In\norder to increase the availability of information on the gender and age\ndimension of entrepreneurship, the Slovak Business Agency annually produces an\nassessment of the gender and age structure of entrepreneurs in Slovakia. The\naim of the drawn up material is to provide information on the gender and age\nstructure of entrepreneurs in a clear form. On the basis of the available data,\nthe gender and age structure, in addition to the individual legal forms of\nnatural persons – entrepreneurs, is also analysed in terms of the sectoral\nfocus and regional affiliation of entrepreneurs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Male\ndominance in entrepreneurial activity persists, although the representation of\nwomen among natural persons – entrepreneurs increased to 29.2% in 2018. A\npositive increase in the proportion of women is recorded for the third\nconsecutive year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Women\nare over-represented in the different legal forms only in the category of\nfreelancers. Women accounted for more than a quarter of sole traders and more\nthan one-fifth of self-employed peasants. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
From\na sectoral perspective, women have been particularly successful in advancing in\nservices industries, which are characterised by low capital intensity. The\nhighest representation of sole traders in Slovakia is in the other services\nsector (NACE Sections P to S), which is the only sector characterised by a\nlong-term increase in the representation of women. In 2018, women accounted for\ntwo-thirds of the total number of sole traders in the sector. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The\nentrepreneurial activity of women among natural persons – entrepreneurs is\ncharacterized by a higher level in the regions of western Slovakia and in the\nnorthern districts of central Slovakia. The lower level of women’s\nentrepreneurial activity persists in regions with lower economic performance,\nin eastern Slovakia and in south-central Slovakia. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
According\nto Eurostat data, Slovakia’s share of women in the total number of\nentrepreneurs has long been ranked among the countries with below-average\nrepresentation of women (the share of women in the EU is 32.4%). <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Women’s\nlow entrepreneurial activity stems from low self-confidence in entrepreneurial\nabilities, or lack of perception of suitable business opportunities, as well as\na more pronounced fear of failure. Women are also often constrained in\nentrepreneurship by institutional and market failures. It is therefore\ndesirable to further develop support instruments designed to promote women’s\nentrepreneurship at the national or regional level, with an emphasis on the\nless developed regions of Slovakia. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The\ndevelopment of the age structure of natural persons – entrepreneurs in recent\nyears has been characterised by an increase in the representation of\nentrepreneurs in the younger age categories of less than 30 years old. The\nrepresentation of elderly entrepreneurs declined again slightly year-on-year\n(to 10.4%) after a previous increase. However, the representation of elderly\nentrepreneurs was above average over the period under review.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In\nterms of the age structure, the highest representation of active natural\npersons – entrepreneurs in the long term is in the category of 40\u201349 year olds.\nIn 2018, the share of entrepreneurs in that age group was 27.0%. The second\nlargest group in terms of age were entrepreneurs in the 30\u201339 age group\n(24.1%), followed by those in the 50\u201359 age group (21.6%). <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The\nage structure of freelancers varies considerably depending on the area of\nbusiness. Persons engaged in architectural and engineering activities and\nambulatory and dental activities are characterised by a minimal representation\nof the under-30 category and a stronger representation of those aged 60 and\nover. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The\nage structure of natural persons – entrepreneurs in the regions of the Slovak\nRepublic is largely related to the age structure of economically active\npersons. The \u017dilina Region (21.1%), the Pre\u0161ov Region (19.9%) and the Nitra\nRegion (16.9%) are characterised by the highest representation of natural\npersons – entrepreneurs aged less than 30 years. The highest share of\nentrepreneurs aged 60 and over was reached in the Bratislava Region (14.3%) and\nin the Ko\u0161ice Region (12.3%).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Compared\nto other EU countries, the age structure of entrepreneurs in Slovakia is\ncharacterised by a stronger representation of younger age groups and, on the\ncontrary, a low representation of older age groups.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There\nwas no significant change in the representation of women among natural persons\n– entrepreneur start-ups in 2018. The share of women in the total number of\nnatural person entrepreneurship start-ups reached 28.5%, which is lower than\nthe total number of natural persons – entrepreneurs and below the ten-year\naverage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In\n2018, the age structure of start-up natural persons – entrepreneurs was characterised\nby a year-on-year decline in young entrepreneurs under the age of 30. The\nrepresentation of elderly entrepreneurs aged 50 and over has seen a positive\ndevelopment in the group of start-up entrepreneurs. It has increased compared\nto 2017, but is below the ten-year average in terms of long-term trends.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Following\nthe state and development of the age structure of entrepreneurs in Slovakia,\nmore attention should be paid to improving the quality of training for young\npeople to enter entrepreneurship due to insufficient entrepreneurial skills,\nlack of information, or problematic access to finance. In the context of the\ndemographic development of the Slovak population, which is characterised by a\ngradual ageing of the population, the issue of using the economic potential of\nseniors, including the involvement of seniors in entrepreneurship and the\nsupport of start-up entrepreneurs, is increasingly coming to the fore. Public\npolicies and support instruments designed to promote entrepreneurship should\nalso reflect these challenges. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
In order to increase the availability of information on the gender and age dimension of entrepreneurship, the Slovak Business Agency annually produces an assessment of the gender and age structure of entrepreneurs in Slovakia. The aim of the drawn up material is to provide information on the gender and age structure of entrepreneurs in a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1299,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","cybocfi_hide_featured_image":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[39],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-5847","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-news"},"yoast_head":"\n