Drawing on research in Brazil, India, Pakistan, the UK and the USA , the report finds that social enterprise is being used to support women’s empowerment in four powerful ways:

• as a source of funding for women’s rights 
• as a means to deliver training or employment opportunities for women 
• as a way to create economic empowerment for women through micro-entrepreneurship
• as a means of providing affordable products and services for women

The British Council report shows that social enterprise both challenges and reflects gender inequalities in wider society, and it offers recommendations to close the gender gap within the sector and support the growth of social enterprise for women’s empowerment.