Submitted by,

Submitted to,
MD. Golam Emamul Mursalin
Sutap Kumar Ghosh
Roll: 1721042
Assistant Professor,
Reg.:1532
Dept. of Finance and Banking

Islamic University,
Session: 2017-2018
Bangladesh. Dept. of Finance and Banking
Definition of Women Entrepreneurship

A women entrepreneur is defined as a woman who has, alone or with one or more partners, started or
inherited a business and is eager to take the financial, administrative, and social risk and responsibilities
and participate in the day to day management activities.

In Bangladesh, there is a definition as per Industrial Policy 2016, which says if a woman owns a business
as proprietor or in case of a partnership organisation, a company registered with the office of the Registrar
of Joint Stock Companies (RJSC) where she owns at least 51 per cent, she could be called as women
entrepreneur. There is a suggestion from some countries that 'women-led businesses' should be used as an
alternative to the definition of 51 per cent ownership requirement when it comes to corporate procurement,
international trade and sometimes public procurement. If at least 30 per cent shares are owned, managed,
and controlled by one or more women, it would be described as a woman-led business.

Characteristics of Women Entrepreneurs in Business

All Women entrepreneurs who have achieved noteworthy success have developed the below characteristics
for a very simple reason these characteristics are among those that are absolutely critical for long-term
success and business growth –

1. Courage is the first characteristic. It takes courage to start your own business. While everyone may have
opportunities, it is only those who are brave enough to capitalize on those opportunities that are able to
profit from them. Being an entrepreneur offers no guarantee of success, and therefore it requires a certain
degree of courage.

2. Vision is another necessary quality of a successful woman entrepreneur. Entrepreneurs are visionary
thinkers. They look outside the box. They perceive the world in terms of what isn’t rather than what is.

3. Passion is a characteristic that is found in just about every woman entrepreneur’s tool box. The beginning
stages of business development and ownership can often be tedious, involving many long hours and some
sleepless nights. When business ownership is motivated and backed by passion and a real strong burning
desire; then the entrepreneur does not perceive obstacles as problems but rather as opportunities.
4. Persistence is probably the most important characteristics of all. Many people never stick with any one
thing long enough to see any results. Persistence is something displayed by all those who achieve great
things and this is a quality that we all can develop over time.

It is also about maintaining that discipline that comes with persistence through the least fun parts of running
a business.

5. Balance is important for ensuring that you do not take any characteristic too far. There’s a point at which
attention to detail can become obsession or calm can become unemotional response.

As a woman entrepreneur, you must to be able to balance these characteristics, obtain the most from them
without going over the edge. Just as an entrepreneur does not have a boss to keep her at work when
necessary, she-doesn’t have one to send her home when she is done. If you working for yourself, you have
to decide how to balance your work and home life.

6. Become known as an expert is critical for any entrepreneur. It only stands to reason that the more you
become known for your expertise in your field, the more people will seek you out to tap into your expertise
thereby creating more selling and referral opportunities.

Qualities of Women Entrepreneurs

1. Positive Attitude:

There’s no energy that can mimic what’s released when a positive, high-stepping woman enters a room. A
positive attitude is the fuel needed to drive us from idea conception to realization.

A positive attitude takes conscious effort on your part. Arrest negative thoughts and replace them with
positive ones. Listen to the things you’re saying to yourself in your mind. Deliberately use words that focus
on constructive, affirming truths about you. To help you stay positive, surround yourself with people who’ll
encourage, inspire and believe in you. If you have a positive attitude, you’ll be able to see the potential that
lies within you.

2. Vision:

The female entrepreneur is a big-picture person. She can see her successful business, what it looks like with
all of its components. She can see her product on the shelves, her services in action. She is not only afraid
to dream big, but views her daydreams as achievable.
3. Autonomy:

This woman likes to be in control and isn’t afraid to make decisions by herself. She is comfortable with
being alone and has confidence in her intelligence. She is a take-charge person. This woman doesn’t wait
for someone else to act and doesn’t second guess her choices.

4. Intuitive:

The woman entrepreneur trusts her instincts about her product or service, the market and her business
management skills. She uses her instinct as well as her research and her knowledge to guide her business
decisions. She knows that her instincts will be what sets her apart from her competitors and will ultimately
lead to her success.

5. Distinctive:

People remember this woman. She is distinctive. Her product or service is distinctive and her company is
a stand-alone. There is nothing ordinary here.

6. Planner:

This woman not only devises and puts down on paper her business plan, she follows it. She doesn’t lose
sight of her goals or methods for reaching her goals. When she reaches a fork in the road, she might explore
the alternate route and add it to her business plan. However, she never forgets her vision. Her business plan
is the written version of the vision she sees in her mind.

7. Risk-Taker:

Starting a business isn’t the first time this woman has thrown the dice. She isn’t afraid to bet everything on
herself. She has been known to jump before.

8. Drive:

Failure is not an option for the committed entrepreneur. Bumps in the road will not set her back, but will
steel her resolve. She is on a mission and knows she will get to her goal.

