Meta is helping women-owned businesses boost resilience in Myanmar

Meta released the following article in order to boost the resilience of women-owned businesses in Myanmar in honor of International Women’s Day.

Two years into the pandemic, the world continues to grapple with the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19) and businesses are still trying to recover. Though businesses the world over have been hit hard by the pandemic, women-led businesses have experienced disproportionately negative effects. Photo Source fbmyanmarpress@fb.com

According to the Global State of Small Business Report, women-led small businesses faced more closures and lower sales performance than businesses led by men, with 20% of women-led businesses and 16% of men-led businesses reporting closures. Beyond this, the report also found that women were not as optimistic about the future of their business as their male peers, and as the results of a survey from the Cherie Blair Foundation for Women showed that one in 10 respondents said the impact of the pandemic was the single greatest challenge they had ever faced.

Despite the challenges caused by the spread of COVID-19, Myanmar has seen a remarkable increase in women-owned businesses joining our platforms since the start of the pandemic.

(1) An increase of more than 50% in Instagram businesses that self-identify as women-owned since the start of the pandemic.

(2) More than 40% of women-led businesses were set up on Facebook since the start of the pandemic.

(3) More than 40% of Facebook groups related to entrepreneurship have been created by women since 2021.

Prior to the pandemic, women entrepreneurs already faced more obstacles when launching a business than their male peers, from finding mentors to raising capital. Now with the negative impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic compounding these barriers to entry, the need to promote gender equality and drive economic empowerment among women-led businesses is more important than ever. Photo Source fbmyanmarpress@fb.com

This is why this year’s International Women’s Day theme – #BreakTheBias – and goal to encourage people around the world to envision a gender-equal world that is free of bias, stereotypes, and discrimination, is particularly relevant and resonant.

While this is a challenging time, we are inspired every single day by the astonishing resilience of women business owners. So this International Women’s Day and throughout the month of March, we’re celebrating the grit and resilience of women entrepreneurs across Asia Pacific.

Throughout March, we are also challenging our communities to highlight their favorite women-owned businesses, share it with their followers, and encourage others to shine a light on the