#KaziIendelee vs. #KatibaMpya: A contested landscape of hashtag activism in Tanzanian political communication

Abstract

The purpose of the article, was to explore how Tanzanian netizens use hashtag activism to participate in the country’s politics. Although hashtags have been used in many campaigns in Tanzania, little is known about the potential of this novel form of participation. We collected 3,692 tweets from X (formerly Twitter) using the search terms #KaziIendelee and #KatibaMpya. We then used Twitonomy for descriptive analysis and Qualitative Data Analysis Miner Lite for theme analysis. We discovered that #KaziIendelee has been used in a number of themes that support the current administration, including activism against gender�based violence, news sharing and information dissemination, and communication of the government’s plans, projects, and accomplishments. The hashtag #KatibaMpya was used in some situations, including public awareness campaigns, campaigning for constitutional reform, and strategic planning for a new constitution. It was evident that the choice and content of the messages associated with #KaziIendelee or #KatibaMpya—the former used by Tanzanians who support the current government, while the latter by Tanzanians and activists who believe a new constitution is required for a true democracy in the country—were determined by Tanzanian politics, which is typified by one party dominance in government. We conclude that when properly conducted, hashtag activism can serve as a useful tool for organizing and bolstering political activity. We recommend that Tanzania incorporate content production training programs for activism, political social media, and digital citizenship into its civic education policy