The start of this new decade has indeed been unprecedented in terms of the pandemic that spread all across the world in less than four months. Although the global economy has been badly affected and might take quite some time to overcome the situation, certain areas of life seem to be developing. The disparities in the economic and health systems have become apparent over these months, and the need for more employees in the healthcare sector has led to the search for more women. They are being exposed to various conditions through these hard times. According to a few studies, women are more likely to lose their job during the pandemic.
Men losing jobs isn’t as rife as women losing their hope to a better career and being deprived of any form of income. In such times, firms owned by women are more likely to close down, and as per the reports, around 6% difference exists in the loss of jobs for men and women. All these can be attributed to the current climate, but things haven’t been any different during normalcy. Women may not always need empowerment to take on the challenges and grow their business. Let us look at the type of support the women need in handling their entrepreneurship.
What Works for the Entrepreneurs?
While in some countries, women become entrepreneurs out of passion, many of them in the developing countries choose this out of necessity. Since microenterprises dominate the market, interventions have always focused on helping this group. Most interventions in the case of female microentrepreneurs are categorized into finance, training, and a combination of both. Several studies have revealed the fact that training always works better when combined with some form of assistance. The past experiences have also proved the same. Female entrepreneurs have testified to the existence of a larger impact on them with the training sessions with an added class on finance. Technical assistance, mentorship, and guidance on finance help the entrepreneurs learn more about each sector thoroughly.
These programs are not always successful in encouraging women to engage in entrepreneurial activity, but they surely help the aspirants understand the various aspects related to business. The quality of work and firm performance are the most important factors determining the value of the results, and they have always been mixed. Considering the constraints women have to face while engaging in entrepreneurship, the achievements of all these aspirants are more than just great. According to the studies and previous interventions, the conclusions drawn suggest that any training session with an added low-cost mentorship will bring more difference to the current state of the business.
Outcomes can only be improved when all these areas are explored for the impending challenges that need tackling. With such aspects considered, the women still need interventions that address other common constraints faced by women in the business sector, including child care, choice of domain, and market burdens.
