The Extent to which Fundraising Strategy Employed by Heads of Public Secondary Schools Contributes to Meeting Financial Obligations in Katavi Region, Tanzania

This study investigated the extent to which fundraising strategy employed by Heads of public secondary schools contributes to meeting financial obligations in Katavi Region, Tanzania. Guided by Resource Dependence Theory and a pragmatic philosophy, used a mixed-methods approach with a convergent research design. From 841 stakeholders: District Secondary Education Officers, Heads of School, teachers, Teachers-in-Charge of Financial Matters, and School Board Chairpersons, 293 were sampled through stratified random and criterion sampling. Data were collected using questionnaires and interview guides, validated by four experts, specialised in educational planning and administration at Mwenge Catholic University. A pilot study was conducted in 4 schools using 38 participants, yielding reliability (.882 and .794) for teachers and Teachers-in-Charge of Financial Matters’ respectively. Trustworthiness was maintained through triangulation and peer debriefing. Analysis involved descriptive and inferential statistics for quantitative data and thematic analysis for qualitative data. Ethical considerations, including research permits, informed consent and confidentiality, were observed. Findings revealed that given the lack of statistically significant variations in responses, to a moderate extent, fundraising strategy contributes to meeting financial obligations on maintenance, administrative and academic operations. Yet, it is constrained by failures of fundraising events and its unreliable implementations. It is concluded that, fundraising strategy contributes moderately to meeting financial obligations. The study recommends Heads of School in collaboration with teachers, and School Boards to establish structured annual fundraising plans with diverse and innovative fundraising strategies, transparent reporting, and digital payment platforms to enhance credibility, broaden fundraising base, and improve consistency and financial returns from fundraising initiatives.