Women entrepreneurship in Serbia : a qualitative study of the perceived enabling factors for the female entrepreneurship

Abstract: The thesis report is about women entrepreneurship in Serbia – how it looks like to be a female entrepreneur, what the perceived enabling factors are and what need to be changed to increase women entrepreneurship in Serbia. The study is based on the theories of gender and entrepreneurship as a foundation for the literature review and analysis of the empirical data. The empirical study consists of eleven semi-structured interviews with Serbian females entrepreneurs. Interviews aiming to illustrate perceived enabling factors for the female entrepreneurship and driving factors linked to business start-up and. Female entrepreneurship seen through the glasses of gender theory and gender contracts shed a light upon the different position of males and females entrepreneurs. With a hope that illustration of the gender aspects in entrepreneurship would raise awareness and further investigation of gender related differences. The main conclusion based on the literature review and empirical illustrations is that comprehensive measures are needed in order to increase women entrepreneurship. Policy makers, representatives of banks, experts, and NGO’s must work together in order to encourage and support female entrepreneurship in Serbia. Specific measures need to introduce credit lines for females, guarantee funds establishment and launch of business incubators. Furthermore, alarming on women inequality requires changes in the traditional role of women and making “invisible” female “visible”.