DOI: 10.28934/jwee21.12.pp84-107 JEL: J160, K38 ORIGINAL SCIENTIFIC PAPER 5BImportance and Role of Women within the Business Community of Azerbaijan Aygun Alasgarova Agasalim1 3F1 Azerbaijan State University of Economics (UNEC), Faculty of Business Administration, Departament of Mamagement, Baku, Absheron, Azerbaijan A B S T R A C T Gender equality in Azerbaijani society and strengthening women’s participation in governance, promoting women as entrepreneurial entities and developing their socio-economic activities are some of the issues covered. When these issues are resolved in combination democratic values and transparency, women will be able to participate in governance. Within the framework of the study, the opportunity to find a place to suit women's abilities, as equal members of the society, was explored. Moreover, the role of women's entrepreneurial activities in society has also been analyzed as well as the relationship between women in postindustrial society, Azerbaijan state policy towards women, what spherical factors prevent the development of women entrepreneurship and the causes of gender-based issue. Propositions concerning gender equality in business activity and women entrepreneurs in the country have been put forward as the scientific novelty of research. KEY WORDS: Women, entrepreneurial activity, women entrepreneurship, business activity 1 E-mail: elxan_salayev@mail.ru, tel. +994 70 330 40 63 Aygun Alasgarova Agasalim 85 Introduction Management relations in the modern Azerbaijan today are reflected in its legal state building. After gaining independence, public-political institutions began to take on a new form by changing the governance system, the liberalization of society and the establishment of democracy. The integration of Azerbaijan into the world, the building of a democratic society and the rule of law create conditions for the involvement of women in various fields of governance. One of the tasks the country and the society have been facing is to increase women’s social status, to ensure gender equality. For this purpose, certain measures are being taken to implement female-oriented policies, to take care of women at the national level, and to involve them in their political, social, scientific, cultural, legal and military management. Gender research for Azerbaijan is relatively new. It should be noted that in the Commonwealth of Independent State (CIS - Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Ukraine) it has only been an area of research since the end of the previous century. The analytical review method of competent literature sources in this study revealed gender features of the labour potential in Azerbaijan. The study adopted a means of comparison and synthesis that created a gender portrait for the country and created practical recommendations on how gender equality can ensure the stable economic growth of Azerbaijan. The main objective of the study is to analyse the socio-demographic situation and the socio-economic status of Azerbaijani women, using the method of Akbulaev and Aliyeva (2020) in their study revealing gender features of the labour potential in the Kyrgyz Republic (KR). After the Azerbaijan Republic gained its independence in 1991, it has decided to regulate its legislative framework. One of the laws regulated is the Labour Law (Labour Council). Within the framework of the principle of equality in the Constitution of Azerbaijan, important rights have been given in the Azerbaijan Labour Law to women workers (Hanahmedov, 2018). Only 12% of the entire sample, i.e. owners of small businesses and managers of medium and large companies are represented by women, while they constitute the majority of the country's inhabitants and, accordingly, the labour force due to the outflow of a significant part of the male population to earn money. At the same time, in terms of education, Azerbaijan’s 86 Journal of Women’s Entrepreneurship and Education (2021, No. 1-2, 84-107) women are in no way inferior to their male counterparts - according to statistics, women account for almost half of all persons with higher education in the country. Even in traditionally female spheres of employment in Azerbaijan, women do not make up more than a third of all respondents. Most women are in business leadership positions in public and personal services and NGOs and health care, as well as in the social services sector. The likelihood of a woman holding a leading position decrease significantly with the increase in the size of the enterprise. Literature Review Common norms in society affect social features, such as gender equality, child care, the environment itself as well as other intellectual values and traditions (Sen, 1999). Women and men in some societies have legal equality. However, women, in some aspects, are still second class citizens compared to men. Women tend to bring up their children more than men (Fuch, 1989). In order to provide a theoretical convergence of gender equality in a number of European countries, equal rights must be provided (Robins, 2002). Goncharuk (2010) has proposed a number of explanations of the phenomenon. Firstly, women are diffrent then men according to their intellectual abilities. This is due to biological factors. Secondly, expectations for women are tougher, as they need to balance work, careers, family and domestic chores. 