_JULY 2018_ _10_ rejected. The main reason given for loan rejection or not applying was that the firm owner could not provide the collateral needed for the loan. A house was the most common collateral provided for an approved WEDP loan which was solely owned by the female owner in only 35% of the cases. The average WEDP loan size among the firms that were approved a loan was approximately USD 12,000. Approximately, half of the “training only” and “no WEDP services” groups did not apply for a loan and the other half applied for a WEDP loan but were not approved.

In Tables 2 and 3 we compare the baseline outcomes for WEDP borrowers and non-borrowers for the 2,139 firms (1,700 existing firms and 429 start-ups at baseline) that were resurveyed during the 2016 follow-up survey.

Table 2 column (4) shows the existing female business owners that received a WEDP loan differed from those that did not receive a loan on a number of characteristics: they are older with higher educational attainment and had larger businesses with greater household asset wealth than the rest of the sample at baseline. The entrepreneurs that get a loan also score better on measures of entrepreneurial identity and locus of control which potentially indicates that the MFIs are only approving loans for the entrepreneurs who are exhibiting higher entrepreneurial capability and therefore could pose a lower risk of loan default for the lender. The lower sample size in column (5) for loan applicants is because the WEDP loan information was only collected for firms that were still operational during the follow-up survey. Among the 60% of firms that applied for a WEDP loan we find that they are, on average, larger firms and their owners score higher on non-cognitive skill measures than those that did not apply. The WEDP loan application process itself could potentially encourage this selection if the application process is considered cumbersome then some women could be discouraged if, say, a lot of documentation is needed. Those who present with higher non-cogntive skills may be those who have the resolve to persevere through the application. In addition, since those receiving a loan report a significantly higher household asset index at baseline perhaps these women are those that are able to come up with the collateral to meet the terms of a loan set by the MFI. Restricting the sample further, column (6) shows that the WEDP loans are being approved among older, more highly educated firm owners that exhibit higher entrepreneurial identity and locus of control skill measures.

Table 3 compares WEDP borrowers and non-borrowers among the start-up firms i.e. those that opened their business in the year 2014. In column (4) we find that the women that received a loan were older and had higher household wealth at baseline as proxied by a household asset index. The women that applied for a loan for a “start-up” business have higher education and score higher on measures on self-efficacy than those that did not. The positive significant age difference between women that were approved for a loan and were rejected could potentially indicate that lenders are more willing to lend to finance start-up firms when the entrepreneur has demonstrated sufficient prior working experience.