A study commissioned by the Inter-American Development Bank’s Multilateral Investment Fund ranks countries in Latin America and the Caribbean based on risks and support to women entrepreneurs. Here they are from the worst to the best...

1. The best and worst places for women entrepreneurs
in Latin America and the Caribbean

2. A study commissioned by the Inter-American
Development Bank’s Multilateral Investment
Fund ranks countries in Latin America and the
Caribbean based on risks and support to
women entrepreneurs.
Here they are from the worst to the best...

3. #20 Jamaica
Women
may
have
good
access
to
business
networks
and
voca6onal
programs,
but
they
enjoy
li;le
social
services
support.
The
biggest
obstacles:
poor
investor
confidence
due
to
the
government’s
weak
fiscal
health,
lack
of
SME
technical
support
and
limited
credit
availability.
CC Image courtesy of daimoneklund on Flickr

4. #19 Paraguay
There
are
programs
suppor6ng
women
entrepreneurial
development,
but
female
enrolment
in
voca6onal
courses
is
minimal.
There
is
also
poor
presence
of
women
in
business
enterprises
and
associa6ons.
Women
have
low
access
to
finance
and
technology.
CC Image courtesy of Arcadiuš on Flickr

5. #17 Venezuela
High
infla6on
and
capital
flight
deter
entrepreneurship
in
general.
Women
struggle
to
get
loans
and
have
limited
opportuni6es
for
voca6onal
training.
CC Image courtesy of Oriana Eliçabe on Flickr

6. #17 El Salvador
Access
to
finance
for
women
entrepreneurs
and
managers
is
among
the
lowest
in
the
region.
Tied
for
17th
place
with
Venezuela,
El
Salvador
has
no
MSME
law
in
place.
Women,
though,
benefit
from
strong
property
rights
and
low
total
tax
rate.
Photo courtesy Living Water International | www.water.cc

7. #16 Guatemala
The
economy
is
rela6vely
stable,
but
the
cost
of
star6ng
and
expanding
businesses
is
high.
Women
enjoy
sufficient
property
rights
protec6on
and
child
care
support
but
have
poor
access
to
technology
due
to
the
country’s
low
Internet
penetra6on
rate,
and
paltry
savings
rates
at
financial
ins6tu6ons.
Photo courtesy Shopmayu | www.shopmayu.com

8. #15 Nicaragua
Women
find
it
difficult
to
obtain
SME
loans,
partly
due
to
banks’
conserva6ve
lending
prac6ces.
Other
obstacles
for
female
entrepreneurs:
heavy
tax
rates,
poor
technology
access,
low
business
sophis6ca6on
and
unequal
property
rights
protec6on.
Photo courtesy OikocreditUSA | www.oikiocreditusa.org

9. #13 Honduras
More
than
a
tenth
of
female
top
MSME
managers
say
firms
have
to
bribe
public
officials
to
get
things
done.
It
is
unclear
if
the
provision
on
strengthening
gender
equality
under
the
2008
MSME
law
has
been
implemented
or
monitored.
Photo by Cjmadson / CC BY-SA

10. #13 Bolivia
Tied
for
13th
place
with
Honduras,
Bolivia
provides
strong
property
rights
for
women.
But
compared
to
the
rest
of
the
region,
more
female
entrepreneurs
say
bribery
is
prevalent
and
have
to
endure
more
security
costs.
CC Image courtesy of rabble on Flickr

11. #12 Ecuador
The
cost
of
doing
business
has
gone
down
and
MSME
regula6ons
are
deemed
comprehensive.
But
MSME
technical
support
is
not
available
consistently.
There
is
also
a
lack
of
women-­‐specific
training
programs.
CC Image courtesy of IICD on Flickr