1. Life and physical health; 2. Mental welfare; 3. Safety; 4. Social relations; 5. Participation in political management; 6. Education and knowledge; 7. Social concerns; 8. Paid labour activity and other projects; 9. Shelter and environment; 10. Mobility; 11. Leisure time arrangement; Aygun Alasgarova Agasalim 87 12. Time division; 13. Respect for personality; 14. Emotional and religious freedom freedoms. The individual and the organization where one is employed cannot be considered separately from the social and cultural factors that are part of the individual, since the individual, organization, or system in which this organization exists changes, other factors also change with it (Akpinar- Sposito, 2013). Although there is a significant increase in the specific weight of women in the workforce, there is a small number of women in senior positions in higher education institutions. Only in exceptional cases are women able to break the “glass ceiling” syndrome and to be appointed executive directors (Wentling and Thomas. 2007). In the 1970s and 80s of the last century, there was a change in the sociological approaches to the labor market. The spread of economic activity was one major aspect of this change. Some of these assumptions were related to women neglected in the labor market by linking efforts to explain the labor markets and income-generating of the third world countries (Allen & Truman. 1993). According to Andrew Clark (2001), British women are more likely to be more satisfied with their wages than men. Women who are treated worse than men are still equally satisfied with the job. Studying a number of possible explanations of Clark’s gender differentiation has concluded that women have a higher level of consensus on work than lower expectations for men (Robins, 2003). The existence of gender-based cultural values today is even slightly slower in the decision-making process for women, even in countries like China and India, which is relatively similar to the United States in terms of GDP. Sexual inequality can easily be overcome by conducting serious policies in this area. The problem of gender inequality is also a self- resolving issue with the country’s economic growth. A form of progressive gender-driven policy is the provision of women’s vast rights (Jayachandran, 2014). Women and men have equal rights, equal and equal participation and representation in community life. Gender equality theory is aimed at creating equal opportunities or ensuring equal treatment perspectives. Sexual equality aims to create equal opportunities for women and men to compete at the labour market and in the workplace by eliminating structural obstacles facing women’s success (Calás & Smircich, 2006). 88 Journal of Women’s Entrepreneurship and Education (2021, No. 1-2, 84-107) Some researchers, such as Broughton and Miller (2009), have suggested that there are barriers to the advancement of women in leadership positions, such as difficulties in adapting to the male-based organization, general biased attitudes as well as their non-linear career, family difficulties and challenges (Miller, 2009). A Nobel Prize laureate, Amartya Sen, who played a leading role in promoting the theory of human development, has repeatedly highlighted the damage caused by gender inequality in society (Miletzki & Brote, 2017). While data on labour rights are important as a decisive factor in gender inequality and reflect differences in men’s and women’s assessments in society, there is a great deal of lack of available data on different countries, including the Human Development Reports, that do not give a full picture of this (Stephanie et al., 2013). Ahmadov, Jafarov and Mammadova (2016), exploring youth unemployment, underemployment and the attitude of young people in the labor market in Azerbaijan, offer the first comprehensive study of the relationship between labor market policy and youth employment in Azerbaijan. The second goal of their research was to study the activities of young leaders and leadership in Azerbaijan. According to a report published by the World Economic Forum on Global Gender Inequality in 2017, the rate of rapprochement of Azerbaijan is estimated at 100% to 67% in the world rankings (World Economic Forum, 2017). Socio-cultural norms created in society constitute factors that hinder women’s rights. Gender stereotypes are one of the key factors affecting the career growth of women in management. Women still have a biased attitude in terms of gender. These socio-cultural factors condition the diversity of women’s roles and responsibilities in organizations (Amani Moazzam Baig & Jabeen, 2011). Gardiner and Tiggemann (2007) found that, although men and women were not distinguished from the positions of men in predominantly male- dominated positions, women are more likely to be more inclined to interpersonal leadership than men in enterprises dominated by women. Additionally, it was found out that women’s mental health status was lower in men’s predominantly female-oriented leadership (Cuadrado at al, 2012). The perspectives of women’s managerial style were regarded as “enlightening” adjustments to liberal-oriented research, but were criticized as part of the activities of women’s organizations (Clegg at al, 2006). Aygun Alasgarova Agasalim 89 Hanahmedov (2017) noted that the country's economic situation delimits the border with the answer to the question "How flexible". His research examined the current state and future of flexible work in the economic life of Azerbaijan. Hanahmedov (2018) mentioned in the study the importance given to women workers in line with the Azerbaijan Labour Law rules. At the same time, the rights of women workers included in different country legislations and the importance given to women workers were evaluated. Women in the Country as a Part of the Population Women represent 50.1 percent of the population of the Republic of