Accessibility of the Women Enterprise Fund and Household Food Security in Embu County, Kenya
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.53819/81018102t5413Abstract
Microfinance has increasingly been recognized as a mechanism for enhancing women’s economic empowerment and improving household welfare outcomes, particularly food security. Women are disproportionately affected by poverty and food insecurity, and improved access to financial resources has been shown to enhance their ability to secure adequate food for their households. The Women Enterprise Fund (WEF) was established by the Government of Kenya in 2007 to improve women’s access to affordable credit for enterprise development. This study sought to determine whether accessibility of the Women Enterprise Fund enhances household food security in Embu County, Kenya. Guided by the Sustainable Livelihoods Framework and Capability Theory, the study adopted a descriptive survey research design integrating quantitative and qualitative approaches. The target population comprised 1,740 active WEF beneficiaries in Mbeere South and Runyenjes Constituencies, from which a sample of 323 respondents was selected using Yamane’s formula through proportionate and simple random sampling. Data were collected using questionnaires, key informant interviews, and focus group discussions and analyzed using SPSS and thematic analysis. The findings established that improved accessibility of WEF—particularly frequency of loan access, adequacy of loan amounts, and engagement in income-generating activities—enhanced women’s purchasing power, improved household food access, and contributed to more stable food consumption patterns. However, the study found that increased income alone did not automatically translate into food security due to environmental factors, knowledge gaps, and household circumstances. The study concludes that while WEF plays a meaningful role in enhancing household food security, its effectiveness is moderated by social and structural factors such as education level, marital status, household composition, and the design of WEF interventions. The study recommends that WEF should implement tailored capacity-building programs, strengthen post-loan mentorship and follow-up mechanisms, establish robust monitoring and evaluation systems, and collaborate with agricultural value-chain actors, while national and county governments should support women’s empowerment through policy and agricultural extension services to maximize household food security outcomes.
Keywords: Accessibility, women enterprise fund, household food security, Embu County, Kenya
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