Women Entrepreneurs in East Africa: How Women Integration can boost Entrepreneurial Solutions to Sustainable Development. A Review of Literature

Samuel Hakizimana, Stephen Muathe

^1,2 School of Business, Economics, and Tourism, Kenyatta University

²(https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8192-5774)

ABSTRACT: Women’s contributions to sustainable development and trade development are recognized at the national level in the East African community nation’s Frameworks for financial development and trade policy. This paper focuses on examining how women’s Integration can boost Entrepreneurial Solutions to Sustainable Development in the East African Community member states of Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda. The researcher employed secondary data to conduct a thorough literature search. On how Women’s Integration can boost Entrepreneurial Solutions to Sustainable Development in the East African community context. The findings indicated that overcoming obstacles including inadequate market access, market competition, Poor business education, inadequate infrastructure, a lack of resources, a lack of access to raw materials, an unreliable electricity supply, and a lack of marketing knowledge, production restrictions, and a lack of storage space. Additionally, having few contacts outside of prejudice and class bias, lack of social acceptance, relationships with the workforce, attitudes of other workers, and society’s low opinion of women are the bigger social hurdles for them to choose entrepreneurship in the East African community Fellow Countries. As a result, the report suggests that governments of East African Community Member States improve state subsidies, create welcoming workplaces, and The East African community region as a whole needs to embrace gender and strengthen the position of women in the advancement of culture, society, politics, the economy, and technology. Member Nations should encourage gender equality and women, effective assimilation, engagement in sustainable growth at all levels, especially in the outcome; eradicate discrimination laws and customs; support efficient education awareness programs aimed at changing negative attitudes toward women, and develop or embrace new technology that will ensure the security of occupation and certified success for females.

KEY WORDS: Women entrepreneurs, East African Community (EAC), Training, access to credit, and sustainable development.

1. INTRODUCTION

The social-economic development of nations is aided by encouraging women’s entrepreneurship. (Julioeet, 2017; Lock & Lawton Smith, 2016a; Lordkipanidze et al., 2005; Makena et al., 2014). The rate of growth in female entrepreneurs, particularly in third countries has had a favorable effect on consumption and general household welfare (Hasan & Almubarak, 2016; Karakire Guma, 2015; Sarri & Trihopoulou, 2005,  Muathe & Muraguri-Makau, 2020). Due to the special role that women play in the home, there is an increased amount of entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurship offers economic security to women (Etim & Iwu, 2019; Monteith & Camfield, 2019; Stemler & Woody, 2021). gives them a stage for self-expression (Jamali, 2009; Panda, 2018; Sriram et al., 2020) and empowers them as individuals (Winton & Yerramilli, 2008).

Given the provable proof of the significance of launching new businesses for economic development and progress .In recent times, there has been an increase in interest in women entrepreneurship. In addition to fostering employment generation and sustainable development, female entrepreneurship is progressively acknowledged to improve the variety of business ventures in all economic systems and to offer females channels for appearance and possible satisfaction (Jamali, 2009).

East Africa’s open and financial life revolves around productivity and employment issues, and recent literature has noted that these two issues form a vicious cycle that emphasizes the nature of poverty in its developing national economies, including those of Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi, South Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. This is expressly factual when it comes to the monetary complications that the continent’s women are confronting. According to modern thinking, product development and continuous improvement are the greatest ways to break the cycle because they create the conditions for a sufficient supply of products and services, which in turn boosts social progress and increases citizen well-being. On the other hand, it is said that unemployment is a serious hindrance to societal advancement since it wastes human resources and results in the formation of welfare loss because of decreased output, which results in lower income and worsened well-being (Muathe & Muraguri-Makau,  2020, Wambui & Muathe, 2021).

Globally, women entrepreneurs are seen as having a significant influence on fostering equitable sustainable development and grassroots economic growth globally. More intentional government policies and regulations have been seen as part of the government’s effort to support SMEs as they have grown to be crucial to the economic frameworks of the countries. In most economies with significant rates of job growth, it’s also believed that SMEs make up over 90% of all businesses. They serve as a means of boosting industrial output and exports. For instance, the contribution of SMEs to employment and GDP in Kenya is projected to be above 60% and 55%, respectively (Makena et al., 2014).

