Datasource:
Establishment Census
Period:
January, 2023 to December, 2023.
Enterprise Management
Overall, 39.9 percent of all enterprises in Rwanda have a female manager compared to 60.1 percent with a male manager. Considering the size of the enterprise, the results show that 40.8 percent of micro enterprises have a female manager compared to 59.2 percent with a male manager.
TABLE: Distribution of enterprises by size and by sex of manager
Enterprise Size |
Female | Count Male Not stated |
Total | |
| Micro (1-3) | 98,488 | 142,672 | 19 | 241,179 |
| Small (4-30) | 5,066 | 11,646 | 18 | 16,730 |
| Medium (31-100) | 704 | 2,359 | 40 | 3,103 |
| Large (100+) | 58 | 405 | 74 | 537 |
| Total | 104,316 | 157,082 | 151 | 261,549 |
The total number of enterprises with a female manager grew substantially from 60,786 in 2017 to 83,977 in 2020 and further to 104,316 in 2023, while male-managed enterprises similarly increased from 125,662 in 2017 to 142,245 in 2020 and 157,082 in 2023, indicating that although both groups expanded, female-managed enterprises grew at a faster pace.
The majority of female-managed enterprises were concentrated in the micro category, rising from 56,740 in 2017 to 98,488 in 2023, followed by small enterprises, which increased from 3,638 to 5,066 over the same period.
Economic activity
A total of 269,326 enterprises were recorded, of which 60.4% are managed by men (162,660) compared to 39.5% managed by women (106,515), while only 0.1% have managers not stated, indicating a clear dominance of male-managed enterprises overall.
The largest share of enterprises is in Wholesale and Retail Trade; Repair of Motor Vehicles and Motorcycles (53.7%), where 55.4% are male-managed (80,160) compared to 44.6% female-managed (64,489). This is followed by Accommodation and Food Service Activities (23.0%), with 66.3% male (41,037) and 33.7% female (20,877).
Enterprises size
The majority of enterprises in Rwanda are Micro-sized (92.2 percent), followed by Small enterprises (6.4 percent), while Medium and Large enterprises account for only 1.2 percent and 0.2 percent respectively.
This indicates a highly skewed structure of enterprises dominated by very small-scale businesses. In terms of ownership by sex, Micro enterprises are predominantly owned by both males and females, with male owners accounting for a higher share (59.2 percent) compared to female owners (40.8 percent).
A similar pattern is observed in Small enterprises, where male ownership is higher (69.6 percent) than female ownership (30.3 percent).
Establishment by Legal Status
The private and mixed sector establishments in Rwanda are overwhelmingly dominated by sole proprietorships, which account for 90.4 percent of all establishments.
The remaining legal forms are relatively marginal, including limited by shares (4.5 percent), none/undefined legal status (4.5 percent), unlimited companies (0.4 percent), and both limited by guarantee and limited by shares and guarantee at 0.1 percent each.
In terms of sex of the manager, sole proprietorships are mainly managed by males (59.8 percent) compared to females (40.2 percent), although female representation remains relatively strong in this category compared to other legal forms.