Social entrepreneurship is new phenomenon in Bangladesh and the world as well. It is essential to economic development for third world country like Bangladesh. Social enterprise is a growing and dynamic sector of the Bangladesh economy. Now its play a vital role to poverty reduction, empowering women and increasing per capita income.

1. SOCIAL
ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN
BANGLADESH
Prepared by
Md. Nazmul Hasan
Accounting and Information Systems
[BBA & MBA 16th
Batch]
Rajshahi University

2. 1
SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN BANGLADESH
OUTLINE
 What is entrepreneurship?
 What is social entrepreneurship?
 Who are social entrepreneurs?
 Discuss role of social entrepreneurship.
 Discuss the process of social entrepreneurship.
 What are the key drivers for social entrepreneurship action?
 Differentiate between business entrepreneurship and social entrepreneurship.
 What are the challenges of social entrepreneurship?
 Briefly discuss about social entrepreneurship in Bangladesh.
 Briefly discuss impact of Social entrepreneurship in Bangladesh.
 Give some examples of social business in Bangladesh.
 What are the prospects of entrepreneurship development in Bangladesh?
 What are the problems of entrepreneurship development in Bangladesh?
 Give your suggestions for removing the problems of entrepreneurship development in
Bangladesh.

3. 2
DEFINITION OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Entrepreneurship is a process of creating value by bringing together a unique package of
resources to exploit an opportunity.
DEFINITION OF SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Social entrepreneurship is a process by which citizens build or transform institutions to advance
solutions to social problems, such as poverty, illness, illiteracy, environmental destruction,
human rights abuses and corruption, in order to make life better for many.
DEFINITION OF SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP
A social entrepreneur is a person who pursues novel applications that have the potential to solve
community-based problems. These individuals are willing to take on the risk and effort to create
positive changes in society through their initiatives.
Social entrepreneurs identify resources where people only see problems.
CHARACTERISTICS OF SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP
1. Social Entrepreneurship meets the needs unmet by government or the commercial markets.
2. Social entrepreneurship is motivated by social benefit.
3. Social entrepreneurs usually work with, not against markets.
ROLE OF SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Social entrepreneurs play the role of change agents in the social sector by:
1. Adopting a mission to create and sustain social value (not just private value),
2. Recognizing and relentlessly pursuing new opportunities to serve that mission,
3. Engaging in the process of continuous innovation, adaptation, and learning,
4. Acting boldly without being limited by resources currently in hand,
5. Exhibiting a heightened sense of accountability to the constituencies served and for the
outcomes created.
PROCESS OF SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP
1. Find an opportunity
2. Develop a business concept
3. Figure out what success means and how to measure it
4. Acquire the right resources
5. Launch and grow
6. Attain goals

4. 3
KEY DRIVERS FOR SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP ACTION
1. Social issues that receive less attention e.g. from government or private sector
2. Needs to raise funds and mobilize resources for charities
3. Changing donor paradigms for aid and change (e.g. sustainable investment)
4. Increasing demand for corporate social responsibility and ethical entrepreneurship
from various stakeholders
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN BUSINESS ENTREPRENEURS AND SOCIAL
ENTREPRENEURS
 Business Entrepreneurs
Business entrepreneurs focus more on the profit and wealth side. Their main goal is to satisfy
customer needs, provide growth for shareholders, expand the influence of their business, and to
expose their business to as many people as they can. Sometimes, they will overlook the
environmental consequences of their actions. The main priority for this type of entrepreneur is to
gain profit. They need to gain profit so they can ultimately keep providing services or goods to
their customers, provide for themselves and their families, and provide for their business
expansion.
 Social Entrepreneurs
The social entrepreneur‘s main focus is the social and/or environmental well-being. When they
see a problem in the community, environment, or ways of the people, they take actions toward
helping solve that problem. The main goal for the social entrepreneur is not wealth or money.
Rather, they prioritize more on serving the needs and wants of the community in a more
resourceful way. Sometimes, they will engage in their projects with little funds and resources,
while still making an impact on society.
CHALLENGES FACED BY SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURS
Major challenges faced by social entrepreneurs are:
1. Conveying the Business Idea
2. Attracting Donors
3. Getting Fund
4. Business People support
5. Government Approval
6. Maintaining product quality
7. Promoting Awareness

