Table of Contents Abbreviations ______2 1
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
Final Report – Culture, February 2006 Enterprise for Pro-Poor Growth Design of a strategy to promote enterprise culture in Sri Enter - Growth Lanka: Socio-cultural assessment results Enter - Growth Final report Karin REINPRECHT, [email protected] Nireka WEERATUNGE, [email protected] Sri Lanka, February 2006 1 Final Report – Culture, February 2006 Abbreviations AGA Assistant Government Agent (currently known as Divisional Secretariat) BDS Business development services CBO Community-based Organization DFCC Development Finance and Credit Corporation FMuA Female Muslim “A” level school leaver FMuO Female Muslim “O” level school leaver FMuST Female Muslim starter (entrepreneur) FMuX Female Muslim expander (entrepreneur) FSBA Female Sinhalese Buddhist “A” level school leaver FSBO Female Sinhalese Buddhist “O” level school leaver FSBST Female Sinhalese Buddhist starter (entrepreneur) FSBX Female Sinhalese Buddhist expander (entrepreneur) FSCA Female Sinhalese Catholic “A” level school leaver FSCO Female Sinhalese Catholic “O” level school leaver FSCST Female Sinhalese Catholic starter (entrepreneur) FSCX Female Sinhalese Catholic expander (entrepreneur) FTHA Female Tamil Hindu “A” level school leaver FTHO Female Tamil Hindu “O” level school leaver FTHST Female Tamil Hindu starter (entrepreneur) FTHX Female Tamil Hindu expander (entrepreneur) GN Grama Niladhari; lowest level government administrative officer GTZ German Development Cooperation IDP Internally displaced person ILO International Labour Organization MFI Micro finance institution MMuA Male Muslim “A” level school leaver MMuO Male Muslim “O” level school leaver MMuST Male Muslim starter (entrepreneur) MMuX Male Muslim expander (entrepreneur) MMMuX Male Malay Muslim expander (entrepreneur) MSBA Male Sinhalese Buddhist “A” level school leaver MSBO Male Sinhalese Buddhist “O” level school leaver MSBST Male Sinhalese Buddhist starter (entrepreneur) MSBX Male Sinhalese Buddhist expander (entrepreneur) MSCA Male Sinhalese Catholic “A” level school leaver MSCO Male Sinhalese Catholic “O” level school leaver MSCST Male Sinhalese Catholic starter (entrepreneur) MSCX Male Sinhalese Catholic expander (entrepreneur) MTCST Male Tamil Catholic starter (entrepreneur) MTCX Male Tamil Catholic expander (entrepreneur) MSE Micro/Small enterprises MTHA Male Tamil Hindu “A” level school leaver MTHO Male Tamil Hindu “O” level school leaver MTHST Male Tamil Hindu starter (entrepreneur) MTHX Male Tamil Hindu expander (entrepreneur) NGO Non-governmental organization ROSCA Rotating savings and credit association SANASA Thrift and Credit Cooperative Society 2 Final Report – Culture, February 2006 SEDD Small Enterprise Development Division, Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports SEEDS Sarvodaya Economic Enterprise Development Services SIYB Start and Improve Your Business programme UNP United National Party USAID United States Agency for International Development 3 Final Report – Culture, February 2006 Table of contents Abbreviations ______________________________________________________________ 2 1. Introduction ___________________________________________________________ 6 1.1 Rationale for an assessment of enterprise culture in four districts in Sri Lanka ___ 6 1.2 Background: Socio-economic profile of the four selected districts ______________ 7 2. Methodology __________________________________________________________ 10 2.1 Conceptual framework _____________________________________________ 10 Values _______________________________________________________________ 10 Opportunities and constraints _____________________________________________ 11 Networks and power relations_____________________________________________ 12 The value domains underlying enterprising/economic behaviour and attitudes _______ 12 Transaction costs and benefits_____________________________________________ 15 2.3 Profile of the respondents___________________________________________ 18 2.5 Identifying the best entry points for intervention _______________________ 20 3. Findings on decision making in the business trajectories of entrepreneurs ________ 21 3.1 Family/Community dimension_______________________________________ 21 The role of family ______________________________________________________ 21 The role of community __________________________________________________ 24 The role of Government _________________________________________________ 27 The significance of gender in business ______________________________________ 27 The significance of ethnicity in business ____________________________________ 32 Conflict and cooperation among ethnic groups________________________________ 36 The value of business ___________________________________________________ 38 3.2 Livelihood/Business dimension ______________________________________ 39 Success: the underlying values and attitudes _________________________________ 39 Perceptions of an “enterprising person” or “business person” ____________________ 40 Business behaviour in practice: Starting the business___________________________ 41 Business behaviour in practice: Developing/Expanding the business ______________ 42 Detailed analysis of values and norms influencing business behaviour _____________ 43 Opportunity - Why start a business? Why expand a business?