Azerbaijan as of January 1, 2018, or 4,960.1 thousand women, respectively (www.apa.az, 15.05.2021). Figure 1: Percentage of women by age distribution Source: State Statistical Committee of the Republic of Azerbaijan, https://www.stat.gov.az/source/gender/az/qk/001_8.xls, 2019. As may be seen from Figure 1, women in Azerbaijan make up the majority of the workforce, with approximately 3,247,000 working women in the country. One of the main principles of democracy development is the provision of gender equality and the ability of each citizen to take an active role in the society in accordance with his abilities (“Three points” newspaper, 22 January 2013). Gender culture is one of the priorities in Azerbaijan, which 90 Journal of Women’s Entrepreneurship and Education (2021, No. 1-2, 84-107) is the majority of its population. But the existing patriarchal social norms in the society do not allow women to actively participate in the socio-political life of the country together with men. Women have difficulty realizing their social roles and opportunities in the development of democracy. Comparative analysis of Azerbaijan with developed countries shows that one of the important factors that hinder the development of democracy is the low level of gender equality. This, in turn, hampers the dynamic development of the country and prevents the full utilization of human potential in the legal state-building process. Figure 2: Healthy lifetime, age composition Source: State Statistical Committee of the Republic of Azerbaijan, https://www.stat.gov.az/source/gender/az/qk/001_8.xls, 2019 Figure 2 shows that women in Azerbaijan are relatively long-lasting. Women’s average life expectancy is 5 years more than that of men. These statistics give rise to less women’s violence in the country. The Role of Women in a Business-active Society In order to strengthen the role of a woman in Azerbaijan’s economy, it is currently important to focus on areas where domestic labour is required, such as horticulture, tobacco, cotton, and carpet weaving. Aygun Alasgarova Agasalim 91 According to the data from January 2018, the percentage of employed women on the types of economic activity is shown as follows: Figure 3: Women’s employment ratio on various fields of national economics by January 1, 2018 Source: Prepared by the author on the basis of information obtained from the website of the State Statistical Committee of the Republic of Azerbaijan, https://www.stat.gov.az/source/gender/az/qk/004_21.xls, 2019. The picture above shows that more women work in the field of education. The fact that women are in the middle and lower educational structures have been widely represented, perhaps, in some cases, their number also exceeds the number of men. However, at higher levels of control, their number declines too much. It seems that the main reason is the traditional mechanism of recruitment and recruitment of cadres. Of course, there are also subjective factors, namely personal qualities, professionalism, and management experience. However, the key role in these processes is the 92 Journal of Women’s Entrepreneurship and Education (2021, No. 1-2, 84-107) personnel policy based on the characteristics of the public system and on the basis of tradition. In modern times, the Azerbaijani women work in any field and demonstrate their abilities, but their family support and understanding can be illustrated in the chaotic form of having jobs in the afore-mentioned areas at different levels in different regions of our republic. Given these factors, men have been able to contribute to the well-being of their family and the contribution they make to the community, creating more opportunities for women and believing in women’s power and their potential. Azerbaijan’s education system was based on historically humanistic principles, adhering to traditions of enlightenment and human values. Women have an essential role in the development of education. Figure 4. Number of female professor-teacher staff employed at state and non-state higher education institutions at the beginning of 2017/2018 academic year Source: Prepared by the author on the basis of information obtained from the website of the State Statistical Committee of the Republic of Azerbaijan, https://www.stat.gov.az/source/gender/az/qk/004_21.xls, 2019. Aygun Alasgarova Agasalim 93 The Role of Women in Entrepreneurial Activity Women’s participation in economic activities is one of the areas of gender research in entrepreneurship. The features of adapting the concept of “business owning” in different periods of business structures, the characteristics of the career building for women, the causes of stress, and the socio-psychological aspects of women’s entrepreneurial activity should be studied. Turetskaya’s (2001) “Women’s Business Activity and Family” and “Social-Psychological Typology of Women’s Business Activity” have identified these types of activity. As the author points out, none of these types conform to femoral stereotypes, which give women more flexibility in the field of innovation that is inherent in the business environment. At the same time, personal qualities, characteristic for two groups of entrepreneurs, including women and men, were formed at the following fields: − relationships with business partners; − conditions of this partnership at the stage of increasing the share of the partnership in the economy; − relationships between the business representatives and gender; − relationships with respect to unwritten ethical norms, the reliability of women and men in business. Until the early 60s of the last century, gender aspect in entrepreneurship