In the Recent MasterCard Index of Women Entrepreneurs (MIWE), Ghana took the second position after Uganda in the world ranking of women entrepreneurs.
The programme which assessed 58 countries globally, details the progress and achievements of women in business discovered that nearly 4 out of every 10 business owners in Ghana are women.
Sub-Saharan countries that made it to the Top 10 globally in terms of Women’s Business Ownership rates include Uganda (rank 1), Botswana (rank 3), Malawi (rank 7) and Angola (rank 9).
The report revealed that despite the many challenges, women entrepreneurs keep opening successful businesses at a faster pace than it used to be.
The challenges of women business owners in sub-Saharan Africa include disparity in access to the internet and technology, barriers to accessing funding, restrictive cultural and social norms among others.
Despite being undermined by the prevalence of such persistent and widespread disparities and inequalities, women’s determination to start their own business in these Sub-saharan markets is nearly at the same level as men.
“More importantly, it brings to light how much more women can contribute economically and socially if such barriers are removed, or systems improved,” the report said.
Push factors
While general business ownership rates, the index noted, tend to be driven by perceived good opportunities whereby individuals seek to improve their income or financial independence, the findings of the index showed that there are cases where businesses are not always initiated on opportunistic grounds.
In sub-Saharan markets including Ghana, women tend to start businesses out of necessity, especially in Ghana, Botswana, Russia, Malawi, Angola and Brazil where around 4 in 10 entrepreneurs are driven into business out of necessity.
Per the report, Ghanaian women continue to flourish in women’s advancement outcomes, including high labor force participation (89.0, Rank 4), women business leadership (37.2% of total, rank 11) and surpassing their male counterparts in engaging in entrepreneurial activities.
“Their ability to thrive in these aspects explains their particularly high standing in society as business owners, despite poor underlying entrepreneurial supporting factors,” the report added.
Compared to their regional peers in Malawi, Uganda, and Angola, women in Ghana tend to be more inclined to have a bank account, likely due to their higher level of engagement in business activities. For instance, nearly 40 percent of women in Ghana have an account at a bank or financial institution compared to only around 20% in Angola, Malawi, and Nigeria.
By Emmanuel Amewugah, Daily Mail GH
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