Title: Obstacles facing women-owned enterprises: a case for sub-Sahara African women

Authors: Oyedele Ogundana

Addresses: Nottingham Business School, Nottingham Trent University, 50 Shakespeare St, Nottingham NG1 4FQ, UK

Abstract: This study identified and ranked the obstacles facing women-owned enterprises in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). It analysed secondary data from the World Bank Enterprise Survey that includes 2341 questionnaires filled in by women entrepreneurs from 40 countries within SSA. The findings showed that the lack of access to finance is the biggest obstacle facing women-owned enterprises in SSA. This is followed by the absence of electricity, practices of the informal sectors, tax-related issues and political volatility. This finding contributes to the literature on entrepreneurship by ranking the obstacles that confront women-owned enterprises in a developing country region. It contributes to the knowledge that policymakers require for policy development and effective resource allocation within SSA and other developing countries. This study unravels endogenous barriers that are within the scope of women entrepreneurs who need to take innovative steps to resolve such barriers rather than waiting for external assistance, which frequently never arrives.

Keywords: obstacles; sub-Saharan Africa; women entrepreneurs; women-owned enterprises.

DOI: 10.1504/WREMSD.2022.125631

World Review of Entrepreneurship, Management and Sustainable Development, 2022 Vol.18 No.5/6, pp.529 - 544

Received: 24 Apr 2020
Accepted: 01 Nov 2020
Published online: 18 Sep 2022 *

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