Challenges Faced By Political Parties In Empowering Women And Achievement Of Gender Parity In Leadership Positions:the Case Of Tanzanian Political Parties

This thesis uses descriptive case study research method in Tanzania to investigate challenges faced by political parties in empowering women to attain leadership positions across the country with the purpose of addressing policy intervention and strategies to improve women leaders' competence in the country.A combination of both secondary and primary sources of data was collected for this study.The instruments used for collecting primary data were questionnaires and face-to-face interviews schedules.The questionnaires were administered to members of the three main political parties-CUF;CHADEMA;CCM.Overall a total of 193 respondents were included in the study.Secondary data were obtained from different sources including the library,internet,government institutions as well as Civil Society Organizations and Non-Governmental organization focusing on women's affairs.Drawing on women's perception of their vision,mission,achievements,challenges and future plans as a reflexive device,this research makes explicit the embedded male structures in politics,which hinder women's participation right from the grassroots.Even when they get to the top,women still face challenges that make it very difficult for them to operate or even articulate their achievements.The study utilized feminist concepts,theories and methodology to answer the research question.The findings of the study show that women develop their vision of leadership from experiences they go through as young girls growing up in a society with major gender inequalities.When they get into politics,women's priorities are guided by their vision to see a world where all people get equal opportunities in life.However,the study notes that some women get'masculinized' and operate in a similar model as men.Some of the challenges faced by women politicians and those aspiring to political office relate to family issues,resources,political parties,gender-based violence during elections,general insecurity and lack of positive media coverage.The latter creates a situation where voters do not get to know what the women have achieved.The findings also indicate that the societal understandings of able and effective political leadership are very gendered and skewed against women.The thesis ended by giving several policy recommendations that can help mitigate the challenges and consequently improve the participation rate of women in leadership positions.