Political Economy Commons^™

Development, Change, And Poverty In The Informal Sector During The Era Of Structural Adjustments In Tanzania, Joe Lugalla

Institute for Educational Development, East Africa

This article focuses on periods of economic crisis and structural adjustments in Tanzania, when the informal sector changed both quantitatively and qualitatively. It highlights that the traditional view that the informal sector accommodated the unemployed, the poor, the unskilled, as well as utilizing family labour and local resources, was questionable in most of the sub-Saharan countries which were experiencing a severe economic crisis and have adopted structural adjustment policies (SAPs). The author suggests that policy programs aimed at promoting the informal sector should acknowledge the fact that the crisis, as well as SAPs, have forced not only the poor, but …