Constrained gazelles: high potentials in West Africa's informal economy

Michael Grimm, Peter Knorringa and Jann Lay

No 77926, Social Protection Discussion Papers and Notes from The World Bank

Abstract: The informal sector is typically characterized as being very heterogeneous and possibly composed of two clearly distinct segments, sometimes called the lower and upper tier. However, empirical evidence shows that even among lower tier entrepreneur's profitability can be quite high. The authors combine these findings and develop an innovative approach to identify what is called constrained gazelles, next to the well-known survivalists in the lower tier and growth-oriented top-performers in the upper tier. The sample of informal entrepreneurs in seven West-African countries allows linking the relative size of these three groups to the structural and macroeconomic environment in these countries.

Keywords: Access to Finance; Economic Theory&Research; Microfinance; Financial Literacy; Environmental Economics&Policies (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2012-03-01
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-afr, nep-dev, nep-ent and nep-iue
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (88)

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Related works:
Journal Article: Constrained Gazelles: High Potentials in West Africa’s Informal Economy (2012)
Working Paper: Constrained gazelles. High potentials in West Africa’s informal economy (2012)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:wbk:hdnspu:77926

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