Abstract:
Purpose – Review of literature suggests mixed findings on the relationship between the church and micro
women entrepreneurship development. This signals that questions remain about the roles of churches in
entrepreneurial development. Thus, this paper aims to explore what entrepreneurial activities are provided by
churches to their micro women entrepreneurs and how do these activities influence their entrepreneurial start up
and growth.
Design/methodology/approach – Phenomenological research methodologies were used to purposive
collected data from 38 women entrepreneurs and four church administers in Tema. Results were analyzed
using the emergent strategy.
Findings – The results suggest that churches provided four entrepreneurial activities which are categorized
as finance, networking, promotion of self-confidence and impartation of ethical values. These factors
promoted the growth of women entrepreneurial growth but not the start-up of entrepreneurial ventures. The
study concluded that the church should provide more support for new entrepreneurial ventures. Therefore,
embeddedness because of membership of a church is a critical part of women entrepreneurship development.
Research limitations/implications – Further studies will need to replicate these findings with other
types of businesses, in other locations.
Practical implications – This study suggests that policymakers should be working in conjunction with
churches in a bid to promote micro women entrepreneurship development.
Originality/value – Limited research has been conducted on church entrepreneurial activities in the
development of micro women entrepreneurs in developing economies such as Ghana. This empirical research
provides important insights into this field.
