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Periodical article Periodical article Leiden University catalogue Leiden University catalogue WorldCat catalogue WorldCat
Title:Female Entrepreneurs in the Informal Sector of Ouagadougou
Authors:Dijkman, HannekeISNI
Dijk, Meine Pieter vanISNI
Year:1993
Periodical:Development Policy Review
Volume:11
Issue:3
Period:September
Pages:273-288
Language:English
Geographic term:Burkina Faso
Subjects:informal sector
women entrepreneurs
women
Economics and Trade
Labor and Employment
Women's Issues
Development and Technology
economics
Education and Training
Sex Roles
External link:https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-7679.1993.tb00042.x
Abstract:In Burkina Faso, most informal sector economic activities in the capital, Ouagadougou, are gender-specific, and the majority of them are for males. But urban women increasingly need incomes too. However, women's opportunities remain limited. Based on data collected in 1991, this paper investigates why women are less active in the informal sector than men. One of the reasons could be that the range of activities they can execute is limited. First, women's access to production factors (capital, land, labour and education) and to markets is analysed. Second, the social, cultural and political environment for female entrepreneurs is investigated, including the influence of the husband, the distribution of domestic duties and the importance of existing government policies. It is shown that women in Ouagadougou are able to surmount several barriers in order to start a male dominated activity, notably those of capital, labour and workspace, but that they encounter serious problems in trying to cross the barriers to education and skill training and may have problems in the marketing of their products or services. Also it may be difficult for women to employ qualified labour. These problems lead women to stick to the limited range of traditional female activities, such as beer brewing and selling, whose market potential is low. Policy implications and recommendations conclude the article. Bibliogr., notes, ref.
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