Egyptian Women Workers and
Entrepreneurs : Maximizing Opportunities in the Economic Sphere

Women are a powerful force for
sustainable economic growth. A growing body of microeconomic
empirical evidence and emerging macroeconomic analysis shows
that gender inequality limits economic growth in developing
economies. Research also shows that considerable potential
for economic growth could be realized if countries support
women's full economic participation. Increases in
women's income tend to correlate with greater
expenditure on family welfare and children, because women
often spend a greater share of their income on their
children's nutrition, health care, and education. From
an economic perspective, removing gender biases and
maintaining a level playing field reduces possible market
distortions or malfunctioning. Moreover, promoting
women's participation in business may bolster
women's overall participation in the labor market,
because women-owned businesses are more likely to employ
other women. This report analyzes the main reasons for this
disparity in the Arab Republic of Egypt and proposes
solutions to level the playing field and enable women's
full economic contributions. The Investment Climate Survey
(ICS) of 1,156 enterprises from the manufacturing sector was
carried out in October 2008, using the World Bank standard
methodology. The recall questionnaire of 566 enterprises was
conducted in October 2008. The gender workers module was
conducted in August 2005. It sampled about 15 full-time
workers from each firm covered by the ICS recall survey.
About 70 percent of the ICS sample is made up of small and
medium firms, about 85 percent of which are owned by
individuals or families. Large firms employing more than 150
workers account for about 30 percent of the sample. In about
35 percent of the sample, a woman is a main shareholder; in
15 percent of these firms, women own the majority of the firm.