Bio
Author Biography
Manuel Barron is an assistant professor of economics at Universidad del Pacifico in Peru. He holds graduate degrees from the University of Oxford (MSc) and the University of California Berkeley (PhD). His research centres on three areas in development economics: energy and environment, human capital, and firms. Cutting across these topics, he investigates gender issues and behavioural biases – particularly those that are exacerbated by the weaker institutions of developing regions.
Bio
Author Biography
Rowan Philip Clarke is a researcher with Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA), an international network of researchers who use randomised evaluations to discover effective solutions to global poverty problems. He is a researcher and graduate student at both the Environmental Policy Research Unit (EPRU) and the Research Unit in Behavioural Economics and Neuroeconomics (RUBEN), in the School of Economics, University of Cape Town.
Bio
Author Biography
Amanda B. Elam is Diana International Research Fellow at Babson College, USA, and President/CEO/Cofounder of Galaxy Diagnostics, a medical diagnostics company in North Carolina.
Bio
Author Biography
Rebecca A. Klege is a researcher at the Environmental Policy Research Unit (EPRU), University of Cape Town, South Africa.
Bio
Author Biography
Anita Shankar PhD is an Associate Scientist at Johns Hopkins University, Bloomberg School of Public Health, USA.
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Author Biography
Martine Visser is a Professor in the School of Economics, University of Cape Town, South Africa and holds a PhD from Gothenburg University.
Volume 51
Number 1
Published: February 19, 2020
Until recently, women have not been seen as having the potential for entrepreneurial success. Yet women’s engagement in the energy sector could substantially improve energy access for those most underserved. This article examines the role of women as energy entrepreneurs from the perspective of gender inequality within the energy industry. Data from Nuru Energy, a social business focused on providing solar lighting to the ultra‑poor, provide insights on how the inclusion of women sales agents can increase sales and how strategic modifications to the social business model can further support female-led businesses. Observational data from over 1,000 rural enterprises show that women, on average, sold significantly more units than men. Women operating in solo firms and leading group-based teams consistently outsold men-led solo and group‑based enterprises. Findings further suggest that, when operating in groups, women tend to outperform men even more than when operating sole proprietorships.