Crossovers--Female Entrepreneurs Who Enter Male Sectors : Evidence from Ethiopia
Occupational sector selection is an important determinant of returns for female entrepreneurs. If sectors that are traditionally male owned could provide an opportunity to earn higher returns, then what factors could encourage women to cross over i...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Language: | English en_US |
| Published: |
World Bank, Washington, DC
2017
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/482051494945352045/Crossovers-female-entrepreneurs-who-enter-male-sectors-evidence-from-Ethiopia http://hdl.handle.net/10986/26757 |
| Summary: | Occupational sector selection is an
important determinant of returns for female entrepreneurs.
If sectors that are traditionally male owned could provide
an opportunity to earn higher returns, then what factors
could encourage women to cross over into these sectors or
prevent them from doing so? To examine this question, this
paper uses data from Ethiopia to compare the firm
performance and characteristics of women in male-dominated
sectors (crossovers) with women who are in
female-concentrated sectors (noncrossovers). The findings
show that female-owned enterprises in male-dominated sectors
perform better on average than those in female-concentrated
sectors, with firms achieving higher profits and having more
employees. The descriptive results show that crossovers do
not necessarily have more education or greater skills than
noncrossovers. Rather, women’s relationships and networks,
especially those provided through male relatives, and being
opportunity-driven entrepreneurs appear to influence the
likelihood of entering a more-profitable, male-dominated
sector. The study explores the implications and challenges
of encouraging female entrepreneurs to enter male-dominated
sectors, in an effort to provide new insight into how the
earning gap between male and female entrepreneurs can be closed. |
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