ISSN 2360-798X
Abstract
Social capital is becoming a concern in development where access to financial capital is limited. It was assumed that social networks generate productive social capital that supports business activities. Using a mixed-method design, structured & semi-structured interviews were used to collect data from 300 households in Walmara district of Ethiopia. Analysis shows that education, family size, aboriginality, business training, and access to information significantly influence social capital, while landholding, livestock, income, access to information had stronger links at P<0.000 level of significance. Higher social capital, measured by network density, membership, and participation, were linked to greater social engagement. As social capital increases, reliance on rural associations for information decreases, shifting towards personal networks and digital sources. This highlights trending of social capital suggesting the socio-cultural and institutional factors to play crucial role to maintain social networks. This recommends incorporating social networking into policies and strategies that promotes rural business development.
Keywords: Social capital, collective action, rural business, social network, Ethiopia.