New analysis of entrepreneurial activity in Scotland has found that women are starting and running new businesses at nearly the same rate as men for the first time.

The Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) report found that, in Scotland, 8.6% of working-age women were actively engaged in setting up a business or already running an enterprise in 2023—only slightly lower than men at 9.8%.

Globally, GEM discovered that the female-to-male gap in entrepreneurship is narrowing, but Scotland appears to be leading the way on this.

Rates amongst the 250,000-strong non-white population in Scotland has also reached a new high of 24.1%—around one in five of the estimated 300,000 individuals in the working-age population of 3.3 million 18-64-year-olds who are engaged in early-stage entrepreneurial activity.

However, Scotland’s overall “total early-stage entrepreneurial activity” (TEA) rate of 9.1% remains the lowest amongst the nations of the UK.

The GEM report—compiled by the universities of Edinburgh, Glasgow and Strathclyde— surveyed 2,060 adults in Scotland as well as 40 entrepreneurship experts as part of the wider UK and global reports.

The Scottish poll found significant regional differences in TEA rates amongst men and women, with the North East having the lowest level of activity by women (9.6%)—almost half the rate of men (18.6%)—while women had higher levels than men in Southern Scotland at 8% against 6.5%.

Among the Home Nations, Scotland’s TEA rate was nominally the lowest in 2023. Wales returned the highest TEA rate at 11.5% with England second at 10.8%, and Northern Ireland recording a TEA of 9.7%

Fear of failure remains a significant barrier to entrepreneurial activity in Scotland; while a third of Scots perceive good startup opportunities in their area, more than 60% say a fear of failure would prevent them from establishing a business.

Additionally, the entrepreneurship experts canvassed by the GEM survey rated 12 out of 13 conditions for entrepreneurialism in Scotland as “barely satisfactory.” These included entrepreneurial education in school, ease of financing, government policies and research and development transfer.

Recommended reading

• Scottish Government Launches £2.6M Business Support Programme
• BCS: Half A Million Women Missing From IT Sector
• Comment | Only FinTech Can Solve Financial Inclusion

Speaking on the findings, Dr Samuel Mwaura, of the University of Edinburgh Business School, said: “The two major developments in 2023 are the record high rates for non-white individuals and women, reflecting a growing diversity amongst the country’s business community.

“Effectively, of the 300,000 or so early-stage entrepreneurs setting up a business in Scotland in 2023, roughly half were women. This is a landmark moment of significant consequence for female entrepreneurship discourse and policy in this country.”

Professor Stathis Tapinos, of Strathclyde Business School at the University of Strathclyde, also stipulated that: “While Scotland reached new milestones with female and minority ethnic early-stage entrepreneurial activity, concerns remain around rates of established business, fear of failure, and the general context for entrepreneurship in Scotland with worrying evaluations by the expert panel.

“Understanding these and other issues related to entrepreneurial attitudes, perceptions and activity in the country is important for policy and practice as entrepreneurship has important implications for the economy and many societal dynamics.”