Entrepreneurship

Entrepreneurship

What it is

There is not a commonly accepted definition of entrepreneurship or entrepreneur and there are different understandings of the phenomenon. One definition is that “entrepreneurship is a phenomenon in the economy by which individuals or companies assume risks to create something new in order to reap the benefits from the new venture” . This very broad definition would also allow the inclusion of aspects such as intrapreneurship (entrepreneurship possibilities within a given company).

Definitions used by countries to collect and or disseminate data on women’s and men’s entrepreneurship include concepts such as owners, managers, self-employed, and employers but different approaches are often used when these concepts are defined and put into the context of entrepreneurship.

An entrepreneur may be defined as the owner or manager of an enterprise, its executive director, or a member of its managing board. Self-employed people are also commonly considered to be entrepreneurs, but not all data sources include self-employment in their definition of entrepreneurship. Self-employment itself can be defined in multiple ways according to the different goals of various sources. For example, not all countries in the UNECE region use the standard guidelines of the International Labour Organization (ILO) for defining self-employment.

The lack of a common framework for defining entrepreneurs and entrepreneurship makes it difficult to have one internationally recognised definition. Different countries pursue different objectives through entrepreneurship so no single definition would satisfy all. The links between entrepreneurship and the objectives that countries pursue through entrepreneurship should be clear.

 

Why it is important

Entrepreneurship is an important part of the national economy. It is an important factor in creating and increasing employment opportunities and fuelling economic growth. For many years, policymakers have identified entrepreneurs as important drivers for employment, innovation and economic growth .

Entrepreneurship is viewed as a critical activity to regenerate and sustain economic growth in strong economies and also as a means of boosting employment and productivity in deprived regions or in developing countries, as it is an important source of job creation, career opportunities and poverty reduction for both men and women.

 

According to the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor Report on Women and Entrepreneurship regardless of country, men are more likely to be involved in entrepreneurial activity than women. Examination of entrepreneurial behavior across the globe yields a clear picture of a gender gap in venture creation and ownership activity. The entrepreneurial gender gap exhibits varying dimension and characteristics, a significant gender gap exists for both early stage entrepreneurial participation and established business ownership, and this gender gap is greatest in the high-income country group, regardless of type of activity.

In the Beijing Platform for Action one of the means of improving women’s employability, in the context of increasing flexibilities in labour markets, is fostering women’s access to self-employment and entrepreneurship. However, policies aimed at supporting entrepreneurship development tend to be gender neutral.

 

The OECD notes that the reduction of women’s barriers to market access, the improvement of their position within the value chain and the enhancement of their productivity is likely to benefit local, national and regional economies as well as households . Overall, the data shows that women entrepreneurs across all types of countries and economies have an important impact on the economy through creating jobs for themselves and for others. This is of social and economic importance to their economies.

Have a good Day.....agarbandhu