Thesis (Ed. D.)--Temple University, 1995. / Abstract. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 105-112).

According to the former Minister of Trade and Industry, Andisa Mphahlwa, despite government support structures South African women entrepreneurs have not delivered the establishment of many successful and sustainable businesses, as expected. The majority of women are still trapped in the lower echelons of the economy. In contrast, other developing countries such as India, Argentina, and Brazil evidence high female entrepreneurship. This research study will focus on the effectiveness of operational, emotional and financial support provided by the dti (Department of Trade and Industry) initiatives driven through SAWEN (South African Women Entrepreneurs’ Network), examining the issue through gender lenses. This research study aims to establish how formal institutional policies’ effectiveness may be hindered by cultural norms inherent in the way women are treated by society, as well as in how they perceive themselves. The aim is to identify and highlight reasons for the lack of effective female entrepreneurship, with the aim of achieving high-impact entrepreneurship by women in South Africa with a view to growing the economy. The other standpoint adopted in this study is that women make choices to suit their personal circumstances, which may be the drivers of their business choices. This research will focus on the extent to which women want their businesses to expand. / Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2012. / Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) / unrestricted

This qualitative study explores factors within families that influence women entrepreneurs of Pakistan. Pakistan is chosen as the key research area as where the corporate environment as well as the domestic sphere, they belong to, represent the intricate interaction of social, cultural, traditional, and religious components, especially considering the characteristics of the existing patriarchal system. For the purpose of examining the influence of family on women entrepreneurship, 12 semi-structured interviews were conducted. They have different marital status (married, single and/or divorced), however, the commonality that is essential for the purpose of the current paper is that all of the participants are residing with their families.Through the analysis of found empirical material and previous literature on the topic it has been concluded that gender stereotypes, family rules, regulations, conventions, as well as cultural and/or societal values may influence how entrepreneurial decisions are made within the family. These influences have been structured to five groups of factors: gender assigned roles, financial and educational background of the family, children, spouse and his family, as well as the family of origin. The factors have various influences and while some families may modify their standard of life to fit cultural trends, other families may choose to adopt (within societal patterns) what best suits them. In other words, it can be said that family has, indeed, a strong influence on women entrepreneurship in Pakistan, both in positive and negative ways.

Purpose – The purpose of this master thesis is to offer a number of illustrations of Russian female entrepreneurs in order to identify potential motivational factors that make Russian women launch their own business start-ups. Design/methodology/approach – The qualitative research method is applied within the master thesis based on information received from secondary (case studies) and primary (semi-structured interviews) data collection methods. The actor view and combination of directed and summative approaches of the qualitative content analysis update the information gathered within the theoretical studies of peer-reviewed articles on female entrepreneurship in general and particularly in Russia. Findings – Female entrepreneurs are not a homogenous group. Motivational factors can be divided in two groups: both applicable to male and female entrepreneurship; exclusively female motivations. “The glass ceiling effect” is a common problem that pushes women into self-employment. “Internal-stable reasons” encourage women entrepreneurship as an opportunity to achieve work-life balance and be one’s own boss. The desire of social contribution is a driver of female entrepreneurship, too. Marriage and birth of children make females think about starting their own businesses as well. Female entrepreneurship discrimination in Russia still exists up to now, in particular: sexism and dalliance. The principle motivational factors for women entrepreneurs in Russia are: wholesome family relationship and family support. One can behold a developing positive trend inside the boundaries of various discrimination problems that used to frustrate the majority of females determined to embark on entrepreneurial activity. Still the majority of females who are determined to launch entrepreneurial projects consider marriage to be a significant and useful social institution. Research limitations/implications – The research studies on women entrepreneurship in the world are at the infancy stage, much less in Russia. Thus, the number of articles on female entrepreneurship is willing to be broaden. The only conduction of interviews in terms of empirical analysis is not enough and could be supported by surveys and focus groups in the future. The authors are limited in time and resources for the analysis of such a vast topic as well as restrictions in the regional context (central regions – Moscow) disallow to apply findings in relation to the whole Russian Federation. Practical implications – The findings of the master thesis could be used by researchers to replicate the study of motivational factors in a multiregional sample and to know whether the results are similar in all regions of Russia; and policy makers to motivate women to become entrepreneurs as it is a source of new jobs and allows women to be active participants in the country’s economy.

