Gender income gap in rural informal micro-enterprises: an unconditional quantile decomposition approach in the handloom industry

Based on primary data, the present study analyzes the gender income gap and its compositions throughout the income distribution of the handloom micro-entrepreneurs in Assam. The unconditional quantile decomposition reveals the existence of substantial gender income gaps along the income distribution. The differences in the productive characteristics explain much of the gap at the median and beyond. The endowment effects of education, financial literacy, risk attitude, SHGs membership, and technology adoption are found in favor of the male micro-entrepreneurs. The results suggest that the extent of risk aversion towards producing high-valued dress materials and poor management of entrepreneurial activities of the females have widened gender gap, particularly at the upper quantiles of the income distribution.