Many organizations, notably the International Finance Corporation, have highlighted the ability of women owners of businesses to contribute to the expansion of any budget (Etim & Iwu, 2019). In addition, Lordkipanidze et al. (2005) refer to incredible power for economic development and advancement among female entrepreneurs. In recognition of their significance as heads of households or breadwinners; while these contributions are well pronounced in developed countries, As a result of women’s lack of access to an equal playing field with males, their influence is less noticeable in developing economies.

In keeping with this viewpoint, governments and international organizations should recognize the entrepreneurial skills possessed by women as a special kind of “untapped pool.” These opinions partially concur with the idea that female entrepreneurs are “rising stars” and have been recognized as the “engine for progress” in emerging nations, eventually resulting in affluence and upward mobility for their families and communities.

The study carried out by Mbithi, (2012) in the East African community asserts that women entrepreneurs may achieve economic independence via their productive work, particularly in the industrial sector, which also enables them to significantly contribute to general development. In addition to being a source of economic empowerment for women, female entrepreneurship, particularly in SME production activities, has a beneficial social influence on the women who engage in it. Many communities do not provide women the same chances as they do for males. By granting women access to both health protection and education, progress has been made. Other changes, notably in the political and economic spheres, have remained scarce.

According to research regarding female entrepreneurs that was done in Pakistan by Rajar ( 2019), Making deliberate efforts is important to empower female business owners to make more intelligent financial decisions that will allow them to improve their companies and raise their level of market competitiveness. Making improvements to the business’s processes will increase revenue and open up new job chances for others. However, given that female entrepreneurs’ abilities and potential are still substantially untapped in many situations, these advantages are seldom utilized in a systematic manner

A growing body of research indicates that while the rate at which women are starting firms has grown dramatically, female entrepreneurial activity is still significantly and consistently lower than that of men (Lock , 2016).

The research adds to the literature on entrepreneurship by outlining fundamental challenges faced by women who pursue entrepreneurship. It also illustrates the interactions between various limitations that lead to unfavorable settings for businesswomen. Additionally, the framework provided to rank the constraints are intended to assist donor organizations and policymakers in making effective decisions regarding planning and resource allocation, as there have been concerns raised about the necessity and effectiveness of programmed funding for entrepreneurs that do not line up females (Sriram et al., 2020)

Women entrepreneurs have been identified as the new growth drivers and rising stars of the economies, bringing prosperity and welfare. They have been cited by a range of stakeholders as a significant “untapped source” of sustainable development (Minniti & Naudé, 2010).

However, women bear a disproportionately high share of poverty both globally and regionally. The gender gap in entrepreneurship still exists in socioeconomic development despite the rising number of women in companies and the huge growth in initiatives, legislation, and resources created to support and develop women’s entrepreneurship (Makena et al., 2014).

Women are a growing force in the global economy that policymakers cannot afford to ignore. They should encourage women to start their businesses and provide them with the cash they need to do so. In Africa’s long-term quest for prosperity, entrepreneurs are essential players (Ngorora & Mago, 2018). The majority of governments use a lot of money supporting different industries and empowering groups of people to advance their socioeconomic status, but women entrepreneurs are largely ignored despite the undeniable value of their contributions to personal, societal, and global advancement.

There are a few obstacles that women entrepreneurs to be looked at because of the considerable impact they have on the socio-economic growth of their societies. In EAC, great progress has been made in promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment, especially in encouraging women to start their businesses. However, there are still gaps, such as inadequate financial capacity and knowledge gap for women.

Additionally, research revealed that 21,67% of women business owners lacked training, while 38,3% of them experienced market problems (Esnard, 2016). The majority of economies can be transformed by women’s entrepreneurship.

Based on the research mentioned above, and even though all of the efforts made by women in the EAC nations to play a significant role in economic and social development, the research was interested in evaluating the relationship between women’s entrepreneurship and sustainable development in EAC.

1.3 Objectives of the study

The main objective of this study was to evaluate women entrepreneurs in EAC and how Women Integration can boost Entrepreneurial Solutions to Sustainable Development.

1.3.1 Specific objectives

1. To assess the participation of women in entrepreneurship within the EAC
2. To evaluate the advantages of entrepreneurship for women in EAC

• To determine the challenges that women entrepreneurs encounter in EAC.