5. 4
SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN BANGLADESH
Social enterprises are businesses which trade for a social purpose, re-invest surpluses into their
social objective and make themselves accountable for their actions, rather than simply
maximizing profits for owners and shareholders. Social enterprise is a growing and dynamic
sector of the Bangladesh economy. It is creating jobs for disadvantaged groups, empowering
women, and addressing social exclusion across the country.
Bangladesh has been a global pioneer in social enterprise. Today there is a small but vibrant
social enterprise movement in Dhaka and a relatively large amount of on-going social enterprise
activity across the country.
IMPACT OF SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN BANGLADESH
Social entrepreneurship is new phenomenon in Bangladesh and the world as well. The concept of
social entrepreneurship has been initiated by Professor Muhammad Yunus Nobel Laureate of
Bangladesh. Social entrepreneurship is commonly defined as “entrepreneurial activities with an
embedded social purpose” (Austin, Stevenson, & Wei-Skillern, 2006). It has become an
important economic phenomenon at a global scale now a day (Mair & Marti, 2006; Zahra et al.
2008). Some of the most remarkable social entrepreneurship innovations originated from
developing countries and involve the deployment of new business models that address basic
human needs such as, the provision of low cost surgeries to cure blindness or the deployment of
sanitation systems in rural villages (Seelos & Mair, 2005; Elkington & Hartigan, 2008). It is a
broad and diverse practical social change movement that deploys innovative business skills and
technologies to address the needs of those living in povertyin a society. Social entrepreneurship
refers to the practice of combining innovation, resourcefulness and opportunity to address critical
social and environmental challenges. Social entrepreneurs focus on transforming systems and
practices that are the root causes of poverty, marginalization, environmental deterioration and
accompanying loss of human dignity.
Major Impact of Social entrepreneurship in Bangladesh are:
1. Promoting women’s empowerment
A survey findings revealed that, a fifth of Bangladeshi social enterprises are led by women –
significantly higher than in mainstream business (5%). Women in social enterprises make up
41% of the full-time equivalent workforce, more than double the participation rate than women
in the general workforce in Bangladesh.
2. Turnover, income, business confidence
Bangladeshi social enterprises are generating an average annual turnover of BDT 2.1 million and
nearly three-quarters of the enterprises expect a substantial increase in turnover in the next
financial year.

6. 5
Most Bangladeshi social enterprises expect their venture to grow and they have wide-ranging
growth plans – particularly expanding into new geographic areas (76%) and developing new
products and services (61%), through investment in their teams (85%) and by attracting capital to
expand (74%). Two-thirds of Bangladeshi social enterprises hope to replicate or franchise their
business models.
3. A young and growing movement
Bangladeshi social enterprises are young and so are their leaders. A survey indicates that 77% of
the social enterprises in Bangladesh were registered between 2009 and. Most leaders are aged
under 35.
EXAMPLES OF SOCIAL BUSINES IN BANGLADESH
Bangladesh is one of the few developing countries that has made significant stride as far as social
sector development is concerned in recent decades. This has been widely captured in literature
on social development with much appreciation that with relatively low per capita income
countries can improve their social indicators.
A famous example of a social business is the Grameen Bank in Bangladesh, which each year
gives out loans to the poor that amount to approximately one billion US dollars. Currently, the
social business economy is still limited, but nevertheless it is becoming a stakeholder in its own
right alongside for-profit businesses, cooperatives, the state, civil society and NGO’s. While
Bangladesh's success in social development has widely been emulated in many parts of the world
-- reflected in Grameen and BRAC's global expansion -- the country stands to benefit in many
ways banking on the ideas that are emanating from its social sector.
Some examples of existing social businesses in Bangladesh are listed below:
1. Grameen Bank
The Grameen Bank is a microfinance organization and community development bank started in
Bangladesh that makes small loans (known as microcredit) to the impoverished without requiring
collateral. The system is based on the idea that the poor have skills that are underutilized. The
bank also accepts deposits, provides other services, and runs several development-oriented
businesses including fabric, telephone and energy companies. The organization and its founder,
Muhammad Yunus, were jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006.
2. The BRAC
BRAC was set up in 1972 by Fazle Hasan Abed as a small scale relief and rehabilitation project
aimed at repairing some of the devastation caused by Bangladesh's war of liberation. By 1974,

7. 6
however, the multitude of social problems led BRAC to adopt a new strategy of integrated
development based on the twin objectives of poverty alleviation and empowerment of the poor,
with a focus on institution building to bring the rural poor into the mainstream of development.
Thirty years later, BRAC's outreach covered 78 percent of the country's villages and it employed
more than 93,000 people, making it the nation's second-largest employer after the government.
3.Grameen Danone
The social business creates yogurt fortified with micro-nutrients which are missing in the mal-
nourished children of Bangladesh. Because it is a social business, Grameen and Danone will
never take any dividend out of the company beyond recouping the initial investment. Bottom line
for the company is to see how many children overcome their nutrition deficiency each year.
4.Grameen Veolia
This is a joint venture with Veolia, a leading water company in the world. Bangladesh has
terrible drinking water problem. In a large part of Bangladesh tubewell water is highly arsenic
contaminated and surface water is polluted. This social business water company will be a
prototype for supplying safe drinking water in a sustainable and affordable way to people who
are faced with water crisis.
5.GC Eye Care Hospital
Grameen established two eye-care hospitals specializing in cataract operation, with a capacity to
undertake 10,000 operations per year. The first eye hospital was set up with the money from the
Green Children Foundation, created by two singers in their early twenties, Tom and Milla, from
England and Norway. The eye care hospitals are an example of a social business created by
Grameen companies alone, instead of the joint venture format with multinational organizations.
6.Grameen Intel
Intel Corporation and Grameen created a social business company to bring information
technology-based services to the poor in healthcare, marketing, education and remittances. In
two of the clinics in Savar, Bangladesh, mobile healthcare workers equipped with smart phones
are using technology to assess the risk profile of pregnant mothers who have limited access to
medical care at the villages. Mothers at risk are then referred for further diagnostics, bringing the
mother into the formal service for basic healthcare.
7.Grameen Reebok
A world famous sporting goods company, Reebok, is test marketing the products for its social
business to make sure that nobody goes without shoes.

