SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURIAL SUPPORT AND ITS IMPACT ON SOCIAL ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT OF HOUSEHOLDS

Abstract

Purpose: The study aimed to establish the impact of social entrepreneurial support on social-economic empowerment of households and a case study of Riziki Kenya was taken.
 Methodology: The study used a descriptive survey design and the target population for this study was Riziki managers and staff as the key informants, the 230 supported entrepreneurs (households) and 22 supported micro-enterprises groups in Kibra Sub-County. The study employed multi-stage sampling which included purposive and simple random sampling. The study collected primary data using questionnaires. Key Informants included six Riziki Kenya managers and staff members. The use of interviews guides enabled the researcher to solicit the required information from supported entrepreneurs, key informants and group micro-enterprises. Statistical package for the social sciences (SPSS) was used to analyze quantitative data from questionnaires and the results presented in tables, graphs, charts and narratives to answer the research questions. Qualitative data was organized into themes and patterns categorized through content analysis to capture emerging thoughts.
 Results: Riziki Kenya has empowered households to improve their standards of living. Even with their small businesses, they could feed their families and pay bills. Empirically, the study has shown that social entrepreneurial support positively impacts the business of households which in turn improves the living conditions of families that own such enterprises. Access to credit facilities by small businesses helps such enterprises to grow and by extension, this improves the households’ finances and ability to get nutritious food, a good shelter, better education and better health care.
 Contribution to theory, policy and practice: The paper suggests that the appropriate model and theoretical approach for social entrepreneurial impacts would be to direct resources to household owned business which would grow and in turn affect the prosperity of the households. In practice, social entrepreneurs and their staff should increase the support to households partnering with other NGOs to train on the basic entrepreneurial and business management skills to improve their enterprises, increasing access to funds and any other intervention strategies. Policymakers should enact laws that encourage the growth of social entrepreneurship since doing so increases the likelihood of successful small enterprises and this finally impacts positively on the social-economic empowerment of households.