FEMALE ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN ROMANIAN AGRICULTURE: BETWEEN MYTH AND REALITY

Abstract

Deficient rural infrastructure, dependence on agriculture, lack of an organized market network, low income, low level of education and qualification of the rural population, poor productivity and quality of agricultural products, reduced installation rate of SMEs, rural youth migration, subsistence agriculture, unfavourable age structure are the weaknesses of Romanian rural area. These weaknesses are the source of challenges rural enterprises are confronted to: bureaucracy of accessing and managing European structural funds for rural development, fear of risk taking, lack of competitiveness of small and semi-subsistence farms, lack of entrepreneurial competencies, lack of entrepreneurial education, lack of entrepreneurial education, lack of family tradition in entrepreneurship, lack of proper training in management and marketing, low number of special financial products, poor quality of life, and resistance to financial investment whatever the financial resources. Women farm entrepreneurship is confronted by other barriers / challenges / limitations / obstacles specific to Romania that are analysed below.