Background: Women partaking in businesses as entrepreneurs is a field getting increased attention in Palestine. Women’s underutilized economic potential along with entrepreneurial activity as a key driver behind economic progress, make the field of women entrepreneurship in Palestine a matter of importance. The agricultural sector is one of the larger for Palestinian women employment, which is why it might attract aspiring entrepreneurs. With investments from Palestinian authorities as well as NGOs, directed towards developing Palestinian women entrepreneurship, one could argue that the opportunities for women to become entrepreneurs exist. But what is the opinion of the women entrepreneurs themselves regarding existing possibilities and obstacles?Purpose of the study: To examine the process for women entrepreneurs of establishing and running micro companies in the agricultural sector on the West Bank in order to highlight the possibilities and obstacles that they experience.Methodological framework: The study had a qualitative approach in which we conducted semi-structured interviewes with eleven women entrepreneurs, active in agriculture.Conclusion: Our findings suggest that women enter entrepreneurship out of necessity as well as reasons more connected to self fulfilment and grasping at possibly profitable business opportunities. Previous experience in agriculture affected both the willingness to start a business and proved helpful for the entrepreneurial success. Notable challenges were found in marketing, legal matters and the physically tiring work. Most of our respondents did not concentrate on developing the support activities connected to their businesses, directing more of their attention towards primary activities. Our respondents also made use of networks, spanning from private connections to professional contacts.

Overview:  Civil wars have turned many aspects of Cambodia upside down: traditional norms and beliefs of a post-conflict society are at the forefront of the citizens of Cambodia’s mind, ahead of all current regulations and laws. The value of women has been reduced to traditional values in the current society. It is traditionally believed that women are second class citizens, even though females and males are legally viewed as equals in all issues based on the Royal Institution of Cambodia. This phenomenon, the treatment of women as second class citizens, is recognized as a major social issue that needs to be addressed. The Cambodian government and various non governmental organizations (NGOs) strive for the improvement of women’s social status by addressing the issue in the National Strategy Development Plan 2006-2010 (NSDP, 2005). The plan focuses on enhancing the quality of education and fostering gender equality through women empowerment projects.                          The subject study of entrepreneurship has entered into a new era social development. A growing number of case studies have increased the awareness of female entrepreneurship. Researchers around the world are now interested in the link between gender and entrepreneurship development. The topic of female entrepreneurship is a hot topic addressed in recent world economic discussion forums to find the solution for world economic crisis; thus, it is significant to investigate and observe how this new approach integrates in to the social development process though empowerment projects.             Thus, this research will be based on following main research questions:   How does “Women Empowerment projects” promote Female Entrepreneurship? And How does the female entrepreneurship contribute to provide a better living condition to Cambodian citizen?   Purpose:   The aim of this research is to discover the impact of social development projects and women empowerment projects using entrepreneurship as the foundation for social change.  In line with this, the findings will uncover the impact of specific social development projects, i.e. women empowerment, and how they contribute to the creation of female entrepreneurs and its affects on individual family’s finances within small communities. This shall be accomplished through the study of gender issues in Cambodia, as well as the impact of the women empowerment program “self-Worth”, which is a social development project created by NGOs with the aim of aiding and developing female entrepreneurs. The secondary objectives of this study is to bring awareness of the potential financial value women can contribute to the household, which is the capital for improving family economy; as well as leading to advancing the quality of living condition through the concept of entrepreneurship.          Target Audience: This paper would benefit various areas of to academia, especially areas focused on entrepreneurship, social development, and gender studies. The presentation will be made to Industrial Management Students in Mälardalen University, with its focus on delivering the female entrepreneurship concept and sharing the personal experiences of the impact the social development projects had on the individuals who have participated.  In addition, the adolescents in the Cambodia community high schools, universities and group of staff in Pact-Cambodia Organization are selected as additional key audiences for future workshops according to their availability.     Method: The design of this research thesis is neither purely qualitative nor quantitative. It is hybrid of both research strategies. This case study is also based on primary and secondary data. The bulk of the information came from three sources: documents, interviews, and direct observations. The evidence, data, and literature review are focused on female and male entrepreneurship, gender study, and female empowerment. All of the data presented are aimed at addressing the research objectives.   Result:   The national strategy development plan (NSDP), Pact-Cambodia activities, and self-WORTH women empowerment program are designed to foster female entrepreneurship through the education of literacy, basic mathematic, leadership skills, and advocacy. Microfinance is a powerful tool to fight poverty and transform lives. After the establishment and implementation of empowerment projects participation are able to access to more information and increase their cooperation network more than ever before. The programs permit thousands of Cambodian women to recognize opportunities. They learned how turn their creativities in to profits, and advance their family’s social status via their knowledge, skill and ability through social networking. This scope is the result of entrepreneurship creation which leads the improvement of family economy growth while more than one members of the family have ability to increase the income. This could be recognized as an innovative sustainability growth of living condition. Poor households use microfinance to move from daily basic survival to a better nutrition, housing, health, and education. The impact of social development programs has led to less gender discrimination in Cambodian society, and has aided with the poverty reduction of national strategy.

