Dr Vilashini (left) enjoying a conversation and coffee with an entrepreneur in Ranau.
KOTA KINABALU (Aug 23): Researchers from Universiti Malaya (UM) together with the Sabah Social Entrepreneurs Association (SOSEA) are currently working to illustrate the lived experiences, challenges and narratives of survival of Sabah’s female entrepreneurs living primarily in rural areas throughout the Covid-19 pandemic.
Titled “Narratives of Resilience of Female Entrepreneurs in Sabah During Covid-19 and Endemicity”, the project is funded by the Impact-Oriented Interdisciplinary Research Grant (IIRG).
This research project is part of a larger academic project called “Understanding Women’s Narratives and Strengthening Women’s Participation and Empowerment in Economic Development” which is headed by UM’s Associate Professor Dr Raida Abu Bakar.
The project is being carried out by UM anthropologist and Sabahan native, Dr Vilashini Somiah, and research assistant and UM master’s student, Lauren Brodie Tsen.
“Throughout the month of August, we have driven to Ranau, Kota Marudu, Kundasang, Kudat and Bundu Tuhan to examine the perseverance of this demographic in overcoming the crises that impacted their businesses and livelihoods during the pandemic,” Dr Vilashini said in a statement on Wednesday.
“Local entrepreneurs recognised the importance of having camaraderie that would help them focus on cultivating community talents in the field of entrepreneurship.
“Zazila Roslan then co-founded and lead the formation of SOSEA, which works closely and relentlessly on elevating the socio-economic status of their community by finding sustainable practices without neglecting its cultural norms and environmental well-being.
“Thus, considering SOSEA’s connections with Sabah’s female entrepreneurs, the research team relied heavily on SOSEA’s network to identify and liase with the necessary demographic,” she added.
According to Dr Vilashini, this is one of two major researches she will be conducting in Sabah about the lives of Sabahans in rural settings impacted by Covid-19.
Following the end of her research on female entrepreneurs, she will be conducting in-depth research in Nabawan on mental health issues and other survival methods instead.
Through the use of in-depth interviews and ethnographic observations, they have currently gathered rich and detailed information from approximately 30 female entrepreneurs on the factors that have contributed to their business resilience, the often-undiscussed impact of Covid-19 on rural spaces, and expectations that the women have from the state and the federal governments.
Dr Vilashini and Lauren will soon be focusing on engaging with other stakeholders to finalise this study; these stakeholders include relevant government agencies, other rural labour force experts and NGOs.
This project also aims to use the data collected to help convey to local policy makers on the variety of potential aid that women in the interiors are desperately in need of to help strengthen the local Sabah economy.
She added some suggestions that have been made include that of entrepreneurial management training and workshops that are heavily focused on building motivation and strengthening mental health coping mechanisms.