Biophysical Challenges to Pastoral Mobility in Northern Tanzania

Rangelands, covering almost 50% of our global land surface, provide essential natural resources for pastoralists and their livestock. Most pastoralists follow a nomadic or seminomadic lifestyle, which is increasingly hampered due to high human and livestock populations as well as environmental, social, and political challenges. In eastern Africa, rangeland health is additionally threatened by overgrazing, land erosion, and increasing climatic extremes. Little is known about how pastoralists perceive these challenges, what their adaptation strategies are, and whether the latter are fostering new risks and challenges. Our mixed-methods approach used semistructured interviews with 69 pastoralists in Longido and Monduli districts, northern Tanzania. We also conducted four focus group discussions of both men and women pastoralists, combined with secondary data and expert interviews on livestock populations and mortalities from governmental offices. We applied statistical analyses ( t test, analysis of variance, and Pearson’s correlation) and mapped rangeland use and movements in a geographic information system. We found that most pastoralists are well aware of declining pasture quality and have adapted to climatic and environmental challenges. The most frequent response was moving further with cattle while small livestock (goats and sheep) stayed at homesteads during severe droughts. Both female and male pastoralists mentioned that these longer movement routes bore risks of conflict, diseases, and famine. These novel, drought-triggered migration routes were up to 644 km long, directed North into Kenya or South into central or coastal Tanzania. Most pastoralists additionally used supplemental feed for livestock during difficult times. We conclude that, as rangeland quality declined, routes and movement in search of pasture increased in Tanzania, leading to increasing challenges and risks associated with drought, conflicts, encountering dangerous animals, and exposure to zoonotic diseases while crossing landscapes. A holistic way of addressing these risks is urgently needed for long-term land use planning and sustainability of pastoral systems in eastern Africa.