The concept of promoting women’s economic and
political empowerment has gained greater attention over the last three decades.
Although there has been recent focus on developing women’s entrepreneurship in
Africa, much of the focus has been on growth-oriented women’s businesses.
Women’s entrepreneurship in micro and small business that are often considered
informal has not been able to reach the growth potential.
Consequently,
addressing gender-specific barriers to entrepreneurship and leveraging the full
participation of both men and women in the development of Africa’s private
sector together represent a significant opportunity to unleash Africa’s
productive potential and to strengthen economic growth.
There are three main reasons why gender matters.
First, women are major players in the private sector, particularly in
agriculture and in informal businesses. It is estimated that women-owned businesses
account for over one-third of all firms, and they are the majority of
businesses in the informal sector in African countries. Second, the ability of
women to formalize and grow their businesses, to create jobs, and to enhance
productivity is hampered where legal and institutional barriers exist that
affect men’s and women’s enterprises differently.
Third, there is
evidence—especially at the micro level—to indicate that gender disparities not
only disadvantage women but also reduce the growth potential of the region as a
whole. The existence of gender related barriers can thwart the economic
potential of women as entrepreneurs and workers, and such barriers have an
adverse impact on enterprise development, productivity, and competitiveness in
Africa. (Bardasi, Blackden, Guzman, 2006) Hence it can be assumed that an
appreciation of gender issues is important when considering strategies to
improve ways to private-sector development in Africa and to promote its
competitiveness in the world.
PROBLEMS
ENCOUNTERED BY WOMEN
Entrepreneurship is not an individual process but a
collective one, involving many actors in addition to the entrepreneur himself
or herself. Competitive enterprises cannot be created just as a result of the
decision or willingness of one individual. There is need for an enabling
environment and for support services for entrepreneurs from various public and
private institutions.
Women entrepreneurs are often prevented from running
competitive businesses by their relatively low education and skill levels, which
generally limit their access to the various support services. The multiple
roles of women in the family put a brake on their risk-taking. In many African
countries women spend most of their income on the household, particularly on
food and education for their children. Therefore, many of them are afraid to
invest their limited funds into a business for fear of failure. Initiative and
creativity are as fundamental as risk-taking in enterprise creation.
However,
most women tend to copy each other rather than to produce something new for
their market or to look for a new market for their products. In several African
countries economic decisions are normally taken by the male head of the
household, hence a woman has little or no freedom in making her own decisions.
In addition to the socio-cultural impediments discussed above, women face many
other problems. The most outstanding ones are as follows:
Limited access to necessary technologies due to lack
of information and know-how, and high prices
Difficulty in finding appropriate production sites
at competitive prices
Inadequate skills in the fields of production,
business management and marketing
Lack of skills for product diversification
Inadequate infrastructure and utilities, of which
inadequate transport facilities from rural areas and insufficient power
supplies are the most serious
Limited access to finance
Limited access to information.
A lack of organization and networking, both among
women themselves, and between women and existing business associations and
support institutions.
For better insight into gender-specific constraints
faced by women entrepreneurs, a comparative analysis of the salient features
influencing enterprise creation in African countries is attempted below.
1.
Labor Burden
Studies have shown that women have higher labor
burden as opposed to men. (Dejene, 2006) Family and community responsibilities
take a lot of women’s time that could be applied for improving their income
generating efforts. Their responsibility for child care limits their mobility
and obliges them to generate income in less conducive environment for business.
Although statistical data are not available on the share of children attending
early childhood education, there is greater shortage of affordable child care and
preschool programs even in urban areas in many parts of Africa. Women’s
responsibilities for child care are often cited as reasons for women’s low
participation in skills training and literacy programs, which are crucial for
building business management skills of female enterprises.
2.
Skills
Lack of adequate skills are other constraints faced
by female entrepreneurs. The coverage and quality of agricultural extension
services in processing, preserving and packaging food is limited in many
African countries. Training for women often focuses on "traditional female
skills" in tie and dye, basket making etc. for which the market is
saturated. Women’s high illiteracy rate also limits the types of vocational and
skills training they can be offered.
