PaperInk: Write your thoughts
Submission no: 02
Topic: Women Entrepreneurship in Our Economy
Name: Lahmi Hossain Jim
Institution: Ahmed Bawany Academy
Economic growth and development of any country are determined by human, physical and financial resources. An economy can move on to higher levels of growth either by acquiring a larger quantum of the factors of production or through technical progress. Bangladesh is a developing country positioned in the South Asian region. Per capita national income is US$ 621 and which is far beneath in the rural area. About fifty percent of the population falls below the poverty line. A densely populated country like Bangladesh, women hold’s half of the overall population. In this situation, without the participation of women in the mainstream of the economy we cannot think of an economically stable country. We can reduce gender discrimination through the entrepreneurship of women. Women can be involved in business activities where they can contribute directly to their family and the economy. Industrialization is one of the ways of bringing about a socio-development in any country. The economical development is sparked largely by the working spirit. Women make nearly half of the population which means huge potential to be utilized for the socio-economic development of the country. All the people has realized gradually that a society cannot afford to waste nearly half of its human resources discriminating on gender issue. The rising awareness of the government has led to implementation to facilitate women in all spheres particularly on economic activities focusing especially on entrepreneurship development. Entrepreneurship has become an important profession among the women of Bangladesh. The characteristic of enterprising emerges from the inter play of behaviour and social activity of special segment of the population known as entrepreneurs. It is known that a healthy business environment is as essential requirement for entrepreneurial growth. According to the UNDP Human Development Report, A woman entrepreneur is defined as a woman who has alone or with one or more partners started or inherited a business. All development cannot be achieved without women’s participation in the developing sectors in our country. Women entrepreneurship has been associated with concepts such as women empowerment and emancipation. Increasingly, it has also been marketed as crucial for increasing the equality of women in the developing world. The benefit of women empowerment and women entrepreneurship are many and varied. The socio economic participation of women at the international, regional, national and local levels means using significant potential resources more effectively. Women entrepreneurs engaged in business due to different push and pull factors which encourage women to have an independent occupation and stands on their own legs. Besides a strong desire to do something positive is an inbuilt quality of entrepreneurial women who is capable of contributing values in both family and social life. Female entrepreneurs represent the fastest growing category of entrepreneurship worldwide and have received, especially in recent years, the attention of many academics. According to the emerging literature, women can make a significant contribution to entrepreneurial activity and economic development in terms of creating new jobs and increasing the gross domestic product (GDP), with positive impacts on reducing poverty and social exclusion. The percentage of women who decide to pursue an entrepreneurial career is, however, lower than that of men, and this difference is greater as the level of development of the country increases. The challenges and the opportunities provided to the women of this digital and dynamic era are growing rapidly that the job seekers are turning in to job creators. On the other hand, many women start a business due to some traumatic events, such as divorce, death of bread winner, sudden fall in family income, permanent adequacy in the income of the family etc. Existing information shows that women-owned small and medium enterprises globally tend to be concentrated in overall low-profitability or low-growth sectors. Retail, beauty and food services are among the sectors in which women focus. In Africa and Asia, about 75 percent of women are in these consumer-oriented sectors. The rising number of female business owners is currently a global trend especially in the developing countries. In the advanced market economies, women own more than 25 percent of all business. Women entrepreneurs are making great strides and leaving their mark in business communities across the country. The contribution of women entrepreneurs depends on their performance, which, in turn, is affected by the underlying facilitators and barriers. Over the past two decades, women entrepreneurs have come to be recognized for their significant contributions to socio-economic development of their respective countries. This mix of optimism and momentum reflects the challenge of establishing and financing a small business – including the extent to which gender bias may play a role. For example, more than half of women entrepreneurs say they don’t feel that they have the same access to capital as their male counterparts. Today women are as likely as men to recognize the business opportunities around them. In Asia, fear of business failure rates among women are equal to or less than that among men. Women consider themselves strong innovators. In developing countries in particular, the opportunities offered by women entrepreneurs help grow markets and increase employment prospects. In Bangladesh, women dominate the micro enterprise sector both in rural and urban areas. According to the central statistical authority women account for close to 70 per cent of the microenterprises in India are run by women. However, their participation in small, medium and large enterprises diminishes. When reflecting upon positive influences on their success, more than half of women business owners identified external factors, such as experiencing adversity, obtaining a college degree and having a mentor, that have helped them achieve success. Beyond the participating in productive activities such as agriculture trade and industry, women have multiple roles in society. They participate in productive activities such as agriculture; they are responsible for caring for the family challenge of establishing and financing a small business – including the extent to which gender bias may play a role. For example, more than half of women entrepreneurs say they don’t feel that they have the same access to capital as their male counterparts. Today women are as likely as men to recognize the business opportunities around them. In Asia fear of business failure rates among women are equal to or less than that among men. Women consider themselves strong innovators. In developing countries in particular, the opportunities offered by women entrepreneurs help grow markets and increase employment prospects. In Bangladesh, women dominate the micro enterprise sector both in rural and urban areas. According to the central statistical authority women account for close to 70 per cent of the microenterprises in India are run by women. However, their participation in small, medium and large enterprises diminishes. When reflecting upon positive influences on their success, more than half of women business owners identified external factors, such as experiencing adversity, obtaining a college degree and having a mentor, that have helped them achieve success. Beyond the participating in productive activities such as agriculture trade and industry, women have multiple roles in society. They participate in productive activities such as agriculture; they are responsible for caring for the family including the preparation of food, health care and education. In developing countries in particular like Bangladesh, financial barriers can be combined with legal and policy barriers and discrimination — including inability of married women to travel without a male escort, barriers to identification cards, and legal constraints around signing contracts on their own, accessing bank accounts or registering businesses. Other constraints include occupation segregation, lack of networks and limited links to high-value markets. Women entrepreneur are playing an important role in generating employment both directly and indirectly. By setting small scale industries, they offer jobs to people. Women entrepreneurs are also contributing towards improving the balanced regional development and improvement of living standard in the country. For a developing country like Bangladesh, women entrepreneurs play a great role in increasing the GDP. Women entrepreneurs are the main actresses in charging the culture of the society. Entrepreneurship development among women is important for the achievement of broader development. By encouraging women to enter male-dominated sectors — and thereby changing the mindset of financial lenders and providing new opportunities for women to learn, grow and develop entrepreneurial businesses — women in developing countries can escape poverty and improve their country’s economic condition.
