A Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the
Degree of Master of Business Administration (MBA-Corporate Management) of
Mzumbe University.
The study on challenges facing women entrepreneurs in accessing loans from
microfinance institutions was conducted in Dar es Salaam region, Tanzania. The
objectives of the study were to determine barriers facing women entrepreneurs in
accessing loans from microfinance institutions, to identify different types of risks
considered by lenders in financing women owned investments, to find out challenges
facing women entrepreneurs in repaying loans and to examine the strategies for
improving loans provision to women entrepreneurs. The study used a sample of 120
respondents. In collecting data the study used both secondary and primary data. The
study revealed that majority of the respondents (51.7%) identified high interest rate
as a strong barrier in accessing loans from microfinance institutions. The study
further found out that micro financial institutions consider failure to repay loans as
the major risk in lending. Moreover, it was found that high interest rate is the major
challenge facing women entrepreneurs in repaying loans. Finally, the study found
that if interest rates are lowered, it could improve loans‟ accessibility to small
businesses owned by women. The Study concludes that the barrier facing women
entrepreneurs in accessing loans from microfinance institutions is high interest rate.
Most of the microfinance institutions in Tanzania charge between 24% to 48%
interest rates per year. It is further concluded that failure to repay loans is considered
as one of the type of risks by lenders in financing women owned investments in
Tanzania. Moreover, the study concludes that high interest rate and uses of loans for
family purposes are among the challenges facing women entrepreneurs in repaying
loans. The study recommends that the efforts of Tanzanian MFIs should be
streamlined to meet the standards set by BOT in Tanzania. MFI‟s should further
review their policies on the maximum amount of loans to be granted to women to
reflect the market demands.