This brief addresses the problem of gendered poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa, and argues that multifaceted context-sensitive business law reform is necessary for tackling issues underlying the problem. It takes the reform initiatives led by the Organization pour l’harmonisation du droit des affaires en Afrique (OHADA) as a case study; and draws on interviews carried out by the author with women entrepreneurs, OHADA agents, lawyers, and journalists in Benin and Cameroon in 2010, 2011, and 2012. The brief argues that business law modernization in Africa should not be only or predominantly aimed at attracting foreign investors, and ensuring a secure legal climate for multinational corporations. Rather, African business law reform should also attend to the informal sector and aim to make states’ legal systems friendlier to micro, small, and medium businesses (MSM), in particular ones operated by women.
Concomitantly, Canada’s international development assistance policies should aim at promoting, through commercial law reform, entrepreneurial skills and creativity among principals of MSMs. Strategies and recommendations for reaching policy goals should be rooted in local needs and frames of reference. They should target and be accessible to those running MSMs in the region.
This brief notes CIDA’s successes in this area; and shows how current programs can be adjusted to prioritize the achievement of policy goals and the development of strategies in cooperation with female-run MSMs, financiers, jurists, and organizations; like the OHADA operating in sub-Saharan Africa.