Factors Militating Against Entrepreneural Engagement of Rural Women in Orlu Local Government Area in Imo State

Abstract

This study determined factors militating against entrepreneurial engagement of rural women in Orlu Local Government Area of Imo State. Three research questions guided the study. Descriptive survey research design was adopted in this study. The population of the study comprised 9,711 rural women of various communities in Orlu LGA. The Taro Yamane formula was used to arrive at a sample size of 357. The instrument used for data collection was a questionnaire developed by the researchers and structured on four points rating scale. The reliability of instrument was computed using Cronbach Alpha which yielded a co-efficient of 0.78. the instrument was therefore deemed reliable for the study. Arithmetic mean and standard deviation were used to answer the research questions. The finding drawn from the results reveals that economic and socio-cultural factors militated against entrepreneurial engagement of rural women in Orlu Local Government Area. The finding also reveals that psychological factors did not militate against entrepreneurial engagement of rural women in Orlu Local Government Area. Based on the findings, it was recommended among others that the government, financial institutions, and development partners should increase access to financial capital for rural women through the establishment of gender-sensitive microcredit schemes, cooperative societies, and grants tailored specifically to small-scale women entrepreneurs among others.