Global Journal of Management and Business Research, A: Administration and Management, Volume 23 Issue 9

50, married, with 2 children, owner of a forwarding company, adds: "I know my customers very well, and they know me very well too, as we've been working together for a long time". Women in the liberal professions, on the other hand, are more recognised in their professions and report few difficulties of this type or sexist behaviour on the part of customers (Ben Makhlouf, 2019; Mohammed, 2020;. When it comes to their relations with staff, women entrepreneurs report the most difficulties, particularly when they adopt an authoritarian manage- ment style that is totally out of keeping with their status as women. In this respect, a married woman entrepreneur in the clothing industry with 2 children said "Some employees confuse kindness with weakness. The fact of approaching them and treating them like family members pushes them towards disrespect and irreverence". Women in the self-employed professions manage their relationships with their employees better. "I have four people working with me. We know each other well, so it's like a little family, everyone does their job without any problems", says a 43-year-old pharmacist, married, with 3 children to support. As far as the institutional context is concerned, our interviewees made no mention of the changes brought about by the major reforms undertaken in the country, which do not seem to have had any impact on the situation of Tunisian women entrepreneurs. They all expressed dissatisfaction with the administration and public support structures, given the quality of the services they offer. They complain about the complexity of procedures and red tape, which are a major obstacle to setting up, running and developing their businesses. "When I wanted to open my practice, the most difficult task was the paperwork - it was a real headache," says a 33-year-old orthodontist who is single. So the finger is pointed at the irresponsibility, sloppiness and corruption of civil servants, which does little to encourage investment, despite the many initiatives officially put in place to support and develop entrepreneurial activity. Our interviewees also denounced unequal treatment by civil servants. They feel that they are at a disadvantage compared to men, in addition to being victims of abusive practices by certain corrupt officials. An entrepreneur in the metalworking industry, aged 35, married with 1 dependent child: "Some civil servants don't treat us properly. They always ask us to come back the next time, just for a document. Some don't hesitate to blackmail us and ask us for a tip in exchange for a service. Right from the start, I used the services of a facilitator. This is someone I pay to take care of all the administrative formalities. The precarious situation of women co-operators means that they suffer most from the effects of such behaviour, especially as they are less informed about their rights and obligations and have more difficulty in dealing with the administrative services. A single cooperative member, aged 31: "When we set up the cooperative, we spent a lot of time putting together the administrative documents to send to various authorities. Frankly, it was exhausting". a) Socio-Cultural Factors The socio-cultural context determines the activity of women entrepreneurs (Ndione and Ousseynou, 2020; ELAzzaoui, 2019; Hobad et al., 2023). Our interviewees stressed that their activities as entrepreneurs gave them a more positive image in the eyes of their families and society. Self-employed women talked more about the prestige associated with their profession (MEYABE et al., 2022). Women in cooperatives emphasise the improvement in their social status linked to greater autonomy. Women entrepreneurs feel valued in relation to the income generated by their activities (Hossain et al., 2023; Sarr and Fall, 2021). However, the prejudices and gender stereotypes that are still very present in Tunisian society are reflected in the difficulties they encounter in their entrepreneurial activities. By setting up and running their own businesses, women have certainly asserted themselves professionally. However, they remain limited in the public arena, given the cultural norms and rules that characterise their social context (Hamdi and Hamdi, 2021; Doubogan, 2019). Indeed, our interviewees attach vital importance to the socio-cultural environment, which defines their margin of freedom in relation to men. Mobility remains a sensitive issue for many of them, and even though they are no longer obliged to ask their husbands for permission to carry out an activity, travel for professional reasons is not always accepted (Ouattara, 2020; BIYIHA et al., 2023). "My family sometimes objects to the idea of a married woman travelling alone out of town, especially if I have to stay for several days. They don't think it's good for her reputation," says a 31-year-old print shop owner married with one child. A number of women prefer to resign themselves to the moralising rhetoric surrounding their role as mothers: "It's very difficult for a woman to carry out an activity in the same way as a man; women's actions are scrutinised all the time. If you go away for a few days, people will see it as abandonment and a failure to fulfil your family duties", says a 38-year-old lawyer who is married with one child to support. Access to certain public spaces, such as cafés and restaurants, remains problematic. Many of the women we interviewed said that they cannot go to the same places as their male counterparts. They remain excluded from the spaces occupied by men. A single 34-year-old female development worker said: "Personally, I'm in favour of protecting our traditions". Challenges and Prospects for Women Entrepreneurs in Tunisia Global Journal of Management and Business Research ( A ) XXIII Issue IX Version I Year 2023 46 © 2023 Global Journals