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Do Gender and Business Trainings Affect Business Outcomes? Experimental Evidence from Vietnam

Author

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  • Erwin Bulte

    (Development Economics Group, Wageningen University, 6706 KN Wageningen, Netherlands)

  • Robert Lensink

    (Department of Economics, Econometrics and Finance, University of Groningen, 9700 AV Groningen, Netherlands; Development Economics Group, Wageningen University, 6706 KN Wageningen, Netherlands)

  • Nhung Vu

    (School of Economics and Business Administration, Can Tho University, Can Tho, Vietnam)

Abstract

We use a randomized control trial to evaluate the impact of a business training for female clients of a microfinance institution in northern Vietnam, and we consider the impact on (i) business knowledge, (ii) practices, and (ii) outcomes, as well as (iv) firm entry and exit decisions. In addition, we vary the nature of the intervention by inviting husbands to participate in the trainings for a subsample of our respondents. To gauge both short-term and medium-term effects, we combine data from two separate postintervention surveys. We find evidence of economically substantive impacts on knowledge, practices, and outcomes, and on the extensive margin (entry and exit). We also document that it takes time for the “downstream” outcomes of the trainings to materialize; although we find evidence of medium-term effects, no such evidence exists for the short term. Inviting husbands to participate in the trainings does not affect any of our knowledge or practice measures, but we document weak evidence for differential impact on (agricultural) sales and profits.

Suggested Citation

  • Erwin Bulte & Robert Lensink & Nhung Vu, 2017. "Do Gender and Business Trainings Affect Business Outcomes? Experimental Evidence from Vietnam," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 63(9), pages 2885-2902, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:inm:ormnsc:v:63:y:2017:i:9:p:2885-2902
    DOI: 10.1287/mnsc.2016.2472
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

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    2. Keenan, Michael & Pamuk, Haki & Ng'ang'a, Stanley Karanja & Hella, Joseph Phillip, 2021. "Investment and Household Bargaining in Small-scale Farming Households A Lab-in-the-Field Experiment from Rural Tanzania," 2021 Conference, August 17-31, 2021, Virtual 315291, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    3. Fall, F.S. & Tchakoute Tchuigoua, H. & Vanhems, A. & Simar, L., 2021. "Gender effect on microfinance social efficiency: A robust nonparametric approach," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 295(2), pages 744-757.
    4. Hubert Tchakoute Tchuigoua, 2023. "Loan officer gender and loan repayment performance. Evidence from greenfield microfinance institutions in Cameroon1," Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 94(2), pages 519-548, June.
    5. Bulte, Erwin & Lensink, Robert, 2019. "Women's empowerment and domestic abuse: Experimental evidence from Vietnam," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 115(C), pages 172-191.
    6. Kaiser, Tim & Menkhoff, Lukas, 2018. "Active Learning Improves Financial Education:," Rationality and Competition Discussion Paper Series 131, CRC TRR 190 Rationality and Competition.
    7. Huis, Marloes & Lensink, Robert & Vu, Nhung & Hansen, Nina, 2019. "Impacts of the Gender and Entrepreneurship Together Ahead (GET Ahead) training on empowerment of female microfinance borrowers in Northern Vietnam," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 120(C), pages 46-61.
    8. Rodrigo Belo & Pedro Ferreira & Miguel Godinho de Matos & Filipa Reis, 2019. "The Impact of Time Shifting on TV Consumption and Ad Viewership," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 65(7), pages 3216-3234, July.
    9. Ahmad, Syedah & Lensink, Robert & Mueller, Annika, 2020. "The double bottom line of microfinance: A global comparison between conventional and Islamic microfinance," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 136(C).
    10. Gazeaud, Jules & Khan, Nausheen & Mvukiyehe, Eric & Sterck, Olivier, 2023. "With or without him? Experimental evidence on cash grants and gender-sensitive trainings in Tunisia," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 165(C).
    11. Hee-Seung Yang & Booyuel Kim & Rony Rodriguez-Ramirez, 2022. "Does the Small Business Programme Benefit Self-Employed Workers? Evidence from Nicaragua," Working papers 2022rwp-207, Yonsei University, Yonsei Economics Research Institute.
    12. Tim Kaiser & Lukas Menkhoff, 2018. "Active Learning Fosters Financial Behavior: Experimental Evidence," Discussion Papers of DIW Berlin 1743, DIW Berlin, German Institute for Economic Research.
    13. Gonzalez-Uribe, Juanita & Hmaddi, Ouafaa, 2022. "The multi-dimensional impacts of business accelerators: what does the research tell us?," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 115461, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.

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