Gender disparities in tenderpreneurship in learning Institutions, in Nakuru East Sub-County, Nakuru County, Kenya

Abstract

Women are among the special interest or disadvantaged groups in many developing countries, including Kenya. The participation of female in public procurement is significant for various government globally. In Kenya, public procurement, commonly referred to as tenderpreneuring, is dominated by influential male. Consequently, disadvantaged groups like female are discriminated against, which excludes them from development. The current study aimed to explore the participation of female in tenderpreneuring and their awareness about the tendering process. The study was conducted in learning institutions in Nakuru East sub-County, Nakuru County, Kenya. It was informed by the social feminist (SF) theory and the entrepreneurship theory. The study used descriptive survey design, data was collected by the use of questionnaires and key informant interviews. The sample included 108 individuals who had applied for tenders in institutions of learning in the study area (73.15% male and 26.85% female). The quantitative data was data analyzed for descriptive and inferential statistics using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) Software, Version 27 while qualitative data was analyzed using content analysis. The study found that the level of awareness about the tendering process was low among the female, which contributes to their shying away from the application for tenders, thereby benefiting male-run businesses. A significant relationship was found between the gender and proportion of male and female who applied for tenders (X2 (2, N = 108) = 10.446, p = .001). Besides, a significant relationship was also noted on the relationship between gender and winning or losing tender bids (X2 (2, N = 91) = 4.073). In sum, the findings show that there is low access to tenders in learning institutions by female. Female reported facing various challenges in entrepreneurship, which are characteristic of the gender imbalance existing in the society. Therefore, it is necessary to enhance the access of female to public procurement through policies that will improve their awareness, knowledge, and funding.