FEMENA is a Horizon Europe research and training network bringing together 20 partners from Europe and Asia to investigate, strengthen, and promote female entrepreneurship as a driver of gender equality, sustainable growth, and social transformation.

With a team of researchers from 9 academic disciplines and 7 non-academic organisations, FEMENA explores how women entrepreneurs across Asia and Europe overcome barriers, access resources, and shape their societies. The project supports 80 researchers through international secondments, interdisciplinary training, and policy engagement to advance knowledge and practice in female entrepreneurship worldwide.

Women continue to face unequal opportunities in labour markets, entrepreneurship, and access to resources. Globally, women’s labour force participation remains 30% lower than men’s, and their businesses face additional structural and cultural barriers. Yet research shows that reducing gender gaps in entrepreneurship could generate trillions in global economic growth.

FEMENA addresses these challenges by focusing on female entrepreneurship as both a path to empowerment and a force for inclusive economic growth. The project adopts a comparative and interdisciplinary approach, analysing cases across Europe and Asia from South Asia and Southeast Asia to the Asia-Pacific  to identify how cultural, institutional, and policy contexts shape women’s entrepreneurial opportunities.

FEMENA contributes to global debates on SDG 5 (Gender Equality), SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth), and SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities) by generating new data, comparative case studies, and policy recommendations.