1. To assess whether there is any connection between EAC women’s entrepreneurship and sustainable development.

2. LITERATURE REVIEW

An important component in female entrepreneurship is the sustainable development of the nation. According to several experts, the majority of women launch small firms that are typically under $10 million in revenue and employ fewer than 10 people (Akehurst et al., 2012). As a result, the size of the firm, which is frequently used as a basis for evaluating performance, contributes to the idea that women’s tendency to start small businesses indicates a deficiency in their ability to run successful enterprises. Women entrepreneurs frequently claim a lack of specific knowledge necessary to properly complete the responsibilities involved in running a business as one reason why they choose to start smaller businesses.

The other reason is that they have a harder time obtaining funding for their ideas. (Modarresi et al., 2016; Naicker, 2006) show that the magnitude of the business is associated to the distinct growth-related motivations and mindsets of women entrepreneurs compared to males. Although there are often disparities between the inclination of men and women to take economic risks.

A further outside issue that affects female entrepreneurship is financing. To begin with, funding is connected to the family economy, and start-ups should pay attention to this relationship. Initial financial constraints can have detrimental long-term consequences. Smaller amounts of initial funding for startups have been demonstrated to impair an entrepreneur’s ability to get financing from banks, according to studies. A lot of businesses are formed by high- and low-income families, although middle-class families rarely take the risk of opening a new company (Colombo & Grilli, 2007).

Secondly ,  Nakabugo and Muathe (2022) note  that small and medium-sized businesses must have access to financing and initial capital to survive. Without sufficient funding, an entrepreneur is unable to produce new goods and services, add to their existing workforce, or do any of the other things that come with business growth. Numerous empirical studies have demonstrated that small and medium-sized businesses choose bank loans over any other option as their primary financing source. Abor and Biekpe (2007) give research that suggests women business owners receive financial resources in less favorable circumstances than their male counterparts.

The study highlights the implications for future directions in women’s entrepreneurship research while paying particular attention to perceptions of micro and macro-level factors influencing female entrepreneurship in transition economies. We also integrate insights into the salience of meso-level factors as necessary (Tawane& Muathe, 2019).

Kyalo and Kiganane (2014) discovered that the vast majority of products exchanged in informal merge commerce are manufactured commodities, such as plastic shopping bags, discarded fashion, candies, liquids, liquor, and other alcoholic beverages, as well as industrial goods like cooking oil and detergent. Men are less likely than women in the EAC to engage in informal economic activities to generate income and employment. The likelihood of women trading industrial items over farm commodities was also discovered.

The Process of formation of the EAC emphasizes the significance of the effective participation of women in the Community’s trade and development operations and offers support for women in that regard (EAC, 1999). Women entrepreneurs in the area nonetheless confront difficulties, such as those brought on by non-tariff trade restrictions. The growth and extension of intraregional EAC trade, which has mostly remained modest, have been restricted by such impediments.

According to research on women entrepreneurs, several motivational elements influence their choice to launch their businesses (Kyalo & Kiganane, 2014). These motivations are frequently strongly tied to prospects for both professional and personal growth. Accordingly, some experts contend that women’s desire for independence, more money, as well as self-improvement (social standing and self-esteem), appears to be a key factor in why women start their businesses. Other studies think that in addition to the urge for independence, women tend to start their businesses because they want to pursue an ideal and maintain a work-life balance, but they are also pressured to do so by financial requirements, job discontent, or unemployment. The largest issues facing female entrepreneurs in underdeveloped nations are those relating to networks and connections, a lack of financial resources or expertise in financial planning and administration, and these issues are all tied to networks and connections (Monteith & Camfield, 2019).

In Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, the DRC, South Sudan, and Uganda, which are EAC Partner States, the objective of this research is to observe how Women’s Integration can boost Entrepreneurial Solutions to Sustainable Development in these nations. The study adds to the existing discussion and research on the value of entrepreneurs in East Africa and how Women’s Integration can boost Entrepreneurial Solutions to Sustainable Development both among EAC nations as a whole and for female entrepreneurs.

Recommendations will inform policy discourse, especially about boosting ladies’ businesses’ involvement in intra- and extra-EAC commerce. As a result, this study focuses on the three following aspects of entrepreneurs. Importance of women entrepreneurs, Challenges of women entrepreneurs, women entrepreneurs and sustainable development, and Facilitating women’s entrepreneurship through legislative, regulatory, and policy frameworks.

2.1 Importance of Women Entrepreneurs

The reasons for launching a business have also been extensively examined, with some academics pointing to gender inequality as a motivating factor for female entrepreneurship in both rich and poor countries(Monteith & Camfield, 2019; Rajar, 2019). With self-employment frequently seen as a survival tactic or as a way to provide flexibility in work scheduling and balance multiple roles, it is clear that for many female entrepreneurs, the decision to work for themselves may be a result of discrimination in the employment market, the restricted structure of options, or concerns with the glass ceiling in the workplace. (Ajjan et al., 2014).

