The Quest for the Survival and Influence of Business Associations in a Turbulent Environment: Lessons from Tanzania

This article investigates the driving force of business associations (BAs) in their attempt to influence policy regarding political and economic governance in Tanzania. On the basis of the collective action theory, new institutional economics (NIE) and historical analysis of 21 BAs, it is evident that they are driven by the evolutionary extensions of international ecosystem capabilities, the ability of BAs' leadership to change with the government agenda, the political ideology and their experience and competence to dialogue with the government. The article contributes to the collective action theory and the NIE literature by demonstrating that BAs take collective action to protect the interests of their members, and their survival is influenced by the political context.