Women Entrepreneurship in Bangladesh

In recent years, the rate of new business formation by women has significantly risen in Bangladesh.
However, women still own and manage significantly fewer businesses than men. According to the
Economic Census 2013, the number of females headed establishments is 0.56 million (7.21 per cent) while
it was 0.10 million (2.80 per cent) in 2001 and 2003. The explanation for this rising rate and the behaviour
of female entrepreneurs in terms of traits, motivations, success rates, and their gender-related
distinctiveness are, however, complex and multifaceted. Recent evidence shows that the prevalence rates
of female entrepreneurship tend to rise in developing countries like Bangladesh due to the fact that women
face higher barriers to entry in the formal labour market and have to resort to entrepreneurship as a way out
of unemployment and, often, out of poverty. Research on female entrepreneurship shows that, in many
cases, opportunities and incentives are unfavourable for women to begin businesses, even when they have
the abilities and knowledge.

Problems of Women Entrepreneurs in Bangladesh

The problems of women entrepreneurs in India are: (Growing women’s entrepreneurship in Bangladesh,
2019)

i. Need for achievement, economic independence and autonomy are absent (held back by her own
preconceived notions of her role in life)

ii. No risk bearing capacity (as dependency is more)

iii. Lack of education (literacy percentage is only 18.5)

iv. Family involvement (cannot be avoided)

v. Male dominated society (equal treatment still absent)

vi. Lack of information and experience

vii. Liquidity and easy availability of finance (only 11% of the total earnings are by women) –

a. Inadequate size of loans

b. Lack of experience in formulating bankable projects

c. Margin money requirement

d. Insistence on collateral

e. Time taken to process loans

f. Tight repayment schedule

g. Ignorance of banking procedure due to illiteracy

h. Lack of marketing, accounting and management skills leading to failure of projects and consequent
inability to pay loans.

In spite of women cells, the problem of getting loans and aids from banks still persists. Women face
discrimination. People including bankers and government officials find it difficult to take women seriously
as entrepreneurs.

Suggestions for Growth of Women Entrepreneurs

The following measures are suggested to empower the women to seize various opportunities and face
challenges in business:

1. Change in Attitudes:

Societal change is not an overnight phenomenon; it is a gradual and slow process. Unless attitudes are
changed, subsidies and credit allocation to women will not bring much change. The various programmes
initiated by the government have to go beyond incentives and exemption to change social outlook, attitudes,
group formation, training and other support services.

2. Training:

Training in entrepreneurial attitudes have to be imparted which should start right at the high school level
through well designed courses which will instil confidence. Various case studies and behavioural games
can be formed part of curriculum. In addition, practical knowledge can be imparted regarding financial
management, cost accounting, preparation of project report and various legal aspects related to business.

3. Increase in Mobility:

The constraints on mobility should be released as mobility contributes to raise the confidence levels to an
incredible extent. Girls should be compulsorily trained to learn cycling, play games, participate in extra-
curricular activities and youth festivals and also trained to learn the techniques of self-defence (karate etc.)

4. Initiation into Professional Work:

Efforts made by the government to train the girls and to increase their mobility will turn out to be futile
unless women are initiated into independent professional work. Families usually provide financial and
emotional support to sons but don’t extend similar support to the daughters.
5. Self-Recognition and Decision-Making Authority:

Any programme started for women could be misused by those who are not entitled to the benefits. These
individuals could exploit the programme by using the truly deserving beneficiaries, i.e., women, as fronts
for their personal interests. This practice can be curbed only if women beneficiaries are induced to claim
greater decision-making authority in family businesses, whether run in their names or not.

This can come only from greater experience and motivation induced by greater knowledge and experience
of dealing with external world and from moving with other successful women entrepreneurs.

The women must be pulled out of normal restrictive environment and should taught to recognise her own
psychological needs and give her needs an expression. Women must be motivated to involve themselves
actively in business being run in their names but actively driven by menfolk of their families. They should
not be contended by just lending their names in the business and putting their signatures as and when
required.

6. Provision of Amenities:

Following amenities can be arranged:

(i) Easy mobility and closeness to homes.

(ii) Child care facilities.

(iii) Regular bus service inside industrial areas.

(iv) Crèches for children.

(v) Allotment of sheds on priority basis.

8. Causes of Stagnation in Growth:

Women entrepreneurs usually suffer from stagnation in growth of their enterprise. The stagnation is caused
due to various reasons like household responsibilities, lack of mobility, fear of expansion of business and
staff, lack of self-confidence, fear of success, resentment and hostility from family etc. In addition, lack of
managerial and technical skills also act as a barrier to the growth of women’s businesses.

Women entrepreneurs should also understand the need for constant training, development and counselling
in order to cope up with advancement taking place in their respective enterprises. Women entrepreneurs
can be counselled through NGOs, psychologists’ behavioural experts, managerial experts and technical
persons so as to enable them to adopt appropriate strategies to full growth.
References
AKM Mohsin, H. L. (2020). Factor Analysis for the Development of Women. Chinese Business Review.

Defining woman entrepreneurship. (2020). Retrieved from The Financial Express:

https://thefinancialexpress.com.bd/views/reviews/defining-woman-entrepreneurship-
1600615442

Growing women’s entrepreneurship in Bangladesh. (2019). Retrieved from UN Women:

https://www.unwomen.org/en/news/stories/2019/10/feature-bangladesh-women-
entrepreneurs

K, U. (2020). Women Entrepreneurship: Definition, Qualities, Types, Functions, Problems. Retrieved from
Business Management Ideas: https://www.businessmanagementideas.com/entrepreneurship-
2/women-entrepreneurs/21046