ENHANCING GENDER INCLUSION IN FINANCIAL AUTONOMY OF THE FEMALE STEREOTYPE IN SUSTAINABLE MEDIUM AND SMALL ENTERPRISES IN NIGERIA

Abstract

Women entrepreneurs in Nigeria face deeply entrenched gender stereotyping that constrains their financial autonomy and inclusion in the micro, small and medium enterprise (MSME) sector. This paper examines barriers stemming from discriminatory socio-cultural norms and economic institutions that limit women’s access to formal financial services, assets, networks, and critical business support. It also outlines multi-pronged strategies to promote gender equality in MSME development policies and programs. These include: expanding collateral-free lending by financial institutions, strengthening access to productive resources, bolstering entrepreneurial skills training tailored to women, facilitating peer networks and mentoring, deploying ICTs to assist women-run enterprises, enacting legal/regulatory reforms, engaging men as partners, and robust monitoring mechanisms. The analysis found that targeted interventions to ease constraints around credit, asset ownership, biases in training, isolation from growth opportunities, and legal discrimination are vital to dismantle constraints inhibiting women entrepreneurs. Constructive male engagement also assists to transform misconceptions around female dependence and breadwinner identities. Ultimately, sustained political commitment and gender-responsive budgeting across all aspects of MSME support ecosystem are indispensable to steer Nigeria towards more inclusive, sustainable and equitable growth trajectories. The study concludes that economic empowerment of women entrepreneurs has multiplier impacts - enabling them to attain financial autonomy while also uplifting families, communities and national development.