Due to their multiple duties, women are more suited to entrepreneurship than normal employment in both the commercial and public sectors. Female entrepreneurs are increasingly regarded as being crucial to the nation’s economic growth (Martínez-Fierro et al., 2016). They have not only helped to broaden entrepreneurs throughout the market economy but also via their increasing numbers, help create jobs and advance the economy (Uwitonze, 2016).

Rwanda’s economic revival and promotion of peace were both aided by a supportive legal framework. This Part also discusses how the lessons from Rwanda can be applied more broadly and contribute to our knowledge of how women affect peace, transitional justice, and entrepreneurship. While some aspects of Rwandan society post-genocide may be unique, This section also describes how the valuable lessons in Rwanda can be used in other contexts (Stemler & Woody, 2021).

The productive work that women do, especially in industries, helps to increase their economic independence and their capacity to make greater contributions to global development (Otunaiya et al., 2013). Better development results result from women and men having equal access to economic opportunities. About one-third of all trades worldwide are owned and operated by women, and they make important contributions to economic growth and job creation.

The same is true for the EAC fellow nations of Burundi, South Sudan, The DRC, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda. For instance, in Kenya, females make up around 56 % of all business owners. With minor earnings and no public safety, the majority of enterprises in the EAC area continue to be mostly informal (Rashid, 2019).

2.2 Challenges of Women Entrepreneurs

The largest obstacles for developing-nation women entrepreneurs are those relating to networks and contacts, as well as a lack of financial resources or expertise in financial planning and administration. In the aforementioned literature, we discovered a positive and significant correlation between the difficulties faced by female business owners and the following elements: Lack of managerial expertise, inability to obtain financing, inability to use innovation, and inability to make use of connectivity digital potentials (Sriram et al., 2020).

In such a situation, policymakers have transferred control of the welfare state to the market and encouraged female entrepreneurs to start their businesses. According to the researcher, women entrepreneurs are significantly impacted by economic factors such as limited market access, market competition, poor facilities, a lack of business education, a scarcity of funds or capital, restricted access to raw materials, inadequate power, a lack of marketing expertise, production limitations, and a shortage of storage space. (Rajar, 2019).

Additionally, having few links external to preconception and class bias, lack of community acceptance, relationships with the staff, attitudes of other workers, and the world’s low opinion of women are the bigger social hurdles for them to choose entrepreneurship (Ombi et al., 2018).

Although still significantly lower than that of males, the status of female engagement in entrepreneurship activities remains. The entrepreneurial aptitude of women and the explanation for a large portion of the variation between the genders in entrepreneurial activity are greatly influenced by an individual’s perceptual conceptions. Without a doubt, it is shown that, across all sample developing nations such as EAC member states and regardless of entrepreneurial drive, women tend to view themselves as Compared to men, and the entrepreneurial atmosphere is seen as less optimistic. (Langowitz & Minniti, 2021).

Cho et al.(2019) believe that in developing nations, barriers faced by women entrepreneurs are increasing as a result of work-family conflicts, gender discrimination, a lack of infrastructure, difficulties raising capital, an unbalanced business, economic, and political environment, personality differences, and a lack of training and education.

2.3 Women Entrepreneurs and Sustainable Development

Any nation’s economic progress benefits greatly from the contributions of women. This is an important component that has a big impact on any emerging situation. By working in a variety of industries, women benefit the economy greatly in a diversity of techniques. Women operate a large number of prosperous businesses, and some of them have strong entrepreneurial skills. Some of these ladies have college degrees and are aware of how to use theory in business in the right way. It is common knowledge that many of the biggest, most prosperous trades in the world today are possessed and operated via women(Ambepitiya, 2013).

Based on the study carried out by Mahajan and Bandyopadhyay (2021) Many of the small businesses managed by women in poor countries, particularly in the EAC have proven to be profitable. Both in affluent and developing nations, female entrepreneurs are socially influential in terms of education and having a beneficial social influence. Studying how women in business and their abilities may be applied to build a supportable budget in a developing country is crucial. The authors highlighted the value of human capital, which is a key ingredient in economic development and makes a beneficial contribution to its expansion.