Women entrepreneurship has been well-studied, over the past 30 years, in OECD countries. However, women's roles as entrepreneurs advancing economic development in war torn and post conflict countries are under-studied. Recent research conducted in Africa, and within Rwanda, has focused on listening to the voices of women enterprise leaders, but there is a gap in understanding the best models of women entrepreneurship training to create sustainable entrepreneurship curriculum relevant to local culture. This research engages 30 graduates of the 2012 Peace Through Business program using a qualitative research approach reflective of feminist theory, post colonialism and empowerment studies relevant to women entrepreneurship. Participatory Action Research methodology has been applied through a combination of an in-country forum, an electronic survey and in-depth interviews. Using the simplified version of the Stevick-Colaizzi-Keen method of data analysis, findings address whether current, Western-based women entrepreneurship training smacks of failed development efforts of traditional 20th century aid.

Worldwide, entrepreneurship is seen as one of the most important solutions to unemployment, poverty and low economic growth. The creation of new ventures and the growth of existing businesses are vital contributing factors to any economy. Women outnumber male entrepreneurs, which have led to a renewed focus on gender entrepreneurship and the development of appropriate interventions for gender–specific groups across the globe. In South Africa, women make up just less than 50% of the entrepreneurial population. There is therefore, considerable scope to improve the number of women entrepreneurs in the economy and the level at which they operate. Literature review in this study highlighted that female business ownership is concentrated primarily in the service industries where businesses are relatively smaller in terms of employment and revenue, as opposed to the technology, construction and manufacturing sectors. Women entrepreneurs want to expand their businesses as much as male entrepreneurs but women have a hard time in obtaining external financing and credibility as business owners. The objective of the study was to explore white and black women entrepreneurs in the Carletonville and Soweto areas and to provide practical recommendations to ensure successful women entrepreneurship in the country. This study had a total of 58 black and white women entrepreneurs that were motivated by factors like the need for independence, confidence in the product/service offered, self– fulfillment and the need for a challenge into owning a business. A typical woman entrepreneur in this study is between the ages 40 to 59 years, is married with an average of one to two children. The woman entrepreneur is fairly educated with an education level of matric and a diploma. But her business is micro or very small with an annual turnover of R50 000 to R500 000. Participating women entrepreneurs are faced with obstacles such as inequality of access to credit, awareness and access to business support, risk averse, lack of focused women entrepreneurship policies from regional municipalities and government, lack of education and training in their business start–up phase. They are faced with obstacles such as awareness / access to business support, gaining acceptance and respect of people, liquidity and other financial problems and lack of timely business information in running their businesses. Women entrepreneurs in this study declared that they need support on factors such as business advice, information, counselling, mentoring, marketing support and women entrepreneurship specific based policies to enhance women entrepreneurship in the areas of Soweto and Carletonville. The study also conducted t–tests to compare white and black women entrepreneurs in the Carletonville and Soweto areas. The t–tests focused on motivational factors to self– employment, obstacles to business start–up and obstacles faced in current business operations. The t–test in this study revealed that black women entrepreneurs rated the following motivating factors: desire to wealth, the need for independence, need for flexible work schedule, need for a challenge, self–fulfillment, to develop my hobby, insufficient family income and ensure high job security more positively than the white women entrepreneurs. In addition, the t–tests also revealed that black women entrepreneurs are affected more than the white entrepreneurs by fear of failure and their perceived inequality of access to credit in their business start–up. Furthermore, black women entrepreneurs, in running their businesses are severely affected by family pressures in relation to gender roles and a lack of awareness of or access to business support more than the white women entrepreneurs. This study offered recommendations such as exposing women in entrepreneurship at a tender age, increasing access to finance and the establishment and enhancement of women entrepreneurs’ organisations like SAWEN, BWASA, and SAWIMA amongst others. The women entrepreneurs’ organisations should embark on campaigns and intensify their marketing strategies amongst others. / Thesis (M.B.A.)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2012.

