Assessing the challenges faced by minority entrepreneurs in the Northern Finland area : case of African female entrepreneurs

Abstract

This thesis is about African female entrepreneurs in the Oulu region. The study assessed their challenges and the opportunities available to them on their entrepreneurial journey. We interviewed three African female entrepreneurs from various countries to examine their business environment. We looked at their motives, obstacles, and strategies for building successful businesses. Our result reveals the real motives behind their entrepreneurship journey. Despite acknowledging the limited job opportunities and difficulties in the Finnish labour market, most of the interviewers started because of the opportunities they found in the market and also because of the desire to build something for themselves. Entrepreneurship in Finland has become attractive to African females, but they face challenges such as language barriers, cultural differences, and the inability to secure financial assistance. Despite these obstacles, African female entrepreneurs in Finland rely on social networks, support mechanisms, and government policies and Initiatives to succeed. While the findings align with previous research on immigrant entrepreneurship, this study highlighted the particular case of African female entrepreneurs and discovered some unique key challenges for African female entrepreneurs in Finland such as the inability to penetrate the very closed Finnish business circles and networks. Our recommendation is the importance of addressing structural barriers, enhancing support services, and fostering diversity and inclusion in entrepreneurship ecosystems to help African female entrepreneurs further succeed in their business endeavors.