MeMag June 2014.pdf Jun. 2014 | Page 19

WO EN IN BUSINESS: why not? From the start of time, men have been considered as the head of families, as leaders in the society and as those who go out and bring in food for the family. Men, being physically stronger and assumedly being able to make more logical decisions, or rather, less emotional decisions. Women, on the other hand, are the care providers and those who stayed home to cook the meals and tend to the kids. These perceptions were and to an extent are still deeply rooted in cultural beliefs. by Mark Amaza Personally, I find the belief that women should not be in business is one that should have died long ago, possibly at the turn of the 19th century. This is because I am yet to find any evidence that women are less capable of building and running businesses, whether small or legendary. There was a time, not so long ago, women were not able to vote until in the late 19th century that European countries such as Sweden, Finland, Britain and some parts of the United States granted them those rights. While here in Nigeria, women were not restricted as such, they still have had and are still working hard to change the perception that women should be in the background in the scheme of things. The examples of women who have founded enterprises that have grown to change the world and business thinking are not in lacking: Mary Kay Ash, founder of the now wellknown cosmetics company, Mary Kay, started her own company after she watched yet another man promoted over her in the workplace. There is also Anita Roddick who out of the necessity of supporting herself and two daughters in her husband’s absence led her to create the now iconic The Body Shop which makes environmentally-conscious cosmetics. This scenario also extends to business and entrepreneurship, where fewer women start and run businesses than men, despite that there are more women than men. One major reason for this is not just the fact that there is still a belief that women should stick to their traditional role of being home makers, it is also the fact that many women have accepted such beliefs, thus, restricting themselves. Back home in Nigeria, we do not lack female entrepreneurs such as Mrs Florence Seriki, whose Omatek Computers is the first assembler of computers in Nigeria; or Bose Ayeni, the founder of the fast food chain, Tantalizers; or Ibukun Awosika of Sokoa Chair Centre. There are also the thousands of women entrepreneurs, big and small, whom we may never know, but who are doing great things where they are. J U N E 2 0 1 4 MeMag | facebook.com/memagazine09 @memagtwits 16