Tribal Women Entrepreneurship in Southern Region of India

Abstract

The study was undertaken to find out the structural attributes of Koya tribal society which contributed to the Koya women to take-up micro entrepreneurial activities in tribal areas of East Godavari District, Andhra Pradesh, India. It further tries to understand the level of involvement of tribal women in micro enterprise management and its impact on their quality of life. A sample of 210 Koya tribal women entrepreneurs were selected through Purposive Snowball technique from Rampachodavaram Revenue division of East Godavari district, Andhra Pradesh. Mixed research methods (both quantitative and qualitative) were applied to collect and analyze the data. Quantitative methods like interview schedule and 10 point Enterprise Involvement index were used for collection of the socio economic traits, enterprise details, enterprise involvement. The qualitative methods i.e. focus group discussions, observations and in depth interviews were applied for analyzing the structural attributes of the Koya tribal society. The findings explored that to earn more through enterprises were main economic motive for tribal women entering into entrepreneurial activities at the bottom of the pyramid market limiting their activities to their small geographical areas. The extent of involvement of women in enterprise management, projected through enterprise involvement index shows that the time spent by Koya women on entrepreneurial activities was reported to be highest and membership in community organizations was found to be the lowest score on 10 point dimensional scale. Tribal women’s access to independent income and their control over the management of the household’s assets and budget has been increased due to entrepreneurial activities. A lot of hindrances were coming in the way of tribal women, yet many women were succeeding in keep them going and establishing themselves as actors in their own development through entrepreneurial activities in their environment.