Supporting the digital transformation of women owned MSMEs post COVID 19.

In the neighborhood I live in, the majority of small businesses are women owned. I get my braids and nails done outside my house in a neighborhood female-owned salon, buy vegetables from  mama mbogas and get some of my clothes from an Instragram store run by a female college student. All these businesses have been affected by the COVID 19 pandemic with disruptions ranging from loss of revenue due to lockdown measures to lack of inventory because of broken supply chains. 

As companies and governments plan for a post COVID 19 recovery, consultants everywhere are weighing in what business will look likein this new world. These predictions all point towards a world where business is digital and contactless. In this ideal world, mobile money transactions will reign over cash, online booking systems for places like salons and restaurants will be the norm and not the exception, while e-commerce and remote work will be commonplace. Businesses will also incorporate breakthrough technologies to make their business operations more seamless. For instance, Facebook plans to use a mix of  Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR)  to make remote work more realistic and productive for remote workers.

This future looks pristine and sanitary. Well, except for one thing. It seems to lock out female micro, small and medium sized enterprise (MSMEs) owners — especially ones in the informal sector. Women are the anchors of African economies; according to the African Development Bank (AfDB) Africa has the highest number of women entrepreneurs in the world .In Kenya alone, 60.7% of businesses in the informal sector, which makes up 83.6% of employment in the country, are owned by women. Such businesses earn a monthly average of KES 5,000 to KES 25,000 (US$50-$250). For these entrepreneurs, the incorporation of digital technology into their business operations is out of reach not only because of the cost of these technologies, but also because of the digital gender gap.

According to the World Wide Web (WWW) Foundation, only 22% of African women have access to the internet. This fact is exacerbated further by the fact that this statistic does not give light to what kind of connection they have and how regularly they can access it.  The digital gender gap is also characterised by other factors such as limited digital skills, and social and cultural barriers that prevent women from the opportunities provided by connectivity. According to the WWW Foundation, the gender digital divide, widens as digital technologies become more sophisticated and expensive, enabling more transformational use and impacts, For instance, while mobile money has already taken root amongst Kenyan business owners, uptake of more sophisticated technology such as e-commerce platforms and online booking systems would be a challenge. Being offline has always meant that women are missing out on access to public services, learning and networking opportunities, but in a post COVID world, it also means that women entrepreneurs are likely to be put out of business by huge corporations that can afford digital transformation.

As African governments think of how to revive their economies post COVID 19, they should not forget women entrepreneurs. Here are a few ways they can include women in Africa’s digital futures:

1. Commit to closing the digital divide. 

African governments should commit to giving free, quality and reliable internet access to all their citizens.This way, women entrepreneurs will be able to access information online that will help them grow their businesses, and connect and network with other likeminded women. Governments can also lower the cost of smartphones so that women can have reliable means to access digital platforms. 

2. Invest in digital skills training.

Governments should invest in training women not only on basic ICT skills but in digital skills such as digital marketing, project management etc that will help them grow their businesses and careers. Most women entrepreneurs on the continent are already grouped in formal and informal cooperatives. Governments can use these structures to offer targeted digital skills training through these collectives. They can also partner with companies and  NGOs already doing this work for execution.

3. Offer digital transformation grants.

For female MSME owners to compete with corporations who have huge budgets for digital transformation, they need a leg up. Governments need to inject money that will directly aid women in digitising their processes and operations and purchasing digital tools and tenchnologies for their enterprises. This could even help them offer new services and conqure new markets.