Women make up 27.5% of entrepreneurs in Moldova

Only 27.5% of the entrepreneurs in Moldova are women, shows a survey carried out by the National Bureau of Statistics on the basis of a complementary module to the Yearly Structural Inquiry in companies, Info-Prim Neo reports. The survey results were presented at a roundtable meeting organized at the National Bureau of Statistics with support from UNDP and UNIFEM. The survey shows that 79.4% of the women own or head small companies. The men own and head mainly large companies. Project manager Aurelia Spataru said the study was aimed at changing the people's attitude and will be useful to companies when making decisions. “We think that the discussions on the statistical data contained in the study will yield solutions for offering the women and men equal chances to take part in the entrepreneurial activity in Moldova,” Aurelia Spataru said. The authors of the survey established that 74.8% of the men and 72.8% of the women used their own money and the financial resources of the co-owners to set up companies. 5.1% of the male entrepreneurs and 5.5% of the female entrepreneurs applied for bank loans. 0.4% of the women had access to state subsidies, as against 1% of men. The study “Conditions for Founding and Developing Companies” shows that 2.9% of the women started and developed businesses in agriculture, forestry, fish breeding and hunting, while 55.9% - in trade and service sector, as against 43.4% of men. 75.7% of the women and 72.8% of the men pointed to the same major problem they face – the lack of financial resources. 19.7% of the female entrepreneurs consider that the situation will worsen, while 27.2% are more optimistic about the future, as opposed to 26.5% of optimistic men.