WORKSHOP B- INFORMAL ECONOMY AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP
COMMONWEALTH PARLIAMENTARY CONFERENCE Johannesburg, South Africa
59th Workshop B - 4 September 2013
SHOULD THERE BE PARLIAMENTARY INTERVENTION IN THE INFORMALECONOMY ANDENTREPRENEURSHIP SECTORS?
Moderator: Ms Thapelo Dorothy Chiloane, MP (South Africa)
Discussion Leaders: Dr Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury, MP,
Speaker of Parliament, (Bangladesh) Hon. Alix Boyd Knights, MHA, Speaker of the House of Assembly (Dominica) Mr Andreas Klemmer, Senior Enterprise Development Specialist, International Labour Organization (ILO)
Summary
Delegates acknowledged that parliamentary intervention in the informal economy and entrepreneurship sectors is a necessity to establish a framework with three different operational levels; namely: the micro, the macro and the meta level. This could be achieved through legislative and policy measures that also equip women- led entrepreneurship with socio- economic protection and enhance their limited bargaining power. Some delegates proposed there may be potential in further developing the agricultural sectors in some jurisdictions to focus on the supply of alternative therapies and medicines.
Discussion In the era of globalization and 258 | The Parliamentarian | 2013: Issue Four
economic liberalization at the turn of the millennium, Dr Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury, MP, said that the informal economy had emerged as an expansive feature of the global economy. Various statistics indicated that the informal economy, particularly informal entrepreneurship, was a growing phenomenon and the inclusion of women entrepreneurs was extensive and increasing. Marginalized women entered the informal sector out of economic necessity and it was perceived that women entrepreneurs in the informal economy were necessity- entrepreneurs. They carried out low paid menial work in the absence of alternative means of livelihood. Dr Chaudhury highlighted that a large segment of people had exited the formal economy voluntarily
due to a lack of opportunities. Many chose to remain outside the formal economy as potential benefits were found in the informal economy. Informal entrepreneurship displayed real business acumen, creativity, dynamism and innovation. Parliamentarians therefore played an effective role in helping women entrepreneurs overcome the difficulties faced in the informal economy. This could be achieved through legislative and policy measures that equipped women- led entrepreneurship with socio- economic protection and enhanced their limited bargaining power. A parliamentary intervention in the informal economy and entrepreneurship sectors was a necessity. With appropriate laws in place, an integrated approach for
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