Informal cross border women entrepreneurship (ICBWE) in West Africa: Opportunities and challenges

Abstract

The partition of Africa resulted in the creation of borders which divided people who shared cultural and historical ties into different nation states. Attempts by regional bodies such as the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to promote free trade across these borders appear not to yield the desired goals. Despite these, the borders provide opportunities and challenges for doing business especially for women who reside along the borders. This paper examines opportunities and challenges of informal cross border women entrepreneurs along and across the borders of West Africa. Specifically, the paper covers the activities of these women in Benin, Ghana and Togo. Using a semi structured interview schedule combined with observation of actual business transactions, the paper addresses issues regarding the nature of business, survival strategies, and involvement of their husbands/boyfriends in the business, source of funding, factors that influence the choice of businesses, performance of the business regarding profitability over the period and the role of religion in the business. The findings provide insights into the activities of the cross-border women entrepreneurs in West Africa which has implication for theory and practice of entrepreneurship and small businesses management.