AN INQUIRY INTO ENTREPRENEURIAL SUCCESS AMONGST WOMEN-OWNED SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISES IN LUSAKA DISTRICT ZAMBIA

Abstract

Women entrepreneurs are significant contributors to the economic development of any country and their role becomes more vital in improving the economic condition of developing countries. It is therefore important that their capabilities are tapped, for economic and societal benefits. The more women succeed in their businesses the more other women can emulate them and contribute to economic development of countries. There is a dearth of knowledge on entrepreneurship success factors specific to women owned SMEs in Zambia. This study therefore examines selected entrepreneurship success factors that women owned Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) in Lusaka Zambia have found to help them succeed and proposes an entrepreneurship success framework. A mixed method was used and data was collected using a semi-structured questionnaire and 100 successful women who own SMEs were interviewed. Quantitative findings reveal that innovation, marketing strategy and family support were most important factors at the internal level. At external level roads, communication and ICT were most important factors. Qualitative findings revealed the following themes; making profit, business growth , understanding business trends, ability to withstand pressure, hard work, increased customer base, problem solving, skills development, emotional support, conducive environment, easy access to products and services and easy access to information.