Betsy Beymer
Department of Geography, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences |
Abstract: Women Entrepreneurs in Developing Countries: Seaweed Farming in Tanzania
The marginalization of women in development issues is a great concern all over the world. Despite the fact that women are known to play a central role in securing livelihoods through their knowledge and use of natural resources, they are often excluded from accessing, controlling and using resources necessary for maintaining livelihoods and generating additional income through entrepreneurial activities. This study will focus on gender in the seaweed farming industry of Tanzania, to enhance our understanding of the role of women in this global entrepreneurial enterprise. The Eucheuma (red) seaweed industry in Tanzania is thriving, and has provided significant employment opportunities and cash earnings. In this country, the industry is comprised mainly of women – it is one of the few economic commodities in Africa under the control of women.
This research seeks to illustrate the contributions of a geographical perspective to the study of female entrepreneurship in developing countries. The specific questions that will guide this research include: (1) How do women farm seaweed, and what kinds of knowledges do they incorporate into these practices? (2) What kinds of opportunities do women have for upgrading their production activities? (3) What kinds of social arrangements do buyer companies have with women producing seaweed? This research will use a feminist perspective to help reveal gendered representations of authority and inclusion, affording the tools to better understand the ways that women’s knowledges and power relations are produced and suppressed at various scales of analysis from the local, regional, national, and international within the seaweed industry of Tanzania. Qualitative methods including semi-structured interviews and participant observations will be used. Among the subjects interviewed will be seaweed farmers and representatives from seaweed farmers’ organizations, associated regulatory agencies, extension services such as micro-credit agencies and NGOs that are involved in seaweed farming, and seaweed buyers in Tanzania. |