3.
Access to Financial Resources
Women’s lack of assets, due to the gender
discriminatory property and inheritance practices in many of the African
countries limit women’s access and control over resources specifically land.
For example, female headed households in Uganda claimed that their inability to
finance their start up capital prevented them investing in businesses and trade
activities (Dolan 2002, cited in USAID 2005). The lack of both start up and
working capital limits the size, type and location of income generating
activities. In recent decade micro-credit institutions have gained greater
prominence in filling in the financial resource gaps to the poor in general and
to poor women in particular. While some of the successes of micro-credit
institutions has gained recognition over the years, the unmet credit needs of
men and women in many parts of Africa remains big.
4.
Weak Infrastructure
The low development of roads and lack of transport
affects both male and female entrepreneurs. But, a closer examination at the
gender differentiated impact of weak infrastructure on women and men and their
respective income generating activities tells a different story. Women who live
in communities with low infrastructure, (transport, water and sanitation and
energy) are worse affected. Studies have shown how women’s time burden is
affected by inadequate transport systems. A World Bank study (Calvo, 1996,
cited in Crown. C, et al 2005) reported that 87 percent of trips in rural
Africa take place on foot. Of this, the time women spent accounts for more than
65 percent of the household’s time and effort put on transport. The study also
found that the average daily load of women carried was 20 kilograms for 1.4-5.3
kilometers). Some studies suggest that access to roads can improve women’s
income – in Cameron women in a village on a main road earned more than those
located 90 minutes away from the road (Lovell, 2000, cited in Grown, C. et al
2005).
Collecting fuel-wood is a predominately female
responsibility in most of African countries. A study conducted in three
countries reported that women spend up to 300 hours a year in Ghana and
Tanzania and 800 hours a year in Zambia collecting fuel wood (Calvo, 1994).
Women and girls spend more time fetching water
compared to men and boys. The study cited above reported that women spent more
than 700 hours a day fetching water in Ghana, 500 hours in Tanzania and 200 hours
in Zambia. Water is a main ingredient in food processing and other major
household and market economies in which women are engaged. The limited access
to water by communities, not only exacerbates women’s and girls’ time and labor
burden, it also affects their livelihoods disproportionately. Hence an
improvement in the infrastructure is needed to take into account women’s needs
and their participation is essential for the success of initiatives in the
sector.
5.
Limited Access to Markets
Studies reported women’s micro and small
entrepreneurs often complaining about the lack of demand for their products.
(DAI, 2005). There are various factors that limit women’s access to markets. As
noted earlier, women disproportionately experience limited mobility due to
various factors linked to either their family responsibility or cultural
practices.
Those who can travel lack the market information on products and
inputs, thus become dependent on the middle traders who buy their products at
relatively lower than the market price. Because women often produce small
amounts, they are limited to the local village markets, where the market for
their products and services are already saturated. Other factors such as
improved technology for preserving and storage facilities close to market areas
are some of the constraints related to marketing of goods. In addition limited
access to input markets, due to shortage of raw materials and high price of
imported inputs such as chemicals for batik work and tie and dye can constrain
their productivity.
6.
Weak Business Organizations
African women have various types of informal and
semi-formal economic and social associations where they pull labor and
resources together to maximize labor productivity and social networks. However,
the capacity of these associations is weak and they more concerned with their
social interest instead of looking at what they can do to support their
businesses economically.
7.
Little Technology Transfer
Technology is the key to economic development. At the
moment technology transfer into Africa continues to be in the form of consumer
technology which only allows people to learn what technology to consume and how
to consume it. Africa does not have the environment for creative innovations
and does not support the same. If it continues so, Africa will remain
technologically backward in a world where technology dominates commerce,
politics and even culture.
8.