was virtually ignored. This was reflected as a result of following points: a) generally speaking, it is important for women to engage in family responsibilities and to play the traditional role of a woman in the society, and the ideology of “the designation of the woman from nature” has been strengthened. b) presence of women at the world’s public life was considered as a secondary one. c) public sphere was interpreted as the area of employment of men. d) market values dictated men’s participation. Gender contradictions attracted the attention of economist researchers only in the 1960s, which gave a strong impetus to the widespread introduction of women into the labour market in developing countries. In the neo-classical trend in the economy, modeling of economic behavior of 94 Journal of Women’s Entrepreneurship and Education (2021, No. 1-2, 84-107) individuals without gender differences has been proposed. Here, the main motives of economic activity do not differ according to gender traits. In the late 1980s there was a tendency for transition to the study of specific gender problems in entrepreneurship within the framework of neoclassical and institutional approaches. Starting in the mid-90s, the situation in the economy was stabilized thanks to the privatization of state property, development of entrepreneurial activity and land reform, and positive changes in the employment of the population took place. The number of women entrepreneurs has grown steadily as a result of the protection of women’s rights, the improvement of women’s activities both in the state and in the private sector. D. Nesbitt, an American researcher who analyzed the mechanism of changing the role of the market economy in the market, called this event “Explosion of Opened Opportunities” (Abbasov & Mirzazade, 2004). The market economy, along with creating opportunities in Azerbaijan, strengthened competition, and ultimately, human capital was in dire need of improvement. Nonetheless the market economy creates the same conditions for all classes of the society, the statistics allow to make a conclusion concerning the lack of women’s interests in the business environment. Considering that individual entrepreneurship has developed more in Azerbaijan, let’s focus on the gender composition as follows: Figure 5: Share of women among private entrepreneurs Source: https://www.stat.gov.az/source/gender/az/qk/004_21.xls, 2019. Aygun Alasgarova Agasalim 95 As you can see from the picture above, the number of female entrepreneurs is not enough. The state has created the necessary conditions for the development of this sphere, but the existence of certain problems creates difficulties for women’s entrepreneurial activity. In order to eliminate these difficulties, the National Action Program on raising the effectiveness of human rights and freedoms in the Republic of Azerbaijan is aimed at strengthening the rights of entrepreneurs and consumers, increasing competitiveness of women in the labour market, developing entrepreneurship among women, and acquiring new professions by women. Characteristics of Women Entrepreneurship The following table describes the characteristics of women’s entrepreneurship that differentiate women’s management from men by summarizing the results of various observations in Azerbaijan. Women’s management style Men’s management style Preference for semiautonomous and branch offices in the organization Preference for parent companies, holdings and independent structures Targeted to personality and process Oriented to technology and outcome Based on mutual relations Targeted to career development Based on reliability Oriented to reglamentation Based on direct participation in both formal and informal relationships Formal relations are based on indirect participation in direct, informal relationships It takes advantage of communication to maintain relationships It takes advantage of communication to seize power Extensive collegiate discussion and adoption of management decisions Adoption of management decisions by a small number of people, even by one person Oriented on emotions in relationships Oriented on emotions in non- production relationships Expectation of results from activity Obtaining absolute result from activity Positive approach to the distribution of power among employees Positive approach to concentration of power in one person Cooperation in circumstances with low-level contradiction Cooperation in circumstances with high-level contradiction (collision and antagonism) Advocating against objections and dissatisfaction on the ground of conflict Relations on the ground of a conflict are of fundamental nature 96 Journal of Women’s Entrepreneurship and Education (2021, No. 1-2, 84-107) Representative Office of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in Azerbaijan, the State Committee for Family, Women and Children Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Promundo International Organization and the International Center for Social Research (STBM) has conducted a survey on gender equality of men and women. According to the results of the survey, a number of important points in the context of existing opportunities in the development of women’s entrepreneurship have been identified as following: − relatively low professionalism habits; − preference-level discrimination; − distinction by the consumer; − discrimination by the employee; − investment in human capital. − Professional habits. Based on our observations and current statistical employment, we can note that the average professional skills are lower in women than in men. This event is partly explained by