Women entrepreneurs in Nepal: what prevents them from leading the sector?

Entrepreneurship for women is often seen as a journey out of poverty and a march towards equality. Studies have proven that entrepreneurship, in the form of small and medium sized enterprises, can indeed empower women and through time, fundamentally transform power relations within a society, making it a place where women can lead. However, in the past, women's entrepreneurship in much of the developing world has gone little beyond informal business ventures which ensure daily survival for women and their families. In Nepal, embedded structural and socio-cultural constraints challenge women entrepreneurs and make it hard for them to realise their potential as leaders in business. This article suggests policy measures, business and management training, and the promotion of entrepreneurial networking systems, as potential ways to empower women entrepreneurs and create leadership opportunities, in the hopes of bringing women into the mainstream business sector in Nepal.