Changing scenes of poverty in Manyoni district: a case study of Taturu communities during the twentieth century

This study explores the history of impoverishment of some communities in Manyoni district. The study uses the Taturu communities as a case study. The study was largely qualitative, employing both oral and documentary sources in extracting information. The study is organized into six chapters, which are introduction; Pre-colonial Taturu Societies up to 19th Century; Manyoni district from Affluence to Stagnation; British Colonialism and the Creation of Scenes of Poverty in Manyoni District; Changing Face of Poverty in Post-colonial Manyoni; and Conclusion. The study revolves around the thesis that there are divergent ways of understanding poverty across culture and history. The study has traced the history of impoverishment of Manyoni communities right from 20th century. It has shown that a combination of colonial policies of subjugation, labour processes and market economy brought damaging consequences to pre-colonial economies in Manyoni district. The most stringent impact was the destruction of the cattle economy through market forces. Manifestations of this destruction were evidenced by the collapse of indigenous economies marked by a series of famines that ravaged the District throughout the colonial period. The study has further indicated that the market economy played a big role in the impoverishments of people in Manyoni. The British encouraged people to commodities everything, while their production processes and productive tools remained undeveloped. Consequently, most communities that entered the market with this nature of productive forces could not complete with combined forces of Asian, Swahili and Somali merchants. The post-colonial period was another age that had its challenges. The study shows that from 1961-1966, the post-colonial government did very little to change the situation in Manyoni. The coming of Ujamaa and self-reliance brought just temporary relief. But by 1980s, government top-down policies took no initiative to incorporate indigenous knowledge into development and change. Thus, communities which had been margilised in colonial times were further impoverished and displaced.