Revenue-Sharing Governance in Tanzanian Community Wildlife Conservancies and its Impact on Crop-Raiding Tolerance: A Systematic Review

{ "background": "Human-wildlife conflict, particularly crop raiding, poses a significant challenge to rural livelihoods and conservation efforts in Tanzania. Community Wildlife Conservancies (CWCs) have been established to mitigate this conflict, with revenue-sharing from wildlife tourism hypothesised to increase local tolerance for wildlife impacts.", "purpose and objectives": "This systematic review synthesises empirical evidence on how revenue-sharing governance within Tanzanian CWCs influences farmers' tolerance for crop raiding. It aims to evaluate the causal mechanisms, identify key governance variables, and assess the consistency of reported outcomes.", "methodology": "A systematic search of multiple academic databases and grey literature sources was conducted following the PRISMA framework. Studies were screened against pre-defined eligibility criteria. Data were extracted and analysed using a mixed-methods approach, with a meta-regression model Ti = \β0 + \β1 Ri + \β2 Gi + \εᵢ estimated to assess the relationship between tolerance (T), revenue (R), and governance quality (G).", "findings": "The relationship between revenue-sharing and increased tolerance is not deterministic but is significantly moderated by governance factors. A key theme is that perceived fairness and transparency in revenue distribution are more critical than the absolute amount shared. The meta-regression indicates a positive association between governance quality and tolerance, though the confidence interval for the revenue coefficient includes zero, suggesting heterogeneity in effects.", "conclusion": "Revenue-sharing alone is an insufficient mechanism for building crop-raiding tolerance. Its efficacy is fundamentally contingent upon equitable and accountable local governance institutions within conservancies.", "recommendations": "Policy and CWC design must prioritise strengthening governance frameworks—including clear benefit-distribution formulae and grievance mechanisms—alongside revenue generation. Future research should employ longitudinal designs to better infer causality.", "key words": "Human-wildlife conflict, payment for ecosystem services, conservation finance, community-based natural resource management, meta-analysis, agricultural livelihoods", "contribution statement": "