the fact that the choice of girls (and their parents) within the existing education system is derived from the traditional role of women in society and its permanent impact. It is also difficult for women to work in the workplace because they are also unable to pay due attention to increasing their professional level as they work in the family and in the home. It must be admitted that a number of social and psychological factors are also affected. While parenting and home responsibilities are evenly distributed among partners, in both cases the weight of the load falls on women and there is not enough time and energy to climb higher incomes through the staircase. − Preference-level discrimination. Bekker (2003), who strives to analyze the discrimination approach, has substantiated appearance of this discrimination while a competent authority refers to certain misconceptions by influencing entrepreneurs from some demographics or ethnic groups. The more authorized person is prone to discrimination, the more will vary legal fees of men and women at entities with discrimination. Discrimination is based on two distinctive conclusions: Aygun Alasgarova Agasalim 97 1. A person who discriminates at the level of personal preference shall be obliged to grant a part of his income to his or her choice as the competent person who chooses a candidate of the relevant sex denies the other competitors who are actually there and who do not want to be contacted; 2. A competent person who discriminates against women in the field of activity causes a difference in income of women entrepreneurs. If firms in the market were based on segregation (if only women or men of the same race or ethnicity were employed), discrimination would be neutralized, in other words, these firms would have a longer- term and very profitable status. − Distinction by consumer. This discrimination usually occurs in those areas of employment where the frequency and intensity of relationships with consumers is very high (e.g. when the consumer explicitly advises women to serve them), this type of discrimination sometimes causes sexual intercourse are considered as a leading cause of occupational segments. For example, if the majority of consumers share gender stereotypes in male and female occupations and occupations, firms will try to capture the same group to attract more customers (including those who have discrimination among them) that consumers prefer business relationships with them. If women are trying to find a job or career that can be subjected to discrimination by consumers, then they must agree to lower wages or be more professional than their male counterparts. Compatible with the discriminatory advantages of its hiring practices, the firm will have to pay higher wages to its employees and, thus, increase the prices of its products. It is possible to imagine that they are gradually exposed to bankruptcy, because they must undoubtedly lose in competition. − Discrimination by employee. This type of discrimination occurs when workers of a certain social-democratic or ethnic group are afraid to enter into labour relations with representatives of other groups. So, if men are directly involved in men’s entrepreneurial activity, they may refuse to take office. Apparently, discrimination by the employee causes additional costs for the firm that hampers the development of women’s entrepreneurship. 98 Journal of Women’s Entrepreneurship and Education (2021, No. 1-2, 84-107) At the present day, many obstacles to women’s participation in entrepreneurship are found, as following: − lack of knowledge and skills and experience in managing business; − the fact that women’s co-operation is forced to combine with child-rearing and home-based activities, the lack of opportunity to devote all their time to business can have an impact on the success of the woman; − gender stereotypes that have hindered women from being treated as business partners; − religious stereotypes in society. these stereotypes have a negative impact on women’s business activities; − low status of women in public and political life of the country, state bodies and limited opportunities. Considerations Stipulating Women’s Activities in the Postindustrial Society The transition to the market economy has had an impact on the standards that exist in the daily lives of women. Reforms have radically changed the traditional rules. The high income of the family also changed her family life. In all these changes, quality education also had a small role. Increased cash income has reduced interest in family farming. By the year 2000, the structure of the housing remained largely unchanged, with the increase in family income, and expanded into another form (Aghayeva, 2017). The number of housekeeping housings increased as well. Growth of residential areas resulted in changes in family relationships. During this period, the families begin to increase their expenses by the end of their secondary school. These costs come from objective factors. The use of the latest advances in technology advances young women inflates the traditional expense budget. In addition, they are required to spend enough money to study in large cities and then work in the appropriate field. As a result, working activity in families becomes an urgent issue. Factors affecting business activity include nominal lifestyles in the context of average wages and market relations. Naturally, the rise in market prices affects family budgets, which, in turn, contributes to the effective use of family abusive ability. The current situation affects in all sectors of the competitive Aygun Alasgarova Agasalim 