According to the latest global ranking conducted by the Mastercard Index of Women Entrepreneurs (MIWE), the highest number of women entrepreneurs globally are found in Uganda.
The Mastercard Index of Women Entrepreneurs (MIWE) is an annual ranking that highlights the progress and achievements of women in business across the globe.
The global Index tracks the progress and achievements of women entrepreneurs and business owners at three levels: (1) Women’s Advancement Outcomes, (2) Knowledge Assets & Financial Access, and (3) Supporting Entrepreneurial Factors.
In the latest ranking, MIWE revealed that besides Uganda, women account for 4 out of every 10 business owners in Ghana, placing the country second on the list of countries with the highest number of women entrepreneurs.
Botswana and Ghana also surprised with comparatively strong scores of 59.7, driven by notably high proportions of women as business leaders, professionals/technicians, and women’s engagement in entrepreneurial activities.
Half the countries in the global top 10 were sub-Saharan African countries. Besides Uganda and Ghana which ranks 1st and 2nd respectively, Botswana (3rd), Malawi (7th), and Angola (9th) all sit high up the latest ranking.
Based on the Index, here are the top countries from Africa with the highest percentage of female entrepreneurs:
| Rank | Country | World Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Uganda | 1st |
| 2 | Ghana | 2nd |
| 3 | Botswana | 3rd |
| 4 | Malawi | 7th |
| 5 | Angola | 9th |
| 6 | Nigeria | 29th |
| 7 | South Africa | 39th |
| 8 | Ethiopia | 49th |
| 9 | Tunisia | 50th |
| 10 | Algeria | 54th |
| 11 | Egypt | 57th |
According to the report which studied women entrepreneurs in 58 countries globally, female entrepreneurs are opening successful businesses faster than ever before in spite of myriad challenges.
MIWE |Nigerian Women Business Owners
Nigeria outperformed most of its global peers with a score of 60.6.
Nigeria had the second highest proportion of women in professional/technician roles among the 58 countries ranked, and exceptionally high percentage of female as entrepreneurs.
Nearly 4 in every 10 working age women are engaged in early‐stage entrepreneurial activity (40.7% compared to 39.0% for men, gender parity).
In Nigeria, although women’s workforce participation rate is very low with only 13.2% of working age women active in the workforce, they have a healthy share of the business world (25%) and very high proportion of female entrepreneurial activity rate (40.7% of working age population are females compared to 39.0% for males).
Nigerian women are also highly motivated by improvement‐driven opportunities (73.8% compared to 25.3% for necessity‐driven). This admirable track record is backed by a very strong and positive culture that applauds entrepreneurial success, business risk‐taking, innovativeness and individuality.
[…] Africa has the highest number of female entrepreneurs in the […]