In the academic literature resource dependent communities have been characterized as principally economic spaces that evolved relative to their socio-economic dependence on a single resource-based industry. Subsequently, as industry restructuring and closure has effected community transition, research emphasis has shifted to the emergence of alternative economic futures for these places. Currently, economic and social renewal in resource dependent communities is typified by sets of locally based strategies that rely on the participation of all community members. However, as recent research positions local actors as catalysts for socio-economic development, very little research has been dedicated to exploring the multiple roles and contributions women make to their households and broader community. By extension, the organization of women's economic lives, particularly in terms of self-employment, has been absent from the discourses surrounding community transition and resilience. In response, my research is rooted in place-based change as a means of highlighting how self-employed women have made use of place-based resources to structure their livelihood strategies. Using personal observation and semi-structured, open-ended interviews with 13 women in Gold River, BC, the purpose of my research was to demonstrate how self-employed women simultaneously shape and are shaped by place. In turn, I demonstrate that women pursue self-employment as a means of fulfilling their requirements for paid work, personal fulfillment, and the flexibility to maintain household and community responsibilities. In the process, self-employed women have made unique contributions to community well-being and to the evolution of place-based identity.

The research seeks to explore why women in Zimbabwe still face hindrances in accessing micro finance services and what can be done to meet their needs in a more holistic and effective way. Women play a crucial role in the economic development of their families and communities but are faced with certain obstacles that hinder them from performing their role effectively. Such hindrances as poverty, unemployment, low household income and societal discrimination. UNIFEM (1992) confirms that the majority of the world‟s poor have a predominantly female face and argues that women earn only 10 percent of world‟s income and own less than 10 percent of the world‟s property. African women have been characterised by the lack of empowerment caused by societal perceptions and negative cultural practice. In many cases of women rights violation it has been noted that this has been exacerbated by the over reliance on the male counterpart. Development practitioners have noted that micro finance as one of the strategies needed for women empowerment. Despite the concept having been practiced for at least 15 years now, women still face challenges in accessing micro finance services. There is need for Micro Finance Institutions to recognise the position of women in relation to men as actors in society.

The topic of this study is “An exploration of the reasons surrounding Indian businesswomen’s involvement in home-based businesses in Shallcross, Durban”. The objective of this study was to investigate some of the reasons why Indian women choose to venture into small business. This study also explored some of the history of the Indian people of Natal (now known as KwaZulu-Natal) and briefly touched on the past and present lives of Indian women in South Africa. The informants used in this study were Indian women who owned small home-based businesses. They all reside in Shallcross where they operate their businesses from their homes. Shallcross is situated in Durban, in the province of KwaZulu-Natal. Their businesses consisted of various types like hair salons, catering and gift shops. All interviews with the informants were informal in nature. Informal, unstructured yet indepth interviews and life histories were used in the study to collect data. Life histories were summarized to highlight the aims and results of the study. The literature reviewed for this study focused on issues on female entrepreneurship in South Africa. The most part of the literature review paid special attention to the changing role of Indian women, the nature of small businesses and their importance in South Africa’s developing economy, female motives for entrepreneurship and the future of female entrepreneurship. The literature review process has revealed a gap in the literature regarding Indian women involved in small business, but the literature also provided greater clarity and understanding of women entrepreneurship from both historically and contemporary perspectives. / Thesis (M.Soc.Sci.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2008.

In recent years, craft fairs, shows and markets where crafters sell their handmade goods such as pottery, jewelry, handmade clothes and needlework have grown in popularity across the United States. A common intent among individuals in this community echo political statements made by the turn of the century Arts and Crafts movement, while there are political aspects of the community that can also be seen as an extension of the third wave feminist do-it-yourself (DIY) ethic of the late 1990s. This newly enlarged community of crafters that congregates in person also has a strong online presence. Etsy.com plays a large role in this community. The introduction of websites such as Etsy.com to the communities they serve has widespread impacts. The aim of this study is to analyze how Etsy.com impacts the lives of women who use the website to earn income. Following ethnographic traditions, the researcher interviewed five community members. The focus was on thick description of the DIY community and thematization of interview narratives. To meet participant observation criteria, the researcher also volunteered at the Independent Publishing Resource Center (IPRC) in Portland, Oregon for 4 months. Additionally, the researcher conducted a textual analysis of blogs, websites, artwork, and other sources of data collected from the online hand crafting community. The study presents and discusses the themes that emerged from the data, including women's work, feminism and technology, the crafters' political statements, the crafters as owners of legitimate businesses, and Etsy.com's impact on local economy. The results paint a picture of the community (both on and offline) and how Etsy.com helps to shape this. The researcher then discusses how to assess the impacts tools such as community websites will have on the communities they serve.

