Empowering Women through the Women Enterprise Fund

Exploring Factors Influencing Uptake in Laikipia County

Abstract

Women’s economic empowerment is central to realizing gender equality and sustainable development, as global frameworks such as the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) emphasize. Despite notable progress in gender equality, women in Kenya continue to lag behind in terms of economic empowerment. This article is based on research that explores how women access and use the Women Enterprise Fund (WEF), the barriers they face, and the extent to which WEF contributes to their economic empowerment and agency. The Government of Kenya has established various affirmative action funds to promote the economic empowerment of women, youth, and persons with disabilities. This study aims to determine the extent to which one of the funds, the WEF, has contributed to women’s economic empowerment in Laikipia County. The rationale for the research was that there are limited studies on government-led economic affirmative action initiatives and their impact on women’s lives, especially from a feminist perspective. The article examines women’s economic empowerment by exploring the experiences of women participating in the WEF in Laikipia County. Grounded in Feminist Standpoint Epistemology and employing a qualitative research approach, the study uses in-depth

interviews, focus group discussions (FGDs), and key informant interviews to capture women’s lived experiences with the Fund. Thirty women from two constituencies and six WEF credit officers were interviewed. Additionally, two Focus Group Discussions were held in each constituency. Findings indicate that while the WEF provides critical financial support, various structural, social, and procedural barriers limit its effectiveness. Women’s access to and control over economic resources, as well as their participation in decision-making processes, remain constrained by systemic challenges despite improvements. These challenges include bureaucratic inefficiencies, a lack of financial literacy among the targeted women, and entrenched gender norms that impede their capacity to engage more effectively in WEF processes. Despite these challenges, the study found that women’s lives improved with support from WEF, allowing them to achieve relative economic growth. While the assumption was that the funds were too small to make a difference, the surprising outcome was that the women managed to leverage these loans and, over time, build sustainable economic growth. The study highlights the importance of adopting a more inclusive, participatory, and gender-sensitive approach in implementing government-led economic empowerment programmes to achieve transformative and sustainable outcomes for women.