Trade and Women’s Economic Empowerment: Qualitative Analysis of SMEs from Ghana, Madagascar, Nigeria, and Senegal

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Abstract Using Ghana, Madagascar, Nigeria, and Senegal as case studies, this chapter elucidates the dynamics of trade and women empowerment in Africa through a qualitative analysis that involved focus group discussions (FGDs) and key informant interviews (KIIs) with managers and employers, and employees of SMEs, as well as government officials and Trade Support Organizations (TSOs). After presenting the operational context of trade and economic performance in the four candidate countries, the barriers to women’s participation in trade are discussed using the PESTLE framework. Our qualitative analysis shows that cross-cutting factors that influence job creation for women across the trade sectors include the nature of work, job demands in terms of physical strength and timing, and working conditions of employees. The chapter argues that trade has the potential to empower women. However, if finds that various challenges prevent women from maximizing the gains from trade and proposes that a strong public–private partnership is necessary for trade to lead to women empowerment.

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