Mastercard study: Romania on 9th place in the world in share of businesses owned by women

The Mastercard Index of Women Entrepreneurs 2018, launched today, shows that Romania ranks 9^th among countries with the highest percentage of businesses owned by women.

The study is at its second edition and analyses the progress and achievements of female entrepreneurs in 57 countries all over the world.

Diana Tanase, Marketing Manager at Mastercard Romania, said: “The Mastercard Index of Women Entrepreneurs allows us to carefully analyse the dynamic of female entrepreneurship in Romania. Overall, Romania had higher scores than in 2017, a trend we hope continues in the following years, so that female entrepreneurs in our country can fulfil their potential, achieve their goals and, ultimately, to accelerate inclusion. Launching the Index so close to the International Women’s Day represents Mastercard’s global call to end gender discrimination.”

The results of the study have shown that, of all businesses in Romania, 28.9 percent are owned by women. Last year, Romania was in 13^th place, with 27.5 percent of all businesses owned by women.

The highest percentage of businesses started and led by women is in Ghana, with 46.4 percent. The top 10 is completed by Russia (34.6 percent), Uganda (33.8 percent), New Zealand (33 percent), Australia (32.1 percent), Vietnam (31.3 percent), Poland (30.3 percent), Spain (29.4 percent), Romania (28.9 percent) and Portugal (28.7 percent).

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In terms of support and entrepreneurial development opportunities for women, Romania is on place 32 of 57, with a percentage of 61.9 percent. The index also takes into account the results of progress had by women (Romania is on the 33^rd place), the knowledge and access to financial resources (Romania is on 24), and the support for entrepreneurial initiatives (Romania is on 29). The first place in the ranking of business development opportunities for women is taken by New Zealand, followed by Sweden, Canada, the US, Singapore, Portugal, Australia, Belgium and Philippines.

Gender discrimination, present in both developing and developed countries

The global data collected by Mastercard shows that female entrepreneurship seems to prosper in more developed economies. In comparison with women entrepreneurs in emerging markets, those who founded and who own businesses in developed countries are able to choose from a larger range of resources and opportunities, which includes access to capital, to financial services and academic programmes.

Overall, the study indicates that despite cultural gender bias, which can lead to significant blockages and can prevent women entrepreneurs from advancing and reaching their true potential, the female entrepreneurship in the entire world continues to make progress.

Developed markets are not immune to biases against women’s entrepreneurship. In New Zealand, the Mastercard study revealed that the society is less receptive regarding female entrepreneurs. Despite this issue, women in New Zealand who own businesses have overcome this challenge, and the country is the first in the Mastercard Index of Women Entrepreneurs for the second year in a row.

At the same time, the study suggests that development opportunities for female entrepreneurship are not necessarily aligned with the market’s rate of economic development. In emerging economies like Ghana, Uganda and Vietnam, the rate of women entrepreneurs is higher than in more developed countries. The women in these countries are considered to have become entrepreneurs were necessity-driven, because despite the lack of financial capital and access to assistance, what motivates them is the need for survival.

On the other hand, the countries with the highest overall scores – New Zealand, Sweden, Canada and the United States – have four key factors in common which allow businesses to be successful: access to financial services, the ease of doing business, the strong support given for SMEs and a quality governance.