Access to finance, workplace culture and a “digital gender gap” are among some of the biggest issues holding back otherwise “resilient” women traders, according to a panel of leading female businesswomen.
To mark International Women’s Day on 8 March, the Institute of Export & International Trade (IOE&IT) hosted a free webinar, looking at barriers to trade for female entrepreneurs, as well as what policy and support initiatives are needed to address these issues.
Data points
Hemi Bhatti, IOE&IT head of trade policy and women in trade champion, chaired a lively discussion panel, featuring several female business leaders.
In her opening remarks, Bhatti cited data sources showing that there were persistent issues facing female traders.
“According to the International Trade Centre, women-owned businesses represent only 20% of exporting firms globally, highlighting a significant gender gap in international trade participation.”
Further, she said, World Bank statistics showed that women made up only a third of the workforce of exporting firms in developing countries, compared to 24% in non-exporting firms.
Bhatti also pointed to the gender-based barriers that existed in many countries, including licensing requirements and property rights restrictions.
Market access
Noreen Burroughes Cesareo, president of the UK branch of the Organization of Women in International Trade (OWIT), talked about her organisation’s work on market access issues.
“Trade is not gender neutral. We all know that we’ve been in so many conversations and the obstacles which come along are particular to women.”
These barriers, which applied to SMEs and larger firms, ranged from social issues – that might prevent businesswomen from negotiating or closing contracts – to accessing adequate financial resources or being able to access up-to-date information.
“We're not in the networks where it comes easily, so we're failing on a number of areas.
“We're failing the banking algorithms. We're failing at getting that vital signposting information to us and, sometimes, we're actually failing because of the cultural norms which are working against us now.”
‘Several layers’
Kate Foster, head of international affairs are the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) agreed, saying that OWIT’s research largely chimed with the FSB’s, with several layers of problems hitting female traders.
Low confidence levels, cost-pressures and lack of growth – issues that disproportionately hit smaller businesses – are exacerbating the problems facing female business owners.
“Women-led SMEs do face different challenges, and that's not to underestimate in any way their ambition, strength or resilience.
“In fact, there's research to show that women and businesses are more resilient in the face of crisis, they’re critical contributors to the economy but, particularly at the early stages of building-up the business, the management tends to receive less funding.”
Cultural issues
Paula Bellamy, an experienced freight forwarder and director of OL UK, said that the issue was also a cultural one.
She said that parts of the logistics industry were still very male-centric, with traditions remaining the same.
“The clients will still expect to have a golf day, or they’ll expect to go to an event where there’s an ex-footballer as a speaker and he’s got all the lad stories in the changing rooms.”
Partly driven by the rise in women’s football, events were now featuring more female speakers which were engaging for both men and women, although Bellamy added there was still a “big divide”.
Tech
Professor Sangeeta Khorana highlighted the work that IOE&IT had been doing on the subject of women in trade, as well as the efforts at the multilateral level, including the MSME Informal Working Group and the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) Gender Research Hub.
Khorana also spoke on the issue of technology, looking at how it “plays a dual role in the advancement of women in trade it serves both as an enabler and occasionally it serves as a barrier as well.”
Digital platforms in e-commerce could empower women and act as a driving force, at times, by allowing business to access marketplaces that they would otherwise not be available.
However, exploiting online marketplaces required skills and internet access, with some countries having a “digital gender gap”. Cyber security was also a blocker as “women-led businesses may not often be able to benefit or reap the gains of technology to the fullest” as a result of cyber crime.
She also raised the issue of unconscious bias in new and developing technology, to add to the data-collection issues that impacted the research of many panellists.
Resources
Burroughes Cesareo said that there were resources out there to help female entrepreneurs, with taxpayer-funded options like embassies, trade advisors or export academies providing networking and training opportunities.
“I would say actually engage in communication, be open,” she said, adding that OWIT’s aim was to work with both men and women “to open that door and make sure it stays wide open.”
OWIT, she said, was “optimistic” about the future of women in trade, a sentiment that all the panellists seconded.
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