99 community. In the information age, female labour force strives to engage actively with intelligent labour. Government Policy Towards Women Empowerment Government policy towards women empowerment is part of a common social policy that addresses the interests of women, a great social- demographic group, which shapes their legal and social status, and regulates their interaction with society. Government policy towards women empowerment has a certain historical nature. Its content and effectiveness depend on the following: First, the concept of “women’s issue” that holds the dominant position in the society and the political elite; the second is the type of economic relations and the socio-economic development of the state; third, from political motives, the level of democracy in the state and society, and the position and initiative of public movements in the latter community (Introduction to Gender, lecture course, Baku). We support the concept of human development, which presents the Azerbaijani state as a key factor in the development of human potential and promotes economic growth. However, effective implementation of this perspective depends on gender equality, in other words, the successful implementation of a balanced gender policy and gender-sensitive society by transforming gender equality into social reality (Azerbaijan Human Development Report, 2007). The State Committee for Family, Women and Children Affairs continues to organize the following measures to address the problem of unemployment for young and teenage women (Permanent Mission of the Republic of Azerbaijan to the United Nations, 2015): − providing permanent training by professionally trained youth with methodological and practical assistance in the organization of business activities and special trainings; − retraining of young people on occupations and professions required in the labour market; − opening jobs based on quotas established by law for young people and strengthening the compliance of employees with the requirements; − creating favorable conditions for young and adolescents to engage in seasonal and social work. 100 Journal of Women’s Entrepreneurship and Education (2021, No. 1-2, 84-107) It is worth noting that the ever-growing influence of women in the society and the current high public position are a remarkable part of the contemporary life of Azerbaijan. In the globalizing world today, where the system of values is rapidly changing, our mothers are the real guarantor of the preservation of our national cultural riches, our moral and spiritual wealth. The younger generation comes again with dignity, as always, as they pay attention to the old traditions, the national ideology, and the fertility of our statehood ideals. The First Vice President of Azerbaijan, besides being an ideal, exemplary woman for all women across the country, works hard on ensuring equality of men and women, as well as involving women in the decision-making area. Women’s Leadership Women’s leadership is the participation of women in the preparation and adoption of decisions at various levels of government and public administration. In order to achieve gender equality in decision-making, the government, political parties and civil society organizations are required to be specifically defined. Government determines its gender policy by means of laws or other mandatory instructions. It is important to emphasize the importance of women’s leadership here. The forms of women’s leadership appear as political, economic, and public: − In the political form, women are represented in higher and local legislative and executive bodies of state power, including women’s representation at state authorities, political parties, international organizations such as UN, etc. − The economic form comprises holding leading or senior positions by women in national government agencies, managerial, business, organizations, international and regional financial institutions dealing with economic issues. − The social form of women’s leadership includes representation of women in the field of civil society, local self-governing bodies, NGOs and mass media. As in all over the world, barriers to socialization have a serious impact on women’s leadership position. In particular, most representatives of the opposite sex do not see the existence of social injustice in the fact that women have a low political status or are inadequate to do so. Despite the Aygun Alasgarova Agasalim 101 fact that women’s leaders are different from their male counterparts, they are still experiencing constant insights about their futility for leadership. The socialization of women in different countries all over the world occurs in such a way that it does not interfere with the development of their particular ambitions, which enhances their career and political attitudes. The expansion of economic-social relations across the globe on the international scale has a bearing effect on gender and similar issues. In the last year, because of the share of women in senior government officials working in public administration (particularly parliament), the following is the case. Figure 6: Representation indicators of women in parliaments of Azerbaijan and several world countries Source: Women in national parliaments 2018. http://archive.ipu.org/wmn- e/classif.htm?month=6&year=2018, The Reasons of Gender Problem As all social problems of the times, the issues of gender in the country should be monitored taking into account the existence and growth of social stratification. The problems of wealthy, moderate and inaccessible segments and the manifestation of these problems as