Women entrepreneurs in Peru and why they matter.

Photo by Jean Vella at Unsplash

For the second year in a row, I had the wonderful opportunity to present to a group of 100+ Peruvian women entrepreneurs in Lima who are starting and growing their own businesses throughout Peru with the assistance of organizations such as Dreambuilder, a business training program created by Thunderbird for Good.

The advancement of women, not only within our own country but throughout the globe, is of critical importance not just to our local economies and to the success of our own businesses, but is closely linked to global economic health and growth. The World Economic Forum predicts that if the  gender gap were narrowed and more women participated in the labor force, the world’s GDP would grow by $12 trillion by the year 2025. We can indeed call that number "staggering".

Peru over the last two decades has seen a continued rise in the number of women entrepreneurs in part as a result of several business and government partnerships, like Dreambuilder, which assist in providing free access to business training for women.  Similarly, as compared to the 49% global labor force participation rate of women across the globe, Peru surpasses that average with 69% of women participating in the labor force (World Economic Forum). That being said, barriers for women in Peru continue to persist.  These women are still more likely than men to hold the primary responsibility of unpaid work and caregiving within the home which is a primary barrier to their economic advancement. In addition to this, they continue to face the same barriers that women throughout the globe face on varying levels and degrees such as lack of financing options and violence against women to name a few. 

 Globally, women perform 75% of unpaid care and household work and in Peru women spend close to 40 hours per week on unpaid household activities (INEI). For those women that are mothers, they face a wage gap of 27.6% (International Labor Union). These are significant statistics and not to be ignored.

 So why does Peru matter and why should we care?  Because Peruvian women, like all women who hope to be labor force participants, are intricately linked to our global economy and to the breaking down of barriers that exist for women across the globe.  By taking this step, of building and growing their own businesses, they are empowering the next generation of women in their country to do the same. These motivated women are, in their way, fighting to break down barriers one brick at a time and to the extent that we can support them with knowledge and connection and the understanding that they are part of a larger global context is but a small part that we can contribute. 

The Huuman Group™ believes in the efficacy and importance of cultural literacy and gender balance as a cornerstone to the success, humanity, and intelligence of business. To bring learnings from abroad (whether from developed or developing nations) into the context of US business in this interconnected world that we live, is tantamount to the success of humans at work here in the US and to greater global understanding.

First published by Kristi Rible at www.thehuumangroup.com