Topic portal
Women's entrepreneurship
Women’s entrepreneurship is a vital driver of social and economic development. When anchored in principles of inclusion and sustainability, it represents a powerful pathway for advancing a transformative and human-centred approach to gender equality in the world of work.
Today, women own about one in four formal businesses around the world. While there are notable stories of impact and an ever-growing number of successful women entrepreneurs, many continue to operate in lower-margin, lower-growth sectors due to multiple and intersecting barriers and structural inequalities.
With equal access to opportunities and resources, more women entrepreneurs can drive innovation, create decent jobs, and help build inclusive and sustainable economies.
News and stories
Tunisia advances women’s entrepreneurship through a decade of coordinated action
Financial inclusion
Indonesian rural banks strengthen gender-responsive business development
Impact stories
Women farmers in Nepal strengthen livelihoods and bargaining power through collective market action
Tunisia advances women’s entrepreneurship through a decade of coordinated action
How institutional reform is reshaping entrepreneurship support for women in India
The ILO’s Women's Entrepreneurship Development programme
The ILO-WED programme supports women to start, formalize, sustain and grow their businesses by addressing the structural barriers that limit their opportunities.
Projects
Just transition through skills for employment
Just Transitions for Men, Women and Youth through Skills Training and Jobs Creation in Sustainable Construction and Eco-Tourism in Flood...
Featured resources
Publication
Guidance note on just transition and women’s entrepreneurship development
Guide
Guide to Gender-Sensitive Approaches to Value Chain Development
ILO Brief
Childcare leave and services from a women's entrepreneurship development perspective
Publications and documents
How institutional reform is reshaping entrepreneurship support for women in India
Advancing women’s entrepreneurship and gender equality in a just transition for climate action
Action Plan/Roadmap To Foster National Conditions For Women’s Entrepreneurship Development And Enterprise Formalization In Nigeria
SCORE Training catalogue
Contact
Reach out to the ILO Women's Entrepreneurship Development programme for more info: [email protected]
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