More academics have recently turned their attention to female possessed an enterprise as a outcome of the rise in female entrepreneurs who are making a positive impact on sustainable development. Women entrepreneurs have a significant impact on global economic development since their enterprises create new job opportunities (Akehurst et al., 2012).

Based on the research carried out by Shelton (2006), Any EAC member state must give particular thought to the issue of women and jobs. The family’s principal decision-makers and managers of the family’s well-being are women. To meet the needs of the family, men generate money, while women manage it. Women in underdeveloped nations confront a variety of difficulties. Taking care of one’s family’s business is a difficult undertaking. It’s difficult to operate a venture and focus on the growth of one’s family at the same time. However, female business owners have surmounted this difficulty.

It is believed that women entrepreneurs in EAC contribute 40% to the growth of economies, despite being the fastest-growing enterprises globally and having a substantial impact on innovation, employment, and wealth creation. However, given fewer than 10% of studies on entrepreneurship are about women’s entrepreneurship, their overall impact on global economies is understudied (Brush & Cooper, 2012).

2.4 Facilitating women’s entrepreneurship through legislative, regulatory, and policy frameworks

EAC (2010) recognizes the influence of females to commercial transformation, sustained development, and socioeconomic growth processes. It is recognized that gender equality must be promoted across the EAC community to strengthen the position of women in the advancement of culture, society, politics, the economy, and technology.

Partner States specifically consent to do the following: encouraging educational awareness campaigns that are efficient in transforming anti-women attitudes and implementing technologies that will secure the sustainability of work and career advancement for ladies, and abolishing discriminatory legislation and customs against women. (Gerards et al., 2022) Furthermore, the Treaty demands the involvement of female entrepreneurs in the creation and implementation of policy, the advancement of the implementation of specific initiatives for female possessed SMEs, as well as the elimination of any policies, rules, and procedures that prevent women from accessing financial resources such as lending, and the implementation of fluctuations to instructive and occupational policies to help females to increase their industrial and technological labor supply over the assistances they acquire.

As a benefit for female entrepreneurs, additionally, it exhorts Associate Members to work with their strategic partnerships and industry compartments to establish credit agencies that will primarily service corporate investors, particularly small-scale firms. Although the EAC Treaty has significant necessities for females, particularly those who work in business, it is silent on implementation and makes no specific suggestions on how to make sure that such commitments are upheld at the local and national levels. There is little evidence on the field that these obligations are being followed, except that the Treaty’s provisions. (Hatibu & Hafidh, 2021).

A difficulty for fewer businesswomen is presented by the fact that the majority of EAC trade policies and papers are in English, and large, and employ legal and technical trade language. Women face challenges comprehending and communicating the needs of these monitoring and lawful structures since they are less educated than males, who have adult literacy rates (aged 15 and above) that range from as high as 70% in Kenya to 52 percent in Burundi (Eac, 2021). Sexual identity laws and practices could affect different persons differently depending on what roles, responsibilities, rights, and opportunities society assigns to men and women.   Different outcomes of trade policy could be observed due to sexual identity discrepancies in in having the resources available for manufacturing and livelihood opportunities, as is the case at the time in the EAC. Given that SMEs owned by females in the EAC are probably reduced than those held by males (McCormick & Wahba, 2001). As a result, considering that they are more moment to complete the essential cross-border processes because women spend a greater percentage of their time taking care of domestic chores, neutral laws are expected to have a significantly detrimental impact on woman firms. Women’s contributions to sustainable development and trade development are recognized at the national level by EAC nations’ financial growth strategies and trade rules (such as the Republic of Uganda’s 2007 and Rwanda’s 2010 versions). Therefore, the issue of people’s equal emancipation is rarely discussed in depth, and there is seldom provided a clear blueprint on how to guarantee that female entrepreneur are safeguarded from discrimination. One notable development is the creation of gender-specific ministries in many partner state nations (Mbithi, 2012; Twijnstra, 2011).

The seven-member State countries each have a gender, although there is little proof that the directive has been put into practice. The execution of gender-related programs from development partners is handled by officials in many Ministries. EAC nations must put programs in place that promote woman’s equality. Every one of the EAC countries’ constitutions guarantees gender equality. Cultural barriers still prevent women from fully integrating into the economic world, and the formal economy does not provide equitable opportunity for all, with most women-owned enterprises being in the unorganized sector (Bunyasi & Email, 2014).

