Rethinking Women’s Economic Power Beyond ‘Hard Work’: Wealth Insights from Fieldwork in Rwanda and Nigeria

There is a class-based divergence in narratives about economic opportunities for women. This article examines a key distinction between Income Generating Activities and Income Generating Assets in dominant development rhetoric and wealth-building discourses. Drawing on fieldwork conducted in development and entrepreneurial ecosystems in Rwanda and Nigeria, respectively, this research analyzes how neoliberal paradigms create divergent economic paths that often reinforce structural inequalities. Using a Pan-African feminist framework, the article demonstrates how economically disadvantaged women are channeled into labour-intensive activities with limited scaling potential, while wealthy women access asset-based strategies that generate significant wealth. Middle-class women encounter professionalization narratives emphasizing ‘hard work’ without commensurate rewards. This research challenges dominant development narratives by centering African women’s knowledge and experiences, revealing how women across socioeconomic classes develop strategic responses to structural barriers. The findings call for moving beyond individual entrepreneurship toward structural reforms that prioritize asset building, address care work burdens, and challenge the neocolonial political economy that constrains women’s wealth creation.