____________________ 43 Risk taking - Failure ____________________________________________________ 45 Innovation ____________________________________________________________ 47 Planning / strategising ___________________________________________________ 48 Knowledge – Information-seeking _________________________________________ 49 Market: Price - Volume - Competition ______________________________________ 50 Networks and customer relations __________________________________________ 51 Input costs ____________________________________________________________ 53 Employees ____________________________________________________________ 54 Profit ________________________________________________________________ 55 Accounts receivable – Giving supply credit __________________________________ 55 Savings ______________________________________________________________ 56 Stock ________________________________________________________________ 57 Fixed assets ___________________________________________________________ 57 Accounts payable – Getting supply credit____________________________________ 57 Loan/debt - Financing ___________________________________________________ 57 Owner’s capital ________________________________________________________ 58 4 Final Report – Culture, February 2006 Reinvestment__________________________________________________________ 59 3.3 Religious dimension________________________________________________ 61 3.4 Global dimension__________________________________________________ 63 4. Findings on the role of influencers in providing an enabling cultural environment for enterprise ________________________________________________________________ 67 4.1 Family/Community/Society dimension ________________________________ 67 The role and status of the entrepreneur/business person in society ________________ 67 Measuring success in society _____________________________________________ 71 The significance of gender in business ______________________________________ 76 The significance of ethnicity in business ____________________________________ 76 Fairness ______________________________________________________________ 77 Influencer advice on livelihood priorities ____________________________________ 82 Recognition and appreciation of enterprising behaviour ________________________ 90 4.3 Religious dimension________________________________________________ 91 4.4 Global dimension_________________________________________________ 100 5. Findings on decision making on livelihood choices by school-leavers ___________ 102 5.1 Family/Community dimension______________________________________ 102 The significance of gender in business _____________________________________ 103 The significance of ethnicity in business ___________________________________ 104 Value of business _____________________________________________________ 104 5.2 Livelihood/Business dimension _____________________________________ 105 Measuring success_____________________________________________________ 105 Perceptions of the enterprising person: advantages and disadvantages of doing business ____________________________________________________________________ 105 School leaver decision-making on their own livelihoods _______________________ 106 5.3 Religious dimension_______________________________________________ 109 5.4 Global dimension_________________________________________________ 111 Conclusions _____________________________________________________________ 113 Cultural conditions that link the bottom of the pyramid to the economic growth sector ______________________________________________________________________ 114 Cultural conditions that generate business start-up __________________________ 116 Cultural conditions that generate business expansion and growth ______________ 118 Recommendations ________________________________________________________ 122 References_______________________________________________________________ 140 Annexes 1 to 5 5 Final Report – Culture, February 2006 1. Introduction 1.1 Rationale for an assessment of enterprise culture in four districts in Sri Lanka Enterprise promotion and provision of business development services (BDS) to micro and small enterprises (MSEs) have become a key development strategy of the