For instance, women make up 70 to 80 % of those involved in small-scale and informal commerce in Kenya (Public of Kenya, 2011, (Makena et al., 2014). Informal enterprises face unique difficulties, such as difficulty obtaining significant bank loans, which are essential for company growth. It is noteworthy that governments are putting corporate financing improvement programs into effect in Kenya and Rwanda. The Women Enterprise Fund (WEF), which was established by Kenya’s Ministry of Gender and Children in 2008, provides loans to particular MFIs for subsequent financing to cooperation associations that provide guarantees for each member, thereby removing the “collateral issue” for women who operate small businesses.

August ( 2010)  notes that the Ministry of Gender and Family Promotion is in charge of the Rwanda Guarantee Fund and Credit Fund, which aims to increase women’s access to business financing. A 50% loan guarantee on behalf of specific ladies is given by the fund to banks and MFIs, while a 70% guarantee is given to solidarity groups like associations or ladies’ groups. For example, the maximum loan amount for individual projects is 5 million Rwandan Francs (US$ 7,900), whereas the maximum loan amount for women solidarity organizations (women associations) is 10 million Rwandan Francs (US$ 15,800).

3. METHODOLOGY

Banasick (2019) stated that Research methodology is comprised of the researcher’s methods for gathering, analyzing, and interpreting the study’s findings. The researchers in the current study employed desktop analysis of already-existing secondary data to thoroughly analyze the literature on women entrepreneurs and how women Integration can boost Entrepreneurial Solutions to Sustainable Development in the EAC Member States. (Dushime et al., 2022) note that secondary analysis is a methodical approach with procedural and evaluative processes that is adaptable and may be used in a variety of ways.

Data were mostly gathered by the writers from peer-reviewed scholarly publications and research journals. Additionally, the Author looked into reports from the business and governmental sectors, as well as those from online trade publications and newspapers, publicly accessible national and EAC websites, books, published and unpublished technical studies, official blogs, and other relevant sources (Adams et al., 2012).

The easily available, extensive, and trustworthy data are the primary justification for employing this research methodology. Thus, compiling it further aided the study’s development of a knowledgeable conclusion. The writer was also able to locate previously completed research projects with the use of the accessible data, preventing duplication of effort and educating themselves on other procedures and approaches. Additionally, it is less costly and time-consuming. As a result, the writer can conclude with some degree of reliability and point out any shortcomings or potential topics for further study (Birnbaum, 2004).

4. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Women’s entrepreneurial development has drawn more attention in recent years. Governments, decision-makers, and scholars have given this issue great attention, especially in developing nations. This desire has prompted nations to promote and aid women’s entrepreneurship, particularly in rural regions. As a result, local skills were brought into the realm of self-employment and linked to rural economic growth. Most importantly, this idea has aided governments in their efforts to combat poverty and increase employment. Compared to their early phases, women entrepreneurs today play a far larger role. Key legislative and policy texts recognize and call for equal involvement of both sexes in the development of society and economy on a regional and national level.

However, there aren’t many implementation strategies, capital commitments, or roadmaps to support women’s participation in intra-EAC trade, and trade policies remain to be sexual identity. Ladies stay to have unique difficulties that limit new business start-ups and growth the demands of work and family life, limitations on business confidence and investment, women’s risk-averse behavior, cultural restraints on aggression, the stigma associated with some industries, illiteracy and low educational levels, and inadequate or limited business development and management skills are all factors, judgment, administration persecution, and the generally extra conservative behavior of females are some examples of these barriers. Women-owned enterprises are further restricted by businesswomen’s lack of familiarity with the laws, rules, and specifications governing international commerce, especially the EAC trade system. The development and trade strategies of EAC nations must drive elsewhere recognizing the significance of females in achieving the goals of improvement. Real females possessed business enterprise facilitation in the EAC transition method needs to play a more aggressive role if it is to increase the involvement of ladies in intercellular and extra-regional commerce. More specifically, the EAC needs to allocate funds to activities that will facilitate the participation of women, such as educating them about the EAC trade regime, implementing capacity-building programs, such as building online communities where people can share market information, teaching them how to start their businesses, and providing them with access to affordable credit.

5. Limitations and Future Research

In this study, existing secondary data were examined using a qualitative methodology on women entrepreneurs and how Women Integration can boost Entrepreneurial Solutions to Sustainable Development. As was suggested by Terrell (2012), no scientific social study can be carried out just by adhering to one methodology. Therefore, primary data and quantitative techniques should be used in future research to validate this work.

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