Business Expectations and Gender Differences: The Case of SMEs in Panama
Keywords:
SMEs, Entrepreneurship, Business Expectations, Gender DifferencesAbstract
Panama, located at the crossroads of the Americas, has experienced robust economic growth and political stability in recent years, making it an attractive destination for foreign investment. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are the backbone of any economy. They contribute significantly to job creation, income generation, and economic growth. In Panama, SMEs play a similar role. Using data from the World Bank, we implement a Tobit Regression Model to analyze the relationship between the business environment and business expectations among SMEs in Panama, and to test the hypothesis that women leaders are more likely to have lower business expectations. We find that women-led firms are more likely to have negative expectations, relative to their counterparts.
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