Latina Entrepreneurs in STEM are on the Rise, New Study Reveals!

In a new study commissioned by the IDB Lab, it was found that women entrepreneurs from Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics, or STEM, from Latin America and the Caribbean are on the rise.

According to the study of wX Insights 2020, "The Rise of Women STEMpreneurs: A Study on Women Entrepreneurs in STEM in Latin America and the Caribbean" 54 percent of Latina women have successfully raised and ventured capital while 80 percent of women are planning to scale up their business internationally in the next five years.

The study found also that the quality mentors network plays a very important and critical role for women founders of high-growth companies most especially in fundraising. Almost 79 percent of women have raised formal fundings from VCs, angel investors, and accelerators out of the women founders surveyed who have mentors. This is very relevant to the VC fund that is estimated to be around 84 percent.

There were four sectors in the companies that were featured in the survey and these were Fintech, Edtech, Healthtech, and Biotech. These are the sectors that greatly impacted Latinas in Latin America and the Carribean as they are aligned in the three main motivations of STEMpreneurs, and these are purpose, personal challenges and passions, and the enthusiasm to solve pressing issues in their communities or countries where they reside.

However, women in the STEMpreneurs are still facing hurdles. An example of this is the work-life balance of women that involves 46 percent of women from STEMpreneurs who were picked as one of the top 3 challenges they faced. The biggest challenge of women is access to finance with around 59 percent of women picking this as their biggest frustration.

Meanwhile, despite the barriers that women encounter everyday, including the traditionally male-dominated sectors, the number of co-women founders has surged in the past few years. This is a positive sign that women can compete with men in the industry.

Susana García-Robles, IDB Lab Chief of Investment Unit and Gender Initiatives Coordinator, said: "Women founders are just as ambitious as men in their business growth."

In a report on the State of Women Entrepreneurs in LAC in 2020, it did not only tap in to the potential of women in STEMpreneurs, but also showed how the scene has slowly shifted in the last five years.

Susana Gracia-Robles said: "wX Insights is a very useful tool for investors and other players interested in understanding the LAC entrepreneurial ecosystems, specifically in the rise of women entrepreneurs in STEM. Women are responsible for 64 percent of all global purchasing decisions on products and services, so having women in C-level positions in a company increases the chance that a startup reaches a massive market."

The study that was initiated by WeXchange, the largest platform in Latin America and the Caribbean connecting women entrepreneurs to investors and mentors. More than 400 women were identified as STEMpreneurs out of 1,148 surveyed women entrepreneurs in LAC.

The study also found that women STEMpreneurs have high impacts as the founder or partner of a startup where STEM is a key component, formally incorporated, has an operation in at least one country in Latin America and Caribbean, and has, at minimum, a viable product.