networks for promoting female entrepreneurs. We further confirm these results when instrumenting for current incumbent structures using lagged 1994 incumbent structures.

Our empirical methodology draws from the work on spatial determinants of entrepreneurship in advanced economies, most often related to the manufacturing sector, that are reviewed later in this paper. In related work, Ghani et al. (2011c) and Mukim (2011) evaluate spatial factors that explain a high rate of entrepreneurship in a district-industry generally and irrespective of the owner’s gender. These earlier studies also contrast entry in the organized sector with that in the unorganized sector. Our current paper focuses instead on factors that explain higher female entrepreneurship shares independent of aggregate levels of entry. We also specifically focus here on the local industrial conditions of female-owned businesses. In discussing these results, we identify central findings fromGhani et al. (2011c)and Mukim (2011) where appropriate.

In addition to the conditional estimations that provide the tightest econometric framework for our study, we also consider unconditional estimations that include industry-year effects only to identify general district-level attributes that correlate with high rates of female entrepreneurship. These estimations emphasize several factors. First, relative rates of female entrepreneurship do not appear strongly linked to the district’s population or to the districtindustry’s overall employment levels, although relative female entrepreneurship rates do decline with population density. More strikingly and relevant for policy makers, better local infrastructure strongly connects with higher relative female entry in both manufacturing and services. Local education and the female literacy rate further matter for services entry. Stricter labor regulations are also associated with higher rates of female entry.

These findings are very important for Indian policy makers and business leaders. Despite many economic advancements since liberalization began, the role of women in the Indian economy still lags well behind that of advanced economies (e.g., Dunlop and Velkoff 1999, Mammen and Paxson 2000, Ghani 2010a, World Bank 2011). Cross-country data from the World Bank Entrepreneurship Snapshots find that India’s rate of entrepreneurship is lower than its stage of development would suggest; similarcomparisons also highlight that India’s gender ratio is lower than its peers. This dual under-performance has cultural and economic antecedents, but it is starting to change. Women are making economic gains in the Indian economy, and further progress represents a tremendous growth opportunity for the country.

This study contributes most directly to two literature strands. First, our work builds upon prior studies of gender differences in entrepreneurship. Parker (2009) and Klapper and Parker (2011) offer a comprehensive review of this literature and appropriate references. Our paper is among the first to study how spatial differences in gender ratios in entrepreneurship relate to local incumbent business structures. Existing research mostly employs cross-country studies of 3