Women Entrepreneurship Motivation and Challenges in the Context of Boko Haram Conflict in Northeast Nigeria

Ashemi, Baba Ali (2022) Women Entrepreneurship Motivation and Challenges in the Context of Boko Haram Conflict in Northeast Nigeria. PhD thesis, Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS).

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Abstract

Violent conflict induces hardship on every segment in society. Its impact on women is usually devastating. They particularly suffer heightened conflict-inflicted consequences compared to other segments in society. In women entrepreneurship research, the roles of women entrepreneurs in such a challenging environment have not received adequate attention. This is probably attributed to the difficulty to conduct empirical research involving hard-to-reach segment of population in the violent conflict context. Therefore, this study aims to address this gap. The research explores women entrepreneurship motivation and challenges in the context of Boko Haram conflict in Northeast Nigeria. It further investigates motivational factors and coping strategies of these entrepreneurs operating their business in the violent conflict context. The study employed an integrated approach in understanding the complex nature of the phenomenon under study. Institutional Theory and theories of motivation particularly Push-Pull Theory and Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Theory were engaged to guide the research. Participant observation and in-depth interview were used to obtain qualitative data for the research; thematic analysis was used to analyze the data. Eighteen (18) displaced women entrepreneurs participated in this study. Overall, the findings of the study revealed that women entrepreneurs in the context of Boko Haram conflict were motivated by multifaceted factors and faced with challenges that require multifaceted approach in an effort to develop effective support system to assist them. The research found that a majority of these displaced women entrepreneurs who had previous entrepreneurial experiences were more resilience and demonstrated capability towards establishing new business ventures in the context of violent conflict. Further, two most important motivational factors – Individual Factor and Institutional/Environmental Factor – were found very important to affect the success of establishing business startup among these entrepreneurs in Post – Boko Haram conflict phase. The enabling factors that were found to contribute to resilience to the entrepreneurs under conflict contexts include: previous experience and skills, work-family balance, institutional and social supports, acceptance from host-community and perception on security. The research has made three important contributions to contribute to the women entrepreneurship field by giving focus on the violent conflict context. Firstly, this study extended the application of institutional theory by framing the research in two conflict phases – Pre-Boko Haram Conflict and Post-Boko Haram Conflict. This approach led to the discovery of in-depth “story” from the displaced women entrepreneurs with a fresh perspective to advance the women entrepreneurship knowledge. Secondly, the study contributed to advance knowledge with regards to exploring hard-to-reach segment of entrepreneurs thereby, permitted the study to contribute to the policy framework formulation towards developing support systems for women entrepreneurship under a violent conflict situation. Lastly, the research findings have practical contributions in areas related to handling women entrepreneurs in Boko Haram conflict context.

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