Determinants of Investment Decisions by Women Entrepreneurs in Kenya

Abstract

This research aimed to establish and explain the determinants of investment decisions by women entrepreneurs in Kenya. The study sought to fill this existing research gap by looking at the following specific objectives: First was to determine the personal factors that influence investment decision making among women entrepreneurs in Kenya, second was to determine the economic factors that influence investment decision making among women entrepreneurs in Kenya, and third was to determine the political factors that influence investment decision making among women entrepreneurs in Kenya. This research was facilitated by the collection of primary data using structured questionnaires and adopted a descriptive survey research design to get a valid conclusion on the specific objectives mentioned above. The total population of 150 comprised of women entrepreneurs in Kenya, specifically from Nairobi County from which a sample of 75 respondents was selected using simple random sampling technique.The research was conducted during the months of June and July 2015. Data analysis was done through descriptive and regression statistics and presented in pictorial representation in the form of tables and figures.The data was coded using Microsoft Excel andStatistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS version 21) in order to generate the descriptive statistics in the form of frequencies and percentages. The study revealed that majority of the respondents were in agreement that the following individual factors determined investment decisions by women entrepreneurs in Kenya: personal and job experience lifestyle, level of income, the time horizon of the investment, the double responsibility of running a business and family, and social cultural factors for example religion. Among the individual factors, most respondents agreed that education specialization was not a major factor on the individual investment decisions made by women entrepreneurs in Kenya. The study further revealed that the following economic factors are determinants of investment decisions made by women entrepreneurs in Kenya: high interest rates; restrictive lending policies; limited access to appropriate technology; entry of new firms and competition; declining customer purchasing power due to inflationary pressures; and finally the level of the risk associated with the investment. Among the economic factors, most of the respondents agreed that the risk associated with the investment was the highest determinants in making investment decisions. Finally the study revealed that majority of the political factors were a determinant to investment decisions by women entrepreneurs in Kenya; and this included bureaucracy and cost of business registration, regulatory environment such as commercial and capital investment laws, complicated processes in business registration, taxation policies, and stability in the political environment. Most of the respondents agreed that complicated processes in business registration, taxation, and political stability had the most influence in determining the investment decisions they made as women entrepreneurs in Kenya among the political factors. The major conclusion was that when it came to investment decisions among women entrepreneurs in Kenya education was not a major factor and more emphasis on the education system to produce entrepreneurs in Kenya should be emphasized. There also need to be more women representation in the political system in the country to ensure that the rights and needs of women entrepreneurs in Kenya are well represented. The researchers recommend further studies to be done to determine the extent to which the discussed factors influenced the investment decisions among women entrepreneurs in Kenya, with a special focus on the education specialization factor since it had the least influence as a determinant of investment decisions made by women entrepreneurs in Kenya.