Gender Discourses, Culture and Entrepreneurial Development in Africa: Experience from Nigeria

Abstract

This paper is a discourse on culture and entrepreneurship in terms of which they represent a treatise in cultural theory, entrepreneurship, gender and economic development in two crucial areas: (i) the relationship between cultural values and entrepreneurship in the context of gendered entrepreneurial ideas and its praxis and (ii) the constraints such cultural values and practices may have on the development of entrepreneurship in the context of Nigeria. The method of inquiry is derived from critical theory and discursive praxis. Significantly, the paper argues that the manner in which entrepreneurial theories are gendered is a hindrance for the development of a robust entrepreneurial theory that is inclusive of both male and female entrepreneurs. In so doing, it is suggested that the masculine dominated ideas that permeate the theories and the eclipse of feminine qualities when defining and reading entrepreneurship is a hindrance to the development of a sustainable entrepreneurial culture and thus and obstacle to national economic development. The paper consists of four parts. Part one focuses on the introduction. Part two deals with the concept of culture, entrepreneurship and economic development and shows how entrepreneurship is seen as a product of webs of culture. Part three deals with how entrepreneurial discourses reflect a patriarchal mode of reasoning and the effect of gendered discourses on the practice of entrepreneurship. Part four suggests strategies for the development of a sustained entrepreneurial culture through cultural re-programming, intervention and re-orientation. Finally, the paper cautions against the danger inherent in turning reified concepts into manufactured reality, which then becomes the basis for action.