WOMEN’S ENTRPRENUERSHIP DEVELOPMENT LESSONS LEARNT

Transcript:WOMEN’S ENTRPRENUERSHIP DEVELOPMENT LESSONS LEARNT:
WOMEN’S ENTRPRENUERSHIP DEVELOPMENT LESSONS LEARNT AND EXPERIENCES FROM POLICY BY IDA KIGONYA/PWIDO MINISTRY OF GENDER, LABOUR AND SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT Thursday 15th October, 2015 Poortgebouw, Leiden 1 2 Women & Poverty Women remain the majority of people living in poverty in Uganda living on less than US$1 a day. Other vulnerable groups affected by poverty include; refugees and IDPs, female/child headed households, asset less widows, widowers, the youths, the unemployed particularly females with about 70% engaged in unpaid family work. Women’s lack of access and control over the five assets/resources namely natural, human, financial, physical and social resources continues to be the major cause of poverty. Other structural factors contributing to women’s poverty include; inadequate funding to programs targeting women and; most women are often limited to the lowest paying and most unstable jobs that provide the least employment related benefits. 3 Economy Uganda’s economy is mainly based on subsistence agriculture which is highly vulnerable to climatic changes. Women represent 80% of the agricultural labour force, are responsible for about 80% of the food crop production and continue to contribute about 60% of the labour for cash crop production. Women are increasingly taking up commercial activities where they form 72.4 % in commerce, 63% in services, 60.5% in animal husbandry and 47.7% in manufacturing Women work longer hours (12-18hrs) a day as compared to men (8-10hrs). 4 Women in Business in Uganda Available data indicates that one million persons were employed by the private sector in 2010/2011 compared to nearly 450 thousand in 2001. Businesses in the Trade sector continue to employ the majority where nearly 5 out of every 10 people are in the Trade sector. A majority of the employees (55%) are males. The male employees dominate in most sectors especially Business services (74%), Manufacturing (74%), Agriculture (79%). Females dominate employment in Hotels and Restaurants (70%), Education and Health (51%). 5 The Trade Sector remains the leading sector with 61% of the total businesses, followed by hotels and Restaurants with 14%. 98% of the businesses are owned by Ugandans. It is estimated that at least 43.7% of Medium and Small Enterprises (MSEs) are owned and operated by women. Medium and Small Enterprises contribute 90% of the private sector production, a source of new jobs and an income generation for the poor majority of whom are women. 29.50% of women in business in Uganda are in exports. In 2007, informal