2024-06-23-世界银行-透过玻璃墙的虚拟窗口_低流动性女性企业家的数字化（英）_66页_19mb

Virtual Windows Through Glass Walls? Digitalization for Low-Mobility Female Entrepreneurs

Problem

• Social norms and mobility constraints limit female entrepreneurship, especially in conservative settings like Jordan (ranked 15th in global female labor force participation).
• Most female home-based businesses operate within their social networks, limiting growth.

Intervention

• Provided low-income female entrepreneurs in Jordan access to Facebook business pages and digital marketing training.
• Offered comprehensive support including page setup, content creation tips, and paid advertising.

Findings Across All Business Owners

• Business Survival: 7 pp increase
• Revenue Growth: 18% average increase in weekly revenue, $11 more per week
• Outlet Expansion: Higher online client acquisition and less reliance on store credit

Distribution of Benefits

• Benefits concentrated among mobility-constrained female entrepreneurs (defined by mobility index)
• High-mobility women saw mixed or insignificant impacts

Treatment Effects

• Heterogeneous effects identified using machine learning
• Average treatment effect and heterogeneous treatment effect sizes differ significantly
• Productivity and baseline mobility interact to predict intervention outcomes

Gender Norms Effects

• Improvements in business outcomes do not reinforce conservative gender norms
• No "opportunity cost" for working from home, as some women spent more time on business

Conclusion

• Digitalization can unlock market access for mobility-constrained female entrepreneurs
• Virtual storefronts increase business performance without increasing owners' visibility or challenging cultural norms
• Digitalization offers an alternative to traditional business constraints for female entrepreneurship