A study of mobile technology’s impact on women entrepreneurs in Nairobi, Kenya

Abstract

Women empowerment is a critical topic in gender and feminist studies aimed at ensuring gender equality across all domains of human development. Mobile phone technology and mobile money have emerged as tools in which women entrepreneurs can attain their empowerment. This study is aimed at investigating the impact of mobile phone technology on women entrepreneurs in Nairobi, Kenya. Using a qualitative research design, the study targeted women entrepreneurs to identify the mobile phone types and mobile phone-based money services utilized by the women entrepreneurs and the challenges faced in the use of these technologies. The survey, which purposively targeted a small group of five women entrepreneurs, employed semi-structured interviews in collection of qualitative data. The findings showed that women entrepreneurs use different brands of phones such as LG, Samsung, Innjoo LTE, and Nokia. They are subscribed to Safaricom, Airtel, or Equitel network and are used for business or personal uses. The women entrepreneurs either have M-PESA or Equitel, both mobile phone-based money transfer services, as well as Till Numbers assigned to their mobile phones to proceed with business-related transactions. It was also established that mobile phone-based money has led to the growth of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) because of its efficiency and reliability. Lastly, it was found out that challenges faced by women in the utilization of mobile phone technology and mobile phone-based money services include high cost of the transaction, human error, power blackouts, and lack of internet access. The study concludes that the majority of female entrepreneurs have adopted mobile phone technology and mobile phone-based money services with a beneficial impact of empowering them. In the context of women entrepreneurship, high accessibility to mobile phones, and mobile phone-based money services have increased daily business transactions. It can also be concluded that women entrepreneurs who have adopted mobile phone technology have benefitted from ease of paying bills and purchase of goods and services.