France and Tunisia female entrepreneurship initiatives

France and Tunisia have introduced various measures to bolster female entrepreneurship. In France, new legislative decrees provide regressive social security contribution exemptions to support women in the agricultural sector, specifically helping spouses of farmers transition into management roles. This initiative aims to address the legal status of thousands of collaborators, the majority of whom are women.

In Tunisia, the Ministry of Family launched the ‘National Initiative to Unify the Female Entrepreneurship Path’, a 12-month program designed to centralize administrative, financial, and technical assistance through a single window. The program focuses on connecting rural artisans and young graduates with micro-credit banks and vocational training.

Furthering these efforts in France, national and regional competitions have been established to highlight entrepreneurial potential. The ‘101 femmes entrepreneures’ competition, organized by Bpifrance and the French State, includes intensive bootcamps to honor women from each department. Additionally, the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region continues its ‘Initiative au féminin’ program, which provides prize money to women starting or taking over businesses. These initiatives respond to data showing that women account for only 33% of companies created or taken over in France.