Thesis (MBA (Business Management))--Stellenbosch University, 2008. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The study presents an empirical investigation into the association between motivation and performance of women entrepreneurs in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. Motivations behind women starting their own businesses are defined. It assesses the performance of women entrepreneurs and their contribution to the economic growth (turnover, size of business, number of people employed) of the country. By applying statistical evaluation methods (frequency analysis) this research adds to existing knowledge in this field, by defining the association between the intention of starting a business and the performance of their businesses. Analysis shows that the women's motives for starting their businesses are generally positive. However, there are still a high number of women whose motives are influenced by negative factors (such as loss of income sources). Also, the overall performance of their businesses is still low in terms of revenues generated and the number of people that they employ on a full-time basis. Networking levels are high, indicating a desire to succeed. An association between motivation and performance has been established. However, findings have indicated no significant association between the type of motivation (positive or negative) and performance. The present study concludes with recommendations to enable women to improve the performance of their businesses. Findings have indicated a higher level of positive factors of motivation, in comparison with negative factors of motivation; which implies that there are other factors which could be hindering them from improving the economic performance of their businesses. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie studie bied 'n empiriese ondersoek van die verband tussen die motivering en die werkverrigting van vroue entrepreneurs in die Wes Kaap provinsie van Suid-Afrika. Die dryfveer van vroue entrepreneurs word omskryf. Verder assesseer die studie die werkverrigting van vroue entrepreneurs en hulle bydrae tot die ekonomiese groei (arbeidsomset, grootte van die besigheid, getal personeel) van die land. Deur die aanwending van statistiese evaluasiemetodes (frekwensie analise) dra die studie by tot die bestaande kennis in hierdiee studieveld, en word gedoen deur die definieering van die verband tussen die besluit om 'n besigheid te begin en die uiteindelike prestasie van hulle besighede. Analise toon dat die vroue se motiewe vir die begin van hulle besighede gewoonlik positief is. Daar is egter ook nog 'n groot aantal vroue wie se motiewe beinvloed word deur negatiewe faktore (soos verlies van inkomstebronne). Die algehele prestasie van hulle besighede is ook nog swak in terme van inkomste gegenereer en die getal werknemers wat op 'n voltydse basis in diens geneem word. Netwerkvlakke is hoog, wat 'n aanduiding is van die wil om te slaag. 'n Assosiasie tussen motivering en prestasie is vasgestel. Daar is egter gevind dat geen beduidende assosiasie bestaan tussen die tipe motivering (positief of negatief) en prestasie of werkverrigting nie. Die studie sluit af met voorstelle vir die verbetering van prestasie vir vroue aan die hoof van besighede. Bevindinge toon dat in vergelyking met negatiewe motiverende faktore, daar 'n hoer vlak van positiewe faktore is, wat impliseer dat daar ander faktore bestaan wat die ekonomiese prestasie van hulle besighede kan verhinder.

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Since the inception of the new dispensation, entrepreneurship has been identified as one of the key enablers of economic participation. For this reason the government has established strategic institutions and mandated them to promote entrepreneurship in the country with the aim of increasing economic participation and entrepreneurial activities. One of the key and the fastest growing industries that have been identified as needing attention with regards to increasing participation of the women entrepreneurs is the tourism industry. There is now a noticeable growth of women entrepreneurs in this industry. They are found running bed and breakfasts (B&Bs) and conducting tours in urban areas as well as townships and rural areas. This is further evident if one looks at the value chain in the tourism sector. However, women entrepreneurs that are found in this sector are facing specific challenges that hinder their progress towards achieving sustainable businesses, especially those running or intending to run B&B businesses. Some of these challenges are sector related and some are just inherent to pursuing an entrepreneurial journey. The participation of women in the mainstream of entrepreneurship presents unique challenges as well. Women were never allowed to participate fully in the entrepreneurial activities. The latter still contributes to the challenges faced by women in their journey towards developing and operating sustainable businesses irrespective of the industry in which they operate in. Based on the above discussion, the main problem statement of this study is: To develop a strategic entrepreneurial model to enable female entrepreneurs to operate sustainable B&B businesses in the tourism industry.

This study aimed to investigate factors affecting the participation of women-owned MSEs in the manufacturing sector in two selected sub-cities of Addis Ababa, namely, Kolfe Keranio and Nefas Silk Lafto sub-cities and to explore and gain a deeper understanding of the lived experiences and participation of women who own MSEs in the manufacturing sector as well as government entities that support these MSEs. The study adopted a qualitative, exploratory research approach. Semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted to collect data from women who participated in the manufacturing sector, government officials, MSEs experts in the sub-cities and gender office professionals who worked closely with women’s MSEs in the manufacturing sector. Besides, direct observation was used to get firsthand information concerning the nature of women-owned MSEs and their working environments such as limited working space, lack of warehouses, and physical constraints relating to the use of stairs in storeyed buildings, among others. Document review and secondary data were used to triangulate the results from the interviews and obtain quantifiable data that could be used to clarify certain issues in the study. The data were analyzed using thematic data analysis to identify how the theme related to the research objectives. The researcher used a table to visualize the coded themes to determine which was the major problem, support, and characteristics of women-owned MSEs. The study revealed that women have limited education levels and skills. It is thus difficult for women who own MSEs to exploit advantages or opportunities to expand their business. The findings also reported the inability to access finance for MSEs start-ups and expansion. Women generally lacked information regarding various aspects of MSEs during the establishment of their businesses. Women-owned MSEs have received some support, particularly from government agencies. However, the support they are currently receiving is inadequate to enable them to transform their business. Women-owned MSEs still face problems on many fronts including workspace, limited finance, outdated technology, poor marketing strategies were among others that need addressing. To develop women-owned MSEs and empower other women in the field, the government, the public sector, and formal financial institutes should be informed on the value of gender-balanced contribution in the informal sector enterprises. It is recommended that there should be a greater focus on the social and economic empowerment of women, as they constitute a vulnerable social category that is critical in development endeavors. / Development Studies / M.A. (Development Studies)