the Tanzanian shilling to foster economic stability and sustainable growth. The study recommended that policymakers maintain sufficient foreign exchange reserves to stabilize the exchange rate and mitigate its negative impact on the trade balance and macroeconomic performance.

Modeling Caesarean Delivery Determinants Using Logistic Regression: Evidence from the 2022 Tanzania Demographic and Health Survey

2024-08-26T12:19:23+03:00

The rise in Caesarean section rates, which often exceed World health organization recommendations, has sparked global concern, particularly in Tanzania. Despite a notable increase in Caesarean deliveries, differences exist both within and between countries, largely due to factors influencing these procedures. This study aimed to validate logistic regression model in predicting and analyze the determinants of Caesarean delivery among Tanzanian women aged 15 to 49 using data from the 2022 Tanzania Demographic and Health Survey (TDHS). Employing a quantitative cross-sectional design, the research analyzed responses from 3,876 women, focusing on demographic, socioeconomic, and health system variables. Utilizing Pearson chi-square tests and binary logistic regression, it found that education, urban residence, and household wealth significantly increased the likelihood of Caesarean sections. However, the logistic regression model revealed limitations in predicting Caesarean deliveries, correctly identifying only 2.0% of such cases. The study underscores the necessity of refining predictive models to enhance the accuracy of Caesarean delivery predictions, indicating that targeted healthcare interventions could improve maternal health outcomes in Tanzania. Policymakers should improve predictive modeling for Caesarean birth rates, improve women's education, expand access to rural health care, increase health insurance coverage, promote regular prenatal care, and encourage collaboration to achieve equitable maternal health and better outcomes for women to ensure women.

Enablers for Willingness to Utilize Mobile Money by Small-Scale Entrepreneurs in Tanzania: The Moderating Role of Payment Infrastructure

2024-10-02T10:27:45+03:00

This study examines the factors influencing Small-Scale Individual Entrepreneurs’ (SIEs) willingness to adopt mobile money services in Tanzania, with a particular focus on the moderating role of payment infrastructure. The extended Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) employed to determine key drivers of adoption and the role of contextual factors in shaping entrepreneurs' decisions. Data from 347 respondents, was collected using self-administered structured questionnaires, and analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). The findings suggest that perceived ease of use, perceived risk, perceived trust, capital, and daily sales significantly influence SIEs' mobile money adoption decisions. Surprisingly, perceived usefulness and business type showed no direct significant impact. Notably, payment infrastructure emerged as a critical moderating factor, strengthening the relationship between business type and mobile money adoption but not affecting the relationships involving perceived ease of use or trust.These results provide valuable insights into the adoption dynamics of mobile payments within Tanzania’s informal economy. The study highlights the need for policymakers and mobile money service providers to enhance payment infrastructure tailored to specific business types while addressing security concerns to mitigate perceived risks and build trust. This approach could foster broader adoption and drive financial inclusion for SIEs in developing economies.

Evaluating the Employee New Retirement Policy Prospects in Enhancing Primary School Teachers Motivation: Evidence from Hanang’ District Council, Tanzania

2024-11-28T07:44:14+03:00

Retirement policies play a pivotal role in shaping employees' perceptions of financial security, career sustainability, and work-life balance. The introduction of a new retirement policy in Tanzania focused at addressing the welfare and job satisfaction to primary school teachers presents an opportunity to improve motivation levels. This study aimed to investigate the prospects of employee with regards to the new retirement policy in enhancing their motivation. The study employed a mixed approach, with 303 primary school teachers as the sample size selected from primary school teacher’s population based in Hanang’ district. The key findings revealed that teachers expressed dissatisfaction with the policy’s ability to support effective retirement planning, with significant concerns about the policy’s flexibility in pension options and it lack emphasis on continuous professional development before retirement. Teachers also reported insufficient guidance on maximizing their retirement benefits, leading to feelings of insecurity and lack of motivation. Despite some positive responses regarding potential improvements in retirement planning, the study concluded that the policy has not fully addressed the motivation needs of teachers. Based on these findings, the study suggest policy improvement to foster teachers' motivation by revising phrases and chapters for it to offer more flexible pension options, professional development opportunities and clear guidance on maximizing retirement benefits.

The implications of Mineral Sector Reforms on the Livelihoods of Adjacent Local Communities in Simanjiro District, Tanzania

2025-01-08T12:21:57+03:00

The aim of this study was to assess the governance of the tanzanite mineral resources at Mirerani in Simanjiro District. Specifically examining the effects of mineral legal reforms on the livelihoods of the local communities in the Simanjiro district. The study employed a mixed methods approach, combining qualitative and quantitative approaches with purposive and random sampling techniques. Data were collected through focus groups, in-depth interviews, and household questionnaire surveys were administered to 312 sampled heads of households. Thematic approach was used for analysing qualitative data and SPSS software was used to analyse quantitative data. The novel finding of this study is that while mineral reforms of the 1990s aimed to reduce the government’s control in natural resource governance, recent reforms through the Natural Wealth and Resources, Written Laws and the Natural Wealth Resource Contracts of 2017 which marked by the walling of tanzanite mining in Mirerani have powered the role of state control over mineral resource, raising Tanzanite profitability on markets scale while marginalizing the livelihoods assets of the local community surrounding the Tanzanite mineral site, by pushing many pastoralists out through reducing their access and control to grazing land, water resources through walling of the Mirerani Tanzanite mining site in 2017. With this evacuation resulted to low collection of fruits and roots causing food insecurity, deaths of livestock, decreased income, shrinking of pasture areas and unemployment. The study concludes that while reforms have restored the role of the state in the governance of mineral sector, ordinary citizens are deprived of their land, displaced, excluded and psychologically tortured. The study recommends that any government's management of natural resources must consider both national political and economic gains as well as the ability of displaced communities to maintain their standard of living.

E-Learning Adoption: Bridging the Knowledge and Operational Skills Gap among Instructors in the selected Higher Learning Institutions in Tanzania

2025-02-11T10:13:27+03:00

The integration of e-learning in higher education, especially in Tanzania, has transformed knowledge delivery. Its effectiveness relies on instructors' knowledge and skills in using e-learning platforms. This study assesses the level of knowledge and skills for the operation of e-learning among instructors in HLIs. A quantitative approach and cross-sectional research design were employed, and data were collected through structured questionnaires from a sample size of 237 instructors. Descriptive techniques were employed in the analyses conducted to determine the levels of knowledge and skills for the operation of e-learning among the instructors. A pilot study was conducted to test the main study, with questionnaire development guided by content validity and internal reliability measured using Cronbach's alpha. Ethical considerations, including informed consent, voluntary participation, anonymity, and confidentiality, were upheld throughout. Findings reveal that while there is a growing familiarity with e-learning systems such as Moodle and other Learning Management Systems (LMS), significant disparities exist in the depth of knowledge and technical skills among the instructors’. On the other hand, instructors face challenges in content creation, online pedagogy, and integrating multimedia resources into their teaching practices. Furthermore, the study identifies unreliable internet, limited support, and inadequate training as key barriers to effective e-learning adoption. It emphasizes the need for targeted capacity-building, improved infrastructure, and supportive policies. Despite efforts by OUT and IAA, operational gaps persist, requiring continuous training, infrastructure investment, and institutional incentives to achieve sustainable e-learning integration in Tanzanian higher learning institutions.