This monograph provides an overview of the results of a firearm attitude survey conducted in Tanzania in August 2001, as part a research project that sought to comprehensively map the problems associated with the proliferation of small arms in Tanzania. The survey measured social, economic and security indicators in Tanzania as well as indicators of firearm penetration. The aim was to highlight any linkages between these indicators and especially those between the indicators of social, economic and security conditions and the penetration of firearms in communities.

The problems associated with the proliferation of small arms have in recent years gained an ever-higher profile and the harmful impact that their widespread diffusion can have within societies is now widely recognised. Countries have made significant strides at the national, sub-regional, regional and global levels, concluding a number of international agreements and establishing political and operational structures through which to take action. Countries across Africa, including in Southern Africa, West Africa, the Great Lakes region and the Horn of Africa—sub-regions which have been chronically affected by the scourge of small arms—have been at the forefront of attempts to address the associated problems. Within Southern Africa a legally-binding protocol on the control of firearms has recently been signed and in the Great Lakes and the Horn of Africa a similar process has resulted in the Nairobi Declaration and Agenda for Action. The experiences of these sub-regions in addressing small arms proliferation have also contributed to recent international processes, such as the United Nations Programme of Action to address the illicit trade in small arms and the UN protocol on the illicit trafficking in firearms. Progress has also been made within sub-regions on developing the institutional structures to implement these agreements. The challenge that now faces countries in Africa is to take practical steps to implement these agreements. While many of the recent developments have, necessarily, taken place at a regional and international level, practical action will predominantly be taken nationally.

To ensure that whatever action is taken is as effective as possible, national governments need to have a comprehensive understanding of the situation within their country. They need to identify what their most pressing problems are and the resources they currently possess to address these. The government of Tanzania has been one of the first governments to acknowledge this, recognising both the significant impact that small arms are having on its country and the need to act swiftly and begin to take practical action. In recognition of the need to find a comprehensive long-term solution, the government of Tanzania undertook a mapping exercise of firearm-related problems, in July and August 2001, of which the survey considered here was a requested component.

This report on the survey results seeks to illustrate the nature and extent of firearm proliferation within Tanzania, how the problem manifests itself in communities, and the resources and capacity that might be utilised to address the problem as it exists. The report provides a resource for those wishing to understand more about the social, economic and security conditions within Tanzania, about the firearm situation and about the linkages between these factors. Taken as a whole these indicators help to paint the picture of firearm use in Tanzania and the influence that socio-economic factors and security conditions have on firearm possession and use. Moreover, in paying particular attention to the development of community interaction, the report also seeks to provide information that may prove useful in the development and targeting of community-based initiatives to tackle the proliferation of small arms, and other social problems. In this regard, the report focuses upon factors such as perceptions of community leaders, the level of membership of local organisations, and attitudes to participation in community projects.

The report is divided into four main sections, each covering one set of indicators: social, economic, firearm penetration and safety. The reader should bear in mind the various possible linkages that may exist between the indicators surveyed, but should be aware that where a correlation of results does occur that the inter-relationship of factors is likely to be complex and rarely a simple causal one. The results of the survey point towards how social, economic and security conditions impact on and influence firearm penetration as well as how each of these set of indicators may influence one another. In the concluding section of the report some of these trends are examined.