KEY POINTS:
Women in the world's poorer nations have a higher rate of entrepreneurial activity than those in wealthier nations, according to a new global study.
In a survey of more than 150,000 entrepreneurs in 40 regions around the world, women in low- and middle-income nations were found to be
more than twice as likely to be involved in early-stage business start-ups as those in high-income nations, researchers at Babson College and the London Business School said.
In Russia, women were involved in 39.9 per cent of all early-stage entrepreneurial activity, while in the Philippines they were involved in 22.5 per cent, the study found. That compares to just 2.3 per cent in Sweden and 1 per cent in Belgium.
Overall, about a third of the world's entrepreneurial activity is driven by women, the study found.
"Early-stage entrepreneurship in women continues to grow globally," Elaine Allen, the study's principal researcher, said in a statement. "While overall women still lag behind men in starting a business, for the first time, we see parity or a higher rate in women in some low- to middle-income countries."
The study also found that women in poorer nations were more likely to be working a second job to support their own venture, suggesting that the social and economic benefits of being active in the workforce are a stronger driver of early-stage entrepreneurship than education or household income combined, researchers said.
Where women entrepreneurs in wealthier nations benefited from education and income, those in poorer nations fell back on work experience as a foundation for starting their own businesses. In the absence of capital and business training, workforce experience offered women in poorer nations access to social capital, networking opportunities, innovative ideas for launching new ventures, and other resources, researchers said.
Yet, while the gender gap between entrepreneurs narrowed in poorer nations, researchers found the chances of early-stage entrepreneurial activity by women developing into an established business was greater in high-income nations.
The difference in success rates may be related to education, researchers said.
As much as 36.5 per cent of women entrepreneurs in poorer nations had less than a secondary school education, compared to 28.2 per cent in wealthier nations, according to the study.
New Zealand was not included in the study.
Early stage entrepreneurial activity
Men Women
Peru 41.02 per cent; 39.27 per cent
Philippines 18.40 per cent; 22.45 per cent
Indonesia 19.84 per cent; 18.73 per cent
Jamaica 22.58 per cent; 18.14 per cent
Colombia 27.97 per cent; 17.30 per cent
Australia 14.02 per cent; 9.87 per cent
Russia 7.33 per cent; 2.57 per cent
France 6.26 per cent; 2.53 per cent
Sweden 4.44 per cent; 2.43 per cent
Slovenia 6.93 per cent; 2.29 per cent
Belgium 4.39 per cent; 1.04 per cent
- REUTERS