Issue

Vol. 13 No. 1 (2024)

Men and Women in Uniform: Insiders’ Perspectives on Women’s Leadership Status in Tanzania People’s Defence Forces

https://doi.org/10.56279.13.1.4
Martin Mujuni
Dar es Salaam University College of Education/
Edwin Babeiya
Department of History, Political Science and Development Studies Dar es Salaam University College of Education

Corresponding Author(s) : Martin Mujuni

martinmujuni655@gmail.com

Journal of Humanities & Social Science (JHSS), Vol. 13 No. 1 (2024)

Abstract

This paper examines the leadership status of women in the Tanzania People’s Defence
Forces (TPDF). It was guided by three specific objectives: to understand the position
of women’s leadership role; identify the challenges constraining women from holding
leadership positions; and to examine the measures being taken to enable women hold
leadership positions in the TPDF. It collected opinions from the research participants
serving—or who served—in the military regarding the position of women as leaders.
The study leading to the paper employed a qualitative research approach to collect
data from 22 purposively selected respondents. The study found that women hold low
leadership status within the TPDF as the majority of senior leadership positions are
predominantly held by men. The findings further showed that while some measures
have been taken to uplift women’s careers in the military, there are contextual and
cultural barriers that still constrain them from holding senior leadership positions.
Contextually, there is a laxity in underscoring gender mainstreaming despite the
institutional initiatives to address gender diversity gaps in the TPDF. Culturally, there
are still uncertainties over the position that women should occupy in the military. A
long history of presenting the military as a male career still discourages a significant
gender transformation in the military, thereby engendering the adoption of an
incremental approach to women’s acquisition of leadership roles in the TPDF. Thus,
to effectively coordinate women’s empowerment initiatives in the military, the study
recommends the formulation of a gender policy for the armed forces.

Keywords

gender gap, glass ceiling, leadership positions, military, Tanzania, women enrolment.
Men and Women in Uniform: Insiders’ Perspectives on Women’s Leadership Status in Tanzania People’s Defence Forces. (2024). Journal of Humanities & Social Science (JHSS), 13(1). https://doi.org/10.56279.13.1.4
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Author Biographies

Martin Mujuni, Dar es Salaam University College of Education/


Tanzania People’s Defence Forces

Edwin Babeiya, Department of History, Political Science and Development Studies Dar es Salaam University College of Education

Department of History, Political Science and Development Studies
Dar es Salaam University College of Education

How to Cite

Men and Women in Uniform: Insiders’ Perspectives on Women’s Leadership Status in Tanzania People’s Defence Forces. (2024). Journal of Humanities & Social Science (JHSS), 13(1). https://doi.org/10.56279.13.1.4
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