Women entrepreneurs in rural Nigeria: formal versus informal credit schemes

Abstract

Purpose

This study examines why low-wealth women entrepreneurs forgo mobile enabled money services and government supported micro finance for informal, community-based revolving loans in rural Nigeria.

Design/methodology/approach

Thematic analysis of 25 interviews with women in rural, south-west Nigeria. Entrepreneurial ecosystem theory, in the gendered context of micro finance and community-based lending, is employed.

Findings

This study explains the paradox of forgoing seemingly accessible mobile enabled credit, and formal credit schemes (e.g. micro-finance programs) for informal, one-on-one borrowing. Convenience and trust-based relationships with respected community members ease the burden of time scarcity and vulnerability associated with formal capital. Flexible terms, autonomy, self-reliance and knowing who one is dealing with make Esusu a preferred source of finance. Findings are discussed in the context of gendered entrepreneurial ecosystems in which participants conduct business.

Research limitations/implications

The sample is not representative of women entrepreneurs in rural Nigeria. Survivorship bias is acknowledged. Further research is needed on the psychological risks of informal capital and the benefits of community-based lending.

Practical implications

Measures to scale mobile enabled credit, without commensurate interventions to address time management and other structural issues that confront women traders, limit their utility and impacts. Power differentials between women traders and lenders must also be considered in the design of lending products. Training of women traders and formal lenders should incorporate curricula about gender gaps in capital markets and systematic gender challenges to support entrepreneurs who seek to grow beyond subsistence enterprises.

Originality/value

This study documents decision criteria that motivate informal rural women traders to employ community-based revolving credit or Esusu. Findings inform measures to increase women entrepreneurs' access to capital in a rural sub-Saharan Africa contexts.