Study on Gender Inequality Vis-À-Vis Culture and the Role of Women in Socio-economic Development

In most societies, gender inequality is a feature of social interactions, and it's related to poverty, crime, the labour market, health, housing, and education. Gender disparity also plays a role in structuring creation and reproduction relations, and it is inextricably linked to knowledge construction and dissemination. Education institutions are important socialising structures that create and reproduce women's social subordination. Farm labour in Zimbabwe during colonial times was made up of the local population, including women and children. We observe that (black) women were coerced into a farm labour role early in the colonial formation for the purposes of this analysis. This study set out to investigate the social and cultural factors that impact on the role of women in economic development with a view to finding solutions and a way forward that will help to enhance women’s participation in Zimbabwe’s economic development. A qualitative study approach was adopted, a descriptive research design was used, the population of the study consisted of Small to Medium Scale entrepreneurs (SME’s). The sample size was 20 and purposive sampling technique was used to select informants, while interpretive content analysis was used for data analysis. From the study, non-availability of funding for SMEs affect women more than men, hence impacts negatively on their role in socio-economic development.