Abstract:
Human capital (HC) is regarded as an essential
resource in predicting the growth of any business venture, which
encompasses the continued existence of women owned or led
business entities. Researching on the capability of HC of Muslim
women entrepreneurs (MWEs)has since become a topic for
discussion as Muslim women face inimitable challenges than the
non-MWEs. This study aims to look at the impact of HC on
business growth of MWEs in the Eastern region of Sri Lanka
(EPSL). HC was measured using the dimensions of business
education, business experience and business skills. A structured
questionnaire was used to collect data from 280 MWEs who are
engaged with their district chamber of commerce in the Eastern
province using simple random sampling technique. Structural
Equation Modeling with AMOS and SPSS 23.0 was used as the
data analysis technique. The structural model showed that
business experience and business skills had significant and
positive relationships with business growth of MWEs, whereas
business education did not significantly influence their business
growth. In most of the families in the conservative Muslim
community, females are often not permitted go out themselves
alone and mix with their counterparts alone. Further, many
families even do not allow their female children to pursue higher
education and prefer them to go for early marriage instead. This
situation can be observed in Sri Lankan Muslim families
especially in the Eastern Province where the majority come from
rural areas. MWEs, trade chambers and decision-making
authorities may use this finding to gain insights and to develop
strategies on HC to facilitate business growth of Sri Lankan
MWEs.
