Women’s Entrepreneurship Development in Tanzania: Insights and Recommendations
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Date
2015
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Abstract
Women play a key role in the private sector and micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs)
in Tanzania. The proportion of women owned enterprises (WOEs) is reported to have increased
from 35 per cent in early 1990s (NISS, 1991) to 54.3 per cent in 2012 (MIT, 2012). This
amounted to 1.716 million WOEs, over 99 per cent of which are microenterprises with fewer
than five employees and almost three-quarters have only one employee.
The majority of women entrepreneurs are aged between 25 and 40 years, and have a low level of
education. On the one hand, these women entrepreneurs are a potential motor for the economy
to generate jobs and reduce poverty. On the other hand, multiple obstacles continue to impede
their capacity to start and grow businesses in sectors that generate quality jobs. Although many
women have an untapped potential for entrepreneurial development, they are often impeded by
a lack of the necessary capacities, skills and resources. They face more disadvantages than men
due to legal impediments, cultural attitudes, less mobility and their businesses tend to be younger
and smaller than men’s. All of these areas came through in the report, to varying degrees.