Guidelines to improve women's work in the informal sector production and management

Abstract

Many African governments are now aware of the importance of the informal sector with a potential to contribute substantially to the economic development and transformation of the continent by complementing the efforts towards recovery. The sector employs a large proportion of the urban labour-force and provides essential services and goods to a wide range of people. Moreover, with the contraction of employment generation potential in the formal sector due to the economic crisis and conditionalities imposed by Structural Adjustment Programmes, the sector has become an employer of last resort. It provides training opportunities through apprenticeship and is also a training ground for entrepreneurial development and management. For a long time however, the sector was neglected in terms of being denied recognition, assistance and sometimes being harassed by the authorities. These factors have constrained its effectiveness and stifled its dynamism and potential for enhanced productivity.