Women’s participation in small and micro enterprises and the performance of their businesses in Gikomba market, Nairobi county

Abstract

In the developing countries, Small Micro Enterprises (SME) comprises 95% of all businesses and 60-70% of employment. Although the majority of entrepreneurs are male, nowadays female entrepreneurs comprise a quarter to a third of the total entrepreneurial population in these countries. The contribution of the businesses owned by women to their economic prosperity and social well-being has been increasingly recognized by governments of developing countries because there is unequivocal evidence of its existence. Few studies have been done on the female entrepreneurial population. In Kenya, there is a general lack of an entrepreneurial culture and more particularly, for potential and operating women owner/managers of SMEs. Informed by this knowledge gap, the present study therefore sought to establish women‟s participation in small and micro enterprises and the performance of their business in Gikomba market, Kenya. The specific objectives of the study were to examine the characteristics of women entrepreneurs, to find out the types of businesses owned and managed by women entrepreneurs, to examine the factors that influences performance of women owned businesses and, The study employed descriptive survey research design. The study population was women entrepreneurs in Gikomba market, Kenya. The study used purposive sampling technique in identifying a sample of 120 respondents from groceries, clothes, shoes, Jua Kali, Hardware, and carpentry businesses. Data collection was done using questionnaire. The quantitative data was analyzed using descriptive statistics with the aid of Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS version 20). The study established that the majority of women entrepreneurs were young and energetic, were breadwinners, lacked sound academic background, run small businesses, lacked access to credit, lacked training on entrepreneurship and were members of social groups. The study concludes that lack of a sound academic background, lack of training on entrepreneurship, lack of access to credit; family obligations and lack of strong social networks negatively affected the performance of women owned enterprises. The study recommends that women entrepreneurs upgrade their academic skills, participate in training on entrepreneurship, expand their businesses, form strong social networks, and seek alternative sources of funds in order for their businesses to grow