Sindani, Tabitha ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8638-3767 (2023) Women’s enterprise policy effects on women entrepreneurs in the informal sector in rural Kenya. In: Gender Work and Organization Conference - Marginalized Gender Identities: How can Intellectual Activism Transform Work and Organization, 28 - 30th June 2023, Stellenbosch, South Africa. Stellenbosch Business School - Gender Work and Organisation - National Research Foundation, Stellenbosch, South Africa, p. 364.

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Abstract

This research investigated the influence of women’s enterprise policy on women entrepreneurs in informal sectors, called 'jua kali' in rural Kenya. Current research is dominated by functionalist notions of entrepreneurship, which emphasise the importance of economic growth and the role of entrepreneurship in securing it (Gartner, 1990: Shane & Ventakaraman, 2000). Although entrepreneurship has traditionally been considered a masculine domain, recent studies emphasise women’s contribution, yet their businesses are labelled as feminine, ‘lifestyle’, of low growth potential, and largely situated in informal economies (Welter et al., 2015). Consequently, as the concept of women’s entrepreneurship is increasingly regarded as a matter of global importance (De Vita et al., 2014), a proliferation of entrepreneurship policies financing its agenda continues to be witnessed globally (for example The Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action and United Nations Sustainable Development Goals), cascading down to continental and national levels. The Kenyan government established the Women Enterprise Fund (WEF), in 2007, as a semi-autonomous government agency in the Ministry of Public Service, Youth and Gender Affairs and Special Programmes, as an affirmative action fund to support women’s businesses across the country. The WEF fund symbolised a commitment by the Kenyan government to realise the 1st and 5th Sustainable Development Goals and Vision 2030. Despite the presence of these policies, women entrepreneurs have not been on the same footing as men entrepreneurs in accessing opportunities and financial resources. Thus, this study’s objective and context are justified as timely to investigate the influence of women’s enterprise policies on rural women jua kali entrepreneurs in developing economies. The study drew on document analysis of several government financing policies, particularly the WEF, and 26 in-depth interviews with 40 jua kali women entrepreneurs in Vihiga County, Kenya. All data were audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim, coded in NVivo 12 Pro, and analysed thematically. The study identified several contextual constraints (political, economic, social and cultural) that influence the effectiveness of women entrepreneurship policies in a rural setting in Kenya. First, the analysis showed poor governance and rural marginalisation were the main institutional political constraints to policy implementation in Kenya, where connectivity and infrastructural constraints are structural barriers that disadvantage women entrepreneurs in accessing enterprise funds. Second, many of the women revealed high levels of corruption in the county governments, which prevent the distribution and reach of the funds to the targeted beneficiaries, whilst the high cost of operations and harassments by county council officials, kanjo, are economic constraints that impede the sustainability of their businesses. Third, the lack of ownership of property and low levels of education of rural women are some of the cultural constrains embedded within the patriarchal society.

Item Type:	Conference Proceedings
Title of Proceedings:	Gender Work and Organization Conference - Marginalized Gender Identities: How can Intellectual Activism Transform Work and Organization, 28 - 30th June 2023, Stellenbosch, South Africa
Uncontrolled Keywords:	women entrepreneurs, gender, rural Kenya, financing policies, contextual influences
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > H Social Sciences (General)
Faculty / School / Research Centre / Research Group:	Greenwich Business School Greenwich Business School > Executive Business Centre
Related URLs:	Organisation Organisation
Last Modified:	10 Mar 2025 12:59
URI:	http://gala.gre.ac.uk/id/eprint/49992

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