Building blocks of a new economy : emerging roles for female entrepreneurs in Malaysia

Abstract

This field-based study highlights the role of women as entrepreneurs who spur micro-level reform with the potential to affect larger institutional change in Malaysia, arguably one of Asia's largest Muslim democracies. In a context where women make up 49% of the current population, government is increasingly concerned with gender inclusion as a method to catalyze its new innovation-driven economy. However, the provision of opportunity- infrastructure, grants, quotas, short-term programs- alone is not enough to motivate entrepreneurial behavior. By making certain adjustments to the public education and legal systems, institutional entrepreneurs are beginning to challenge cultural conventions. The reflections of 30 local entrepreneurs featured in the documentary offer an opportunity to discuss possible alternative outcomes that unfold when a nation seeks to promote innovation, particularly among women. The initial documentary effort also seeks to examine ways in which longitudinal studies captured in film may contribute to a new way of influencing data-driven policymaking and campaigning.