well as ways to solve them are different. These problems can be summarized as follows: 102 Journal of Women’s Entrepreneurship and Education (2021, No. 1-2, 84-107) − Formation of poverty. The reasons for this are: the inability to realize their work force in the market economy, in other words, the failure of the proposal; the supply of labour force in the regions is fewer than the demand level; military conflict and some of the population’s refugee, displaced persons; weakness of the social protection system for women with disabilities. − Protection of rights. If a person has reached a perfect age, he must first defend his rights. In the legal context, involvement of business-active women in these types of trainings, especially in color, has had a bearing effect. Women’s Network Program (WNP) is the first donor organization to launch a long-term and multifaceted project on gender education in Azerbaijan. Despite the fact that many international organizations work in the area of gender equality and women’s development in Azerbaijan, the activities of the WNP over the past period have focused on the elaboration and implementation of curricula on gender issues and the application of gender approaches to research, gender mainstreaming, has done a lot of work aimed at stimulating young researchers. − Family relationships. In some families, non-support or demotivating environment of women’s activities adversely affects the activity of women in business. Since such a situation reflects on the productive career of talented women, efforts to solve the problem are often ineffective. − Religious attitude. The issue is not about belonging to the same belief, rather it concerns the diversity, arising from probability of emerging of conflicts, brought about by marriage of a woman and a man with difference confessions (Mirzazade, 2013). Recommendations For businesses to be viable, they must be able to invest successfully. Globalization requires businesses track new innovations and remain open to the idea of change. In addition, businesses need to stay informed of new technological trends, retain their shareholders and be ready to invest in innovative technologies when they are introduced. Through these strategies, businesses can be competitive in the marketplace (Ahmadov & Salmanova, 2013). Aygun Alasgarova Agasalim 103 The expansion of the impact of gender on entrepreneurial activity may lead to the change in theoretical and practical aspects of economic life. In order to support and further develop women’s entrepreneurship in Azerbaijan, it is necessary to take the following measures: Inclusion of women entrepreneurship, youth entrepreneurship and entrepreneurship as a part of the legal framework; − Creation of a half-chapter freely and efficiently for all three types of entrepreneurship in the Ministry of Economy; − Development of a draft law on the support of women entrepreneurship in the country or the relevant section of the existing law; − Development of a comprehensive program for the development of women entrepreneurship based on public, public and commercial organizations; − Establishment of the Women entrepreneurship fund to support country’s socially significant projects; − Ensuring a broad range of distance education and employment opportunities for women entrepreneurship and other types of entrepreneurship. Women’s employment should be encouraged for non-governmental organizations in order to combat women’s unemployment, and women’s employers should apply tax incentives based on their interest rates. Conclusion In order to ensure gender equality and the development of families in Azerbaijan, appropriate measures will be taken to address the gender problem, which will remain in the spotlight. The main directions of state policy in this area will be the implementation of measures to prevent cases of gender-based violence, the creation of equal opportunities for women and men in the labour market, the expansion of career opportunities for women, and their appointment to leadership positions. It also supports the efforts of social protection and protection of mothers and children, simplification of childcare for working parents in accordance with the ratified ILO Convention "On workers with family responsibilities", an increase in the number of kindergartens, as well as the development of family planning services. 104 Journal of Women’s Entrepreneurship and Education (2021, No. 1-2, 84-107) A number of targeted documents are being adopted in order to implement the indicated areas. In this regard, it is planned to prepare the Strategy of the Azerbaijani Family, the National Action Plan for Gender Equality, the Children's Code and National Children's Strategy. Along with this, the Institute of "Family Psychologist", centers of assistance and shelters for women who have experienced domestic violence, as well as a system for monitoring violence in the country, evasion of education and cases of early marriage will be created. The current provisions of the research are as follows: 1. One of the problems facing women’s employment as a result of entrepreneurial activity is economic discrimination. Thus, the use of financial and other resources for women is restricted to personal control. 2. National mentality factor. Women’s passivity in the entrepreneurial activity is more frequent. Compared to men, this gives women one in the form of an intrinsic conflict. 3. Trends in the post-Soviet era. The stereotypes that create these trends are indifferent to processes, everything is ready to accept, planned movement from a single center, and so on. 4. The principle of "the place of man is the first place" formed in the community by the majority of the masses. 