Engaging with the private sector for development : a critical analysis of attempts to partner with business for women's economic empowerment in Vietnam : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Development Studies at Massey University, Manawatū, Aotearoa New Zealand
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Date
2023
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Massey University
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Abstract
Development agencies have increasingly recognised the private sector as playing an important role in the progress toward achieving sustainable development. While scholars contest the private sector’s role in development, development agencies and NGOs continue collaborating with the private sector to deliver social results for the poor. There have been numerous studies on the role of large companies, mostly multinational corporations, in development. However, limited literature sheds light on the engagement of donors with micro and small enterprises in development as well as their impacts on women’s economic empowerment. This research aims to fill this gap by critically investigating donor-private sector partnerships implemented under an Australian aid programme in which micro and small enterprises are engaged to economically empower ethnic minority women in Vietnam.
My findings suggest that micro and small businesses are important development partners in creating economic opportunities for low-income women. Locally- and socially-embedded businesses can achieve success and sustainability through their ability to engage with ethnic minority women. They also have the potential to create economic, social, and cultural impacts. They can be inclusive, with some small businesses reaching poor ethnic minority women regardless of production scales, and they can help women improve their incomes by supporting women to cultivate and sell unique, traditional, and cultural products. However, these private sector partners face challenges that constrain their partnership with development agencies and limit the objective of empowering ethnic minority women.
My research findings challenge the instrumentalist notion of women’s economic empowerment, which donors commonly deploy in partnerships with a business by focusing solely on providing training and access to productive resources for market integration. It confirms that this instrumentalist approach is insufficient to genuinely empower women. Instead, my research recommends a holistic donor-private sector partnership framework for women’s empowerment to plug the gaps and transform the prevailing women’s economic empowerment approach. This proposed framework includes two elements which emerged from the research findings: relational and collective empowerment. Relational empowerment emphasises the importance of the relational aspects of empowerment and how changes in power relations in the surrounding environment affect women's empowerment. Collective empowerment reflects the need for collective action to influence changes in social norms and rules to recognise and improve women’s positions within households and the broader community. The proposed framework also involves civil society organisations, non-government organisations, and local governments as important partners in addressing unequal structures and barriers to women and enabling transformative outcomes for women. These research findings will support development agencies to better engage with the private sector to enable ethnic minority women’s empowerment.
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Keywords
Women, Vietnam, Economic conditions, Women in economic development, Women-owned business enterprises, Economic assistance