Destructive Style of Political and Economic Leadership
Africa has suffered from lack of enlightened
leadership and a bad style of political and economic guidance. While African
leaders could have excused themselves for being unable to protect their people
from the exploits of colonial empires in the l9th and 20th centuries, they can
hardly escape blame for allowing neo-colonial exploitation which continues to
reduce many of their people into paupers in their own countries.
During the past three decades, Africa suffered lack
of visionary and altruistic leaders committed to the welfare of their own
people. They were persuaded to accept the development model of the West, borrow
capital from the West and be guided by experts from the same West.
This was partly possible because the colonial
administration deliberately destroyed and discredited the traditional forms of
self governance in Africa. While the colonial form of governance was being put
in place, the western religion and values were being imposed on those who
converted into Christianity.
Just before independence was granted, young Africans
were promoted to positions hitherto unoccupied by the local people and they
were trained by colonial masters to take over power from the colonial
administration. Many of these African recruits were politically naive and
uninformed. Their employment into the prestigious administrative positions
previously reserved for the colonial masters was a manipulative ploy. It
blinded them. So fluttered by the new-found power and prestige in their new
state, many Africans became sucked into a mechanism which facilitate the continued
exploitation of Africa and the African people. It was easy for the new rulers
to be blinded with material wealth and privileges associated with wealth and
political power because they were naive and inexperienced.
This development allowed the beginning of a small
group of African elites who were in liaison with the rich to continue the
exploitation of the African resources while ignoring the fate of the
impoverished majority. With that bad beginning, leadership in Africa became
characterized by opportunism, personal advancement and enrichment at the
expense of the masses. And thus was laid the foundation for the present
political, economic and social crisis in Africa.
The few African leaders who have demonstrated visionary
leadership have been misunderstood and unsupported at home due to naivety and
ignorance about the political forces at play in Africa. They also received no
support from the international community. Instead, corrupt and unpopular
African dictators received huge support especially in form of military aid
which sustains them in power. These dictators built up massive armies, police
forces and huge networks of secret service whose main preoccupation was, and
still is, to spy on and terrorize their own citizens. Uninformed and even
misinformed, the African community remains marginalized politically and
economically.
One cannot over-rule the presence of external forces
and factors because, a weak, disunited and war-ravaged Africa will even be
easier to control and exploit.
9.
The Absence of Peace and Security
Peace and security are a prerequisite for
development and all human beings aspire and deserve them. All people also
aspire for happiness and a quality of life devoid of poverty and indignity. Yet
for the last three decades many African states have hardly enjoyed internal
peace and security. State oppression by dictatorial rulers, gross violations of
human rights, civil wars, diversion of human and material resources towards the
wars and internal security of those in power, have destroyed millions of lives
in Africa.
10.
Limited Enabling Environment
Governments in many part of Africa recognize the
role micro and small enterprises can play for employment generation and poverty
reduction. However, creating a more enabling environment for promoting micro
and small businesses and transforming the informal economy into a dynamic
economic sector has been a challenge. The absence of statistical data to
determine the size characteristics of the informal sector operators and the
capacity of the institutions with which they interact limits the ability of
governments to make informed policy measures. Reforms are also needed in
business registration to allow for joint registration so that women are equal
owners of household enterprises. Because joint registration is often not
practiced in many parts of Africa, in time of divorce or death of spouses,
women lose the businesses they help grow.
Some African countries have made concerted efforts
to promote micro and small enterprises through policy measures, institutional
development in micro- credit and training. Some of them have also integrated
the promotion of micro and small enterprises into their Poverty Reduction
Strategy Papers.
For example, the Kenya Development Plan (1997/2001) envisioned
the development of micro and small enterprises by developing and reviewing
legal framework and regulatory environment, formulating programs to improve
access to credit and finance, supporting women and youth involvement in the
small/medium scale and informal sector through special programs, encourage
strong background linkages with the manufacturing sector, and reviewing and
harmonizing licensing procedures for informal sector enterprises (Chen, et al
2003). Implementation of the plan was, however, has been slow.
11.
