Armenia

Mainstreaming Gender in Project Operationstheir businesses, after legislative changes (50%), the most frequent answer was “biasedinspections” and “corruption” (25% combined total). 257182. How gender and corruption intersect in Armenia is not entirely clear. Localregulations and high taxes, combined with corrupt practices, are detrimental to smallbusinesses, and because women are overly represented in micro and small enterprises,they may be particularly vulnerable. Women participating in a focus group underan Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) project viewedbusinessmen as having more resources and networks to avoid corrupt practices and to takeadvantage of lax enforcement of the law. In addition to providing knowledge and contacts,male networks were perceived to also serve as “an instrument to avoid the authorities andtheir interference in men’s businesses. The women in business generally believed that themen did not follow the law and took special illegal advantages, which were not open tothem.” 258183. On the other hand, prevailing gender norms may make it difficult for male officialsto approach female entrepreneurs and request payments, and so this may insulate womenfrom corruption. Businessmen are said to be less likely to report corrupt practices (i.e., theywould more likely attempt to resolve such problems themselves) while women may seekassistance. 259 World Bank data, which seem to bear out this theory, showed that firms withtop male managers and firms without female participation in ownership were more oftenexpected to pay bribes to conduct business. Male top managers had “almost twice as manyvisits or required meetings with tax inspectors as firms with female top managers … [and]a much higher percentage of firms with male top managers are expected to give informalpayments to public officials than firms with female top managers.” 260 One interpretation ofthese data is that female top managers face less corruption simply because they have morelimited interactions with government officials, and the same may well be true for femalebusiness owners.184. Female entrepreneurs have limited access to commercial loans. There are manyoptions for women to obtain microfinance, and loan requirements are gender-neutral.More than one respondent stated that women face no particular barriers to obtaining aloan as long as they are employed and can meet the application requirements. However,a large number of speakers also explained that, de facto, women cannot access creditbecause of issues such as their lack of collateral, lack of business experience, high interestrates, and personal aversion to taking on risk.185. As noted, only a small proportion of women own property independently, and theyalso lack the autonomy to make decisions about how to use the property (e.g., as collateralfor a loan). When women have joint ownership, or even in the case of full legal ownership,it is customary for “the father, the brother and then the husband [to] take care of theproperty which by law is owned by the woman/wife.” 261 In reality, many women may notbe able to apply for a loan or even start a business without the permission of their fathersor husbands.257 Ibid., p. 30.258 B. Wistrand. 2007. Women Empowerment and Cooperation in Armenia with a Focus on the Syunik Region. Yerevan: OSCE. p. 14.259 Gender Assessment: USAID/Armenia, p. 38.260 Enterprise Surveys Country Note Series: Armenia, p. 5.261 Study on Women’s SMEs in Armenia, p. 8.55