Over the past few years there has been an explosion of appetite for entrepreneurship, more particularly from women. Given the numerous barriers faced especially by women entrepreneurs today, there is a pressing need to initiate empowerment programmes to enable them to succeed in their endeavours. There is a need to empower women economically and to create employment opportunities and income generating activities to enable them to survive, prosper and provide support for their families. For the development of women–to–women business potential, women entrepreneurs require support in the form of training in strategic business development, access to credit funds, assistance with marketing skills and product design and development. Starting a firm of one's own may be one way for women to avoid the 'glass ceiling' that has sometimes been argued to exist in established organisations, providing one attractive way for entrepreneurial women to realise their full potential. Small business owners have more freedom to plan their personal schedules and to jungle them to suit their work and family demands which is often an important consideration for women. Entrepreneurs must be flexible and creative to meet the challenges which come along with running their businesses. The importance of a strong, entrepreneurial vision that can lead towards a successful enterprise is often underestimated. Women are disadvantaged by their lower levels of financial literacy and awareness. Access barriers are significant. Opportunities for financial services companies who can provide affordable, appropriate and accessible products to meet the needs of self–employed women are thus limited. Women entrepreneurs are still to overcome key challenges like access to training in international trade issues, operations management and marketing, as well as access to good mentors and mentorship programs. The study concludes that women confront barriers because of their gender and the author or investigator cites previous research that argues that these barriers are a result of socialisation practices, educational experiences, family roles, and networking. Government and all other relevant stakeholders should promote public awareness and ensure that resources for programs to foster entrepreneurship are decentralised. Women entrepreneurs should examine the role that the education system could play in developing entrepreneurial skills and attitudes. In Ekurhuleni region there is an increasing number of women who are required to steer their own businesses, and many are struggling to achieve success. This paper explores women entrepreneurship in the construction and engineering sectors. According to the responses obtained from the study, there are specific skills that entrepreneurs must posses in order to operate and succeed in construction and engineering industries within the Ekurhuleni region and these are communication skills, administration skills, financial skills and interpersonal skills. / Thesis (M.B.A.)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2012.

Worldwide, entrepreneurship is seen as one of the most important solutions to unemployment, poverty and low economic growth. The creation of new ventures and the growth of existing businesses are vital contributing factors to any economy. Women outnumber male entrepreneurs, which have led to a renewed focus on gender entrepreneurship and the development of appropriate interventions for gender–specific groups across the globe. In South Africa, women make up just less than 50% of the entrepreneurial population. There is therefore, considerable scope to improve the number of women entrepreneurs in the economy and the level at which they operate. Literature review in this study highlighted that female business ownership is concentrated primarily in the service industries where businesses are relatively smaller in terms of employment and revenue, as opposed to the technology, construction and manufacturing sectors. Women entrepreneurs want to expand their businesses as much as male entrepreneurs but women have a hard time in obtaining external financing and credibility as business owners. The objective of the study was to explore white and black women entrepreneurs in the Carletonville and Soweto areas and to provide practical recommendations to ensure successful women entrepreneurship in the country. This study had a total of 58 black and white women entrepreneurs that were motivated by factors like the need for independence, confidence in the product/service offered, self– fulfillment and the need for a challenge into owning a business. A typical woman entrepreneur in this study is between the ages 40 to 59 years, is married with an average of one to two children. The woman entrepreneur is fairly educated with an education level of matric and a diploma. But her business is micro or very small with an annual turnover of R50 000 to R500 000. Participating women entrepreneurs are faced with obstacles such as inequality of access to credit, awareness and access to business support, risk averse, lack of focused women entrepreneurship policies from regional municipalities and government, lack of education and training in their business start–up phase. They are faced with obstacles such as awareness / access to business support, gaining acceptance and respect of people, liquidity and other financial problems and lack of timely business information in running their businesses. Women entrepreneurs in this study declared that they need support on factors such as business advice, information, counselling, mentoring, marketing support and women entrepreneurship specific based policies to enhance women entrepreneurship in the areas of Soweto and Carletonville. The study also conducted t–tests to compare white and black women entrepreneurs in the Carletonville and Soweto areas. The t–tests focused on motivational factors to self– employment, obstacles to business start–up and obstacles faced in current business operations. The t–test in this study revealed that black women entrepreneurs rated the following motivating factors: desire to wealth, the need for independence, need for flexible work schedule, need for a challenge, self–fulfillment, to develop my hobby, insufficient family income and ensure high job security more positively than the white women entrepreneurs. In addition, the t–tests also revealed that black women entrepreneurs are affected more than the white entrepreneurs by fear of failure and their perceived inequality of access to credit in their business start–up. Furthermore, black women entrepreneurs, in running their businesses are severely affected by family pressures in relation to gender roles and a lack of awareness of or access to business support more than the white women entrepreneurs. This study offered recommendations such as exposing women in entrepreneurship at a tender age, increasing access to finance and the establishment and enhancement of women entrepreneurs’ organisations like SAWEN, BWASA, and SAWIMA amongst others. The women entrepreneurs’ organisations should embark on campaigns and intensify their marketing strategies amongst others. / Thesis (M.B.A.)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2012.