This thesis is an investigation of the different ways female entrepreneurs in rural Tanzania are being affected by the new conditions which are accompanying structural adjustment policies. A case study methodology was chosen as the primary method for conducting this research. Key research findings include an overview of structural adjustment policies in Tanzania, a description of a rural marketplace, an overview of changes in the marketplace and an analysis of the nature of the linkage between structural adjustment policies and the changes currently under way. The absence of formal documentation at the national, the market and the enterprise levels, the short time frame since many of the policies were implemented and the large number of new enterprises limited the level of inference possible. The convergence of multiple sources of data provided some initial insights regarding the chaning micro-enterprise sector and its causes from the viewpoint of the participants. The full impacts of the policies, however, will not be realized until many years later. Based on an understanding of the structure and dynamics of the micro-enterprise sector and some of the changes currently taking place, a strategy for the development of the sector and the rural economy was identified. The findings also provided useful insights regarding the appropriateness of traditional neoclassical economic theory and policy for Tanzania.