Gender: Mapping Women’s Social Entrepreneurship in Europe

Septembre 2015

This report presents a comparative analysis of women's social entrepreneurship in Europe, along with recommendations for EU policy makers.

This Synthesis Report presents the findings of the WEstart study, the first research project on women's social entrepreneurship in Europe, and presents a comparative analysis of the studied countries, along with recommendations for EU policy makers.

Phase 1 of the WEstart study was undertaken by the European Women's Lobby from 2014 to 2015 and focuses on the state of play of women's social entrepreneurship in 10 EU countries: Bulgaria, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom. 

WEstart clearly demonstrates the enormous potential of women’s social entrepreneurship to contribute to socially impactful, sustainable revenue as well as job creation. These activities and their success are inherently empowering for women and contribute to gender equality on a societal level. However, harnessing this potential cannot come without addressing deeper ingrained forms of gender inequalities that take place both within society, as well as within the space of social enterprise