Gender, Institutions, Access to Finance and the Development of Small Scale Enterprises in Kenya

This paper examines small and micro enterprises (SMEs) as an important sector in the Kenyan economy and as a major employer for the female labor force in the country. Despite their proliferation, SMEs continue to face a number of constraints, such as lack of finance, which limit their development. Due to their characteristics, women-owned SME face more constraints in accessing services, which affect their performance. Using primary data from a sample of small scale enterprises in Kenya, this paper analyses the institutional networks among women owned SMEs, and with financial institutions and their effect on enterprise performance.