Corruption
Corruption is a serious cancer in Africa and it is
eating into every aspect of life and into every socio-economic group. It brings
a lot of misery to ordinary Africans and gives an opportunity to non Africans
to exploit Africa.
Women’s lack of access to productive resources in
Africa is a serious economic problem for the continent. Denying working women
the opportunity to own and inherit property has serious implications on the productivity
and income of households. There is a growing realization that countries are not
honoring their international and regional commitments that call for gender
equality in property and inheritance rights. Greater attention needs to be paid
in galvanizing efforts to ensure women’s ownership of land and other properties
through policy formulation reform, revision of the legal systems and changing
customary practices.
Promoting the growth of micro and small enterprises
is a responsibility of various institutions. Coordination among these
institutions is often weak or non-existent. In some countries as many as four
or five institutions such as Ministry of Trade and Industry, local government,
rural development institutions, women’s affairs ministries and others are each
doing the same thing without adequate consultations and harmonization.
Sometimes lack of coordination leads to duplication of efforts and wasting of
resources. Therefore, recognizing division of labor among institutions and
coordination of efforts should be promoted on a regular basis.
Ensuring access to micro-credits and training to
women alone is not a panacea to women’s business growth. Projects that support
women’s micro and small entrepreneurship need to take into account the various
gender related challenges as summarized above, including time burden, lack of
intra-household decision making power, low technology, limited access to
markets and resources and limited supportive environment. Efforts should be
made to empower women through various leadership programs that build women’s
ability to progress in the businesses.
Lack of statistical data on the informal economy is
a major problem for policy formulation and program development. Gender
statistics on the characteristics of women and men entrepreneurs and their
business practices, as well as their institutions are necessary for informed
decision making. Government statistical offices and their partners are key
players in collecting, analyzing and disseminating key information. It is recommended
that attention be paid to collect sufficient and detailed gender statistics on
the micro and small enterprises.
Weak infrastructure has a limiting effect on both
women and men small activities. Women micro and small enterprises are
disproportionately affected by the lack of or high cost of energy, water and
transport. Interventions in conventional and alternative energy development
need to take account of household and micro and small enterprises’ energy
needs. Infrastructure projects need to be development with equal participation
of women and men. It is important that poverty reduction and income generating
project take into account the infrastructure needs of women’s micro and small
enterprises in designing their projects.
Improving vocational and technical education and
training is an effective way of generating dynamic entrepreneurs. Girls’ and
women’s participation in technical vocational education is low in many African
countries. There is the need to transform the gender segregated approach to
vocational and technical training in which girls and women are trained in
traditional occupations such as knitting, cooking and others. Skills training
programs need to be developed in conjunction wit the labor market.
Promoting the gender equality and empowerment of
women benefits the economy and the society at large. In many countries of
Africa gender inequalities and gender based discriminations are perpetuated by
customary practices. There is the need to enhance awareness about the
disadvantages of these discriminations not only to women and girls but to the
community at large.
There are a number of associations of women micro
and small enterprises organizations in many of the African countries. With the
exception of those formal organizations of formal small and medium size
enterprises, the capacity of many of the informal associations is weak.
Supporting women micro and small entrepreneurs to organize themselves and
strengthen the existing associations can help enhancing their capacity to
express their common interests and advocate for improved policy environment and
increased investment in the various sub-sectors in which they operate.
Micro and small enterprises provide employment to
the poor who have no other means of income. Women are highly represented in
self-employment and operating small income generating activity. Although
women’s micro and small enterprises are significant in terms of reducing the
household vulnerability to poverty, many of them are not reaching their growth
potential due to various factors as summarized above.
Many of the constraints
women micro and small enterprises face can not be addressed with one single
intervention or one single sector for that matter. The micro and small
enterprises, although their importance for poverty reduction is recognized,
there is little confidence among policy makers about their ability to contribute
to the growth of the economy. Therefore, greater attention needs to be paid to
the development of the sector in general to promoting women owned micro and
small enterprises in the continent and ensure women’s economic empowerment as a
way to reducing poverty and promoting growth.
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