Urgent Action for Women Entrepreneurs

A new policy briefing “Training for Women Entrepreneurs – an Imperative for Growth and Jobs” argues that women’s entrepreneurship needs urgent attention from governments and society as a whole.

‘Promoting women’s entrepreneurship, improving access to finance, providing training and setting up mentorship networks must become policy objectives in their own right,’ said Olena Bekh, specialist in entrepreneurship at the ETF and the author of the briefing.

‘Entrepreneurship and self-employment represent a viable career choice for women and should be recognised as a major source of economic growth, competitiveness and innovation in the EU and its neighbouring countries.’

Women's entrepreneurship – a blind spot in official statistics

The impact of business women on society extends far beyond their contribution to global GDP. Women are an indispensable force but this is always visible.  Official GDP figures do not include the hours of unpaid female labour devoted to family care. Women are paid less than their male colleagues and generally hold fewer top positions in business or government.

Women entrepreneurs in EU neighbouring countries

Enterprise Surveys carried out by the International Finance Corporation and the World Bank show that in eastern Europe and Central Asia 36.6% of business owners are women, and they occupy 18.8% of top management positions in companies. In south eastern Europe the figures are even lower - 27.5% and 14.2% respectively, while the countries of Middle East and North Africa are at the very bottom of the statistics at just 17.2% and 13.6%.

The constraints to women's entrepreneurship

Although both men and women increasingly recognise the opportunities of entrepreneurship and see it as a viable alternative to wage employment, women still appear to face more barriers to an entrepreneurial career as a result of a variety of factors. According to the ETF’s analyses, the most commonly cited challenges for women entrepreneurs in all countries are cultural traditions and prejudice, the lack of education and training opportunities, poor business support systems, and difficult access to capital and networks.

What can be done to spur women entrepreneurship?

To strengthen the entrepreneurial competences and business potential of women, the briefing suggests the following areas for consideration:

• Access to education and training opportunities: Entrepreneurial learning should be given an early start to develop entrepreneurship skills in boys and girls according to their own needs and interests.
• Role models and story-telling: Education and training are dominated by male role models. Female role models need to be introduced.
• Mentoring, coaching and network support: Mentoring and coaching are valued highly by many women entrepreneurs due to their positive effects on business start-up survival and the way they can build confidence among women entrepreneurs.
• Women’s entrepreneurship training needs analysis: Training for entrepreneurial women should be built on a thorough analysis of their training needs, both before, during and after they move into business.
• Policy coordination: To increase the sustainability of individual programmes and measures, policies that facilitate access to networks, training and finance, must be coordinated