Gender and Livelihood Diversification: Maasai Women’s Market Activities in Northern Tanzania

East African pastoralists are increasingly diversifying their livelihoods to bring cash into the household. While men dominate these activities, women's contributions to household economies through new market activities make them pivotal players in livelihood diversification. This article compares Maasai women's income-earning activities at local markets with their market activities at the gemstone mining area of Mererani. It shows that women's economic activities simultaneously challenge and reify a pastoral gender system and that this differs according to a woman's family and household status. In addition, it addresses the implications of these processes for rural development initiatives aimed at empowering women.