A glimpse into the lives of women entrepreneurs in Bangladesh through MSC’s Financial Diaries research

• Dec 5, 2023
• 1 min

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation commissioned this project. MSC has embarked on a study to understand the lives of women entrepreneurs in Bangladesh. The study will track all financial and nonfinancial transactions of about 500 women entrepreneurs. The insights from this study will be used to develop gender-centric financial products to help women entrepreneurs in Bangladesh.

MSC has been conducting women’s business diaries-based action research in Bangladesh to reduce financial barriers to access for women entrepreneurs. MSC will track all financial and nonfinancial transactions of about 500 women entrepreneurs for this project. This research is set against the backdrop of the minimal evidence available on how women-owned businesses are run and the unclear impact of social norms that restrict women’s agency. Research on microenterprises has only recently revealed hypotheses, such as men making business decisions for women-owned micro and small enterprises (WMSEs) and women’s preference for different types of businesses than men.

Through this research, MSC will take a comprehensive view of the lives of female business owners. This includes their financial, business management, digital, and personal lives. MSC will then collaborate with financial institutions to use insights from the action research to develop gender-centric financial products and help WMSEs in Bangladesh.