Paper short abstract:

While the politics of Covid-19 management in Tanzania have been well documented at the national level, using theories of everyday humanitarianism with interview data this paper analyzes how Corona has affected Northern Tanzania where corona was always considered a crisis, albeit an economic one.

Paper long abstract:

As part of a collaborative research project with University of Dar es Salaam researchers, we are documenting and understanding the ways that Tanzanians help each other in times of crisis. We currently work in Kagera on the Bukoba earthquake, in Kigoma on the refugees issue, and in Morogoro on the recurrent floods. While the politics of Covid-19 management in Tanzania have been well documented at the national level, we are interested in how Corona has affected a group where it was always considered a crisis, albeit primarily an economic crisis. ‘Life in Tanzania went on as usual. Except for those in tourism’—All respondents told a similar narrative about what had happened to their companies or work under Corona. People working in the tourism industry were victims of the acute crisis as travel was restricted from many countries and most people in the Arusha-Kilimanjaro area depend in some way on tourist income for their livelihood. This paper based on interviews and conversations with 15 stakeholders from the tourist industry in Arusha and Moshi in 2022 and follow-up discussions in 2023 will use theories of everyday humanitarianism to understand local responses to the corona crisis and its aftermath. Our findings suggest that in Corona times as in other times, it is far easier to receive funding and help if you are, in fact, not very poor.