5. Restrictions on the realization of women’s employment within the framework of their personal will on the basis of family. Compliance with Ethical Standards: Author Aygun Alesgerova has not received any research grant. Ethical approval: the applicable international, national, and/or institutional guidelines for the care and use of animals haven’t been specified within the framework of the paper, since they are not compatible with its subject. Ethical approval: All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee. Ethical approval: This article does not contain any studies with human participants performed by any of the authors. Consent on information: the information applied within the framework of the study has been derived from the statistics available on Aygun Alasgarova Agasalim 105 official web-sites of government bodies to public access, being of common consent. References [1] “Introduction to Gender”, 2017. lecture course, Baku. (p.153). [2] Aghayeva. N. 2017. “Gender Issues in Caucasus”, tutorial, Baku. (p.90). [3] Ahmadov, Fariz, and Matanat Salmanova. 2013. 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Article history: Received: April 25th, 2021 Accepted: May 17th, 2021 "Glass Ceilings" in the System of Public Administration in the Russian Federation PUBLISHER Institute of Economic Sciences 12 Zmaj Jovina str. 11000 Belgrade, Serbia EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Prof. Dr. Mirjana Radović Marković Institute of Economic Sciences, Belgrade EDITORIAL OFFICE Feature of Perception of Distance Learning by Students During the First Wave COVID19 Adopting Adult Education for Fulfilment of the Right of Women to Education in Nigeria Transformational Leadership of Nyai – Case Study in Roudlotun Nasyiin Islamic Boarding School The City-Village Interface in Ibadan (Nigeria): Black Soap Entrepreneurship Since 1918 Empowerment Through Women Entrepreneurship: A Case from the Beauty Salon Sector in Sri Lanka Importance and Role of Women within the Business Community of Azerbaijan Women Entrepreneurship in the Time of COVID19 Pandemic: Opportunities and Risks (The Case of Perm Region, Russia) Women’s Entrepreneurship in the Wake of the Covid19 Crisis: The Case of Serbia Values of Entrepreneurs and Supervisors and Their Socio-professional Identity: Gender Dimension Gender Aspects of Working from Home in Serbia Gender Aspects of Digital Workplace Transformation JOURNAL SECRETARIES Dejana Pavlović, PhD Elena Jovičić, PhD Institute of Economic Sciences, Belgrade EDITORIAL BOARD Vasileios Kallinterakis, Liverpool University, United Kingdom Halil Dincer Kaya, Northeastern State University, United States of America Ivana Domazet, Institute of Economic Sciences, Serbia Almir Pestek, Faculty of Economics in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina Zélia Breda, University of Aveiro, Portugal PUBLISHING BOARD Jovan Zubović, Institute of Economic Sciences, Serbia PRINTED BY Beograd Zhanna Mingaleva0F Elena Shironina1F Introduction Literature Review Research Method Method Data Research Results Conclusion Acknowledgements References Miloš Vučeković2F Mirjana Radović Marković Borislav Đukanović Svetlana Duković Arsen Dragojević Introduction Literature Overview Research Method Key Findings "Profile" of Women Who Work at Home in Serbia Discussion Conclusion References Guzel Seletkova3F Eugeniia Lazukova4F Vasilij Stegnii5F Karina Tulieva6F Introduction Discussion and Сonclusions References Milena Lazić7F Olivera Jovanović8F Marija Lazarević-Moravčević9F Introduction Literature Review Methodology Research Results Key Findings and Recommendations Conclusion References Elena Seredkina10F Olga Burova11F Olga Ganina12F Introduction Material and Methods Results Conclusion Acknowledgements References Aygun Alasgarova Agasalim13F Introduction Literature Review Women in the Country as a Part of the Population The Role of Women in a Business-active Society The Role of Women in Entrepreneurial Activity Characteristics of Women Entrepreneurship Considerations Stipulating Women’s Activities in the Postindustrial Society Government Policy Towards Women Empowerment Women’s Leadership The Reasons of Gender Problem Recommendations Conclusion References Viktor Mokhov14F Introduction Problem Discussion Results Conclusion References Thilini De Silva17F Sirkku Männikkö Barbutiu18F Kutoma Wakunuma19F Gehan S. Dhameeth20F Introduction Notions of Women Entrepreneurship and Empowerment Methodology Strategy Participants Data Collection Method Data Analysis Method Results Discussion Resources Agency Achievements Empowerment Conclusion References Mutiat Titilope Oladejo21F Introduction The Realities of Entrepreneurship in Africa Methodology The City-Village Interface in Ibadan Olode Village as a Market Ring for Black Soap Beere-Oje Black Soap Trading Hub in Ibadan Life History Narratives of Black Soap Producers in Olode Village Features of Innovation and Entrepreneurship in the Life Histories Conclusion References Nining Khurrotul Aini22F M. Ridlwan Nasir23F Masdar Hilmy24F Methodology Conclusion References Omolade O. Olomola25F Chioma Agnes Olumide-Ajibola26F Introduction Forms of Education in Nigeria Delineating Adult Education Objectives of Adult Education Right to Education Legal Framework on Education The Right of Women to Education Objectives of Women Education Relationship between Adult Education and Women’s Right to Education Conclusion and Recommendation References Konstantin Antipyev28F Valeriy Levchenko29F Gennady Razinsky30F Introduction Background Methods Discussion Conclusion References