The influence of cultural norms on financial empowerment of women in Uganda s micro and small enterprises

Purpose- The concept of women’s financial empowerment has gained great attention worldwide. However, little attention has been given to this issue in the Ugandan context. The study was, therefore, initiated due to the increasing financial empowerment challenges being faced by women operating in the informal sector’s micro and small enterprises. The primary objective of the study was to investigate the effect of cultural factors on the financial empowerment of women in the informal micro and small businesses in Kampala, Uganda’s capital and largest city. Methodology- The study adopted a qualitative research design in which 50 women in the five divisions of Kampala were interviewed. Data collected was analysed using thematic analysis supported by the Atlast ti software. Findings- The study reveals that cultural factors affected the financial empowerment of women in informal businesses. This was in the form of restrictions on which businesses they could engage in, patriarchal cultural practices, limited access to education facilities and restrictions on land and property ownership and inheritance. Religion stood out as the most prevalent component of culture that affected these women by dictating both the kind of business and the type of products that they traded in. Conclusion- We conclude that cultural norms play a significant role in shaping the opportunities and challenges faced by women in terms of financial empowerment. These norms are deeply ingrained in societies and can either facilitate or hinder women's access to economic resources, education, employment, and financial decision-making. Cultural beliefs of putting women second to men still affect the quest to become financially empowered for the women in the informal MSEs of Uganda. There is, therefore, still a need for the government and other non-government organisations to develop several initiatives tailored to particularly financially empower women in the informal sector of the MSEs in Uganda. Keywords: Women's financial empowerment, cultural factors, micro small enterprises, gendered norms, gendered roles.