Abstract
The degree at which entrepreneurship affects the economy depends on numerous factors, including the quality, gender composition, and type of entrepreneurial activity. Gender equality and female entrepreneurship are key factors in economic development. In order to study the relationship between gender equality and the rate of female entrepreneurship, this paper investigates how gender-related economic development and women entrepreneurial activity are related. We characterize the relationship between gender-related development indices (introduced by the United Nations) and different stages of women entrepreneurial activity (created by Global Entrepreneurship Monitor, GEM) through a correlation analysis. Our results suggest that female entrepreneurial activity is not significantly correlated with gender equality.
Highlights
Economic development cannot be achieved without active participation of women in all aspects of life
This research is an empirical study and attempts to answer the following question: does gender equality lead to more women entrepreneurial activity? The answer to this question is approached by analyzing secondary data, i.e., the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor’s (GEM) women indices in entrepreneurial activities and the United Nations (UN) genderrelated indices, in order to compare and analyze the gender inequalities reported by the two international organizations
In 2012, the highest and the lowest rates of female entrepreneurship were observed in Zambia (40%) and Pakistan (1%), both classified as factor driven economies (Kelley et al 2013), suggesting that there is no general prescription for relating the rate of female entrepreneurship to the level of economic development
Summary
Economic development cannot be achieved without active participation of women in all aspects of life. The share of women’s contribution to the economic and social development depends on the promotion of gender equality and gender blind support from the institutions. According to Schumpeter, the entrepreneurial process is a major factor in economic development and the entrepreneur is the key to economic growth. Women entrepreneurs can play crucial roles in the process of economic development if they have equal opportunity and access to resources. While Sub-Saharan Africa shows the highest rate of female entrepreneurship (27%), the female entrepreneurs in MENA region report the lowest rate of 4% among regions. Region-wise, the greatest gender inequality in Total Early Entrepreneurial Activity (TEA) is in the MENA/Mid-Asia (men four times that of women) while, on average, the greatest gender equality in TEA is in Sub-Saharan Africa and Developing Asia
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