This is a final report of impressions gained during a field survey during July-August l977 of representative portions of Tanzania Maasailand in the light of the author”s anthropological research in and experience of these areas during the period l956-58. It is divided into three major sections: “Major Changes in Maasailand, l957-l977;” “Probable Future Changes;” and “Recommendations.” In spite of demonstrably poor rainfall during the period l970-76, the majority of range land throughout Tanzania Maasailand appeared to compare favorably to that of 20 years ago, both in quality and quantity of grass species. Accordingly, the author contends that alleged claims of extensive or excessive overgrazing to the degradation of pasture in Maasailand are, in general, both unsubstantiated and exaggerated. The overall quantitative extent of agricultural expansion into Maasailand does not appear to be substantially larger than that existing ln l957. In other areas, such as Monduli Juu, the Ardai Plains, Korogoro, Nainokanoka/Embukai, and Endulen, agricultural encroachment is actually less than twenty years ago because of recent administrative evictions. There has been a deterioration of a wide range of infrastructure services throughout much of Maasailand, and a wide range of basic technology — such as hides-skins drying racks and hand-powered maize grinding machines — have disappeared, presumably along with the economic stimulus that they provided by drawing Maasai productively into the national economy. Recommendations include: improved information retrieval and dissemination; vocational adult education; soil erosion and water harvesting projects; village industries, workshops and “site-and-service” projects; ghee and skim milk production; hides-and-skins production; oxdrawn plough program and workshops; and closer monitoring of the implementation and effectiveness of particular projects.