12. #11 Dominican Republic
In
2010,
women
owned
nearly
half
of
all
businesses
and
about
a
fiWh
of
companies
have
women
as
senior
managers.
Government
spending
on
social
services,
however,
is
inadequate.
About
60
percent
of
MSMEs
view
corrup6on
as
an
obstacle
to
doing
business.
CC Image courtesy offvarious visual stuff on Flickr

13. #10 Brazil
Many
women
entrepreneurs
can
get
loans
from
banks
and
financial
investments.
Beyond
benefi6ng
from
good
social
services
support
such
as
elderly
and
child
care,
they
receive
technical
support
from
government
agencies.
Corrup6on
and
crime
percep6on
among
MSMEs,
though,
remain
high.
CC Image courtesy of Adam Jones, Ph.D. - Global Photo Archive on Flickr

14. #9 Panama
With
a
solid
MSME
legisla6on,
women
entrepreneurs
encounter
few
barriers
in
doing
business.
But
access
to
microfinance
is
low
—
fewer
than
half
of
microloan
borrowers
are
women.
CC Photo courtesy mac_filko on Flickr

15. #8 Trinidad & Tobago
Compared
to
their
counterparts
in
the
region,
fewer
women
MSME
managers
say
they
need
to
bribe
public
officials
to
“get
things
done.”
SME
technical
support
for
women
entrepreneurs
is
limited,
though.
Photo courtesy Youth Business Trinidad and Tobago | www.ybtt.org

16. #7 Argentina
With
sufficient
child,
elderly
and
health
care,
women
have
more
6me
for
entrepreneurial
pursuits.
Exorbitant
total
tax
rate
for
businesses
(108%
in
2012)
bars
entrepreneurship.
CC Photo courtesy illuminaut on Flickr

17. #6 Costa Rica
The
risks
of
doing
business
–
corrup6on,
crime
and
disorder
–
for
MSMEs,
which
account
for
around
70
percent
of
the
economy,
are
rela6vely
low.
Women
MSME
owners
can
avail
of
broad
technical
assistance
but
li;le
support
from
banks.
CC Photo courtesy janeyesee on Flickr

18. #5 Uruguay
Women
owned
around
40%
of
MSMEs
in
2012,
according
to
the
government.
Though
access
to
finance
remains
a
huge
challenge,
women
can
take
advantage
of
capacity
and
skills
training
programs
as
well
as
social
services
which
are
regarded
as
among
the
best
in
the
region.
CC Photo courtesy Libertinus on Flickr

19. #4 Mexico
Women
have
good
access
to
business
networks
and
microfinance
products
and
services
(90%
of
women
account
for
microloan
borrowers).
Social
services
are
robust,
though
oWen
they’re
not
available
to
women
and
only
offered
in
ci6es.
CC Photo courtesy Dainis Matisons on Flickr

20. #3 Colombia
Colombia
serves
women
entrepreneurs
well,
with
legisla6on
ins6tu6onalizing
technical,
management
and
organiza6onal
support
to
women-­‐owned
MSMEs
na6onwide.
Women
MSME
managers
also
have
great
access
to
business
organiza6ons
such
as
microfinance
network
Women’s
World
Banking.
The
cost
of
doing
business,
however,
is
considered
higher
than
average.
CC Photo courtesy Luz Adriana Villa A. on Flickr

21. #2 Peru
It
is
rela6vely
easy
for
women
entrepreneurs
to
start
a
business,
access
SME
financing
and
avail
of
capacity
and
skills
training.
Peru
tops
most
other
countries
in
the
region
when
it
comes
to
social
services
for
women.
CC Photo courtesy Embajada de Estados Unidos en Perú on Flickr

22. #1 Chile
The
country
offers
the
most
favorable
environment
for
women
entrepreneurs,
with
solid
fiscal
condi6on,
poli6cal
and
ins6tu6onal
stability,
strong
investor
confidence,
percep6on
of
good
governance,
low
security
risk,
adequate
social
services
and
high
access
to
technology.
CC Photo courtesy We-the solution on Flickr

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