8. 7
8.BASF Grameen
Created in partnership with BASF, a German corporation that is one of the world's largest
manufacturers of chemicals and related products, the company produces chemically treated
mosquito-nets to protect people in Bangladesh and Africa from malaria and other mosquito-
borne diseases. It has sold 30,000 nets in Bangladesh.
PROSPECTS OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP DEVELOPMENT IN BANGLADESH
As a third world country a considerable number of entrepreneurs has not been developed.
Nevertheless, there is a great possibility of developing entrepreneurship in Bangladesh.
Following are the prospects and opportunity of entrepreneurship development in Bangladesh:
1. Availability of human resources: Bangladesh has its vast population of about 150
million. So there is a great possibility of developing entrepreneurship and entrepreneurs
in Bangladesh.
2. Industrial innovative sensation: People of Bangladesh have industrial innovative
sensation. They may get involved largely in industrial initiative if they get favorable
opportunity.
3. Mobility of profession: A considerable number of villagers now replaced their
agriculture based profession into petty businesses and many other small and cottage
industry.
4. Large number of educated unemployed: In our country, there are many educated
unemployed people, but there is a limited scope of employment. For this reason, educated
unemployed people will take new initiative to do something new themselves.
5. Tendency toward industries work: Industrials work bears more salary, status, facilities
for living in city area and so on. For this reason people tending towards industrial work.
Thus, industrial sector will be developed in future. Such mentality and tendency is
helpful in developing entrepreneurs. Therefore, it is another prospect of developing
entrepreneurs.
PROBLEMS OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP DEVELOPMENT IN BANGLADESH
As a third world country, in Bangladesh there is no abundant facilities for developing
entrepreneurship rather exist a large number of obstacles, which are liable for not developing
entrepreneurs in Bangladesh described in below:

9. 8
1. Improper publicity of Govt. facilities: For developing entrepreneurs in limited basis.
Those have not informed properly to the remote villagers. Therefore, these facilities
cannot work well.
2. Lack of required financing: This is the fundamental problem of developing
entrepreneurship in Bangladesh. Here, entrepreneurs faces problem in collecting required
working capital and fixed capital.
3. Scarcity of raw materials and other factors of production: In our country, there is an
immense shortage of basic raw materials to operate industrial activities smoothly such as
skilled manpower, technology, capital and so on.
4. Lack of training: Training is essential to work efficiently and effectively in any field. In
our country, there is no available training centre to provide training in developing
entrepreneurs. As a result, people cannot come ahead to take initiative that is an obstacle
to develop entrepreneurship.
5. Lack of package help: In our country there is no abundance package help that is very
essential for developing entrepreneurship in our country. So it is another problem of
developing entrepreneurs and entrepreneurship in Bangladesh.
6. Lack of knowledge regarding technology and management: In our country there is
little scope of technology and modern management. Besides, we also have no proper
knowledge regarding those matters. These are the obstacles or problem in developing
entrepreneurs and entrepreneurship in Bangladesh.
SUGGESTIONS FOR REMOVING THE PROBLEMS ENTREPRENEURSHIP
DEVELOPMENT IN BANGLADESH
1. Making specific policy: To perform any activities some policies should be maintained.
We all shall recognize that some effective policies should be made to develop
entrepreneurship in Bangladesh.
2. Offering package help: After providing training, trainee should be provided necessary
help for developing industrial sector.
3. Formal arrangement of training: People who are engaged in entrepreneurial work or
people who are willing to take new initiative have suggested providing training in the
respective field that will be helpful for them to take initiative and operates industry
smoothly.
4. Increasing govt. facilities and its extensive publicity: Govt. facilities for developing
entrepreneurship are not sufficient. So govt. should provide abundant facilities for
developing entrepreneurship. Govt. should also arrange extensive publicity of it’s given
facilities.
5. Establishment of supplementary industry: Entrepreneurship may be developed be
establishing supplementary industry extensively. Some of them produce industrial

10. 9
product that are reproduced large industry and some of them use by product of large
industry.
6. Increasing loan facilities: Most of the people establish small or large-scale industry with
loan facility. Financing institution should provide sufficient loan to the entrepreneur with
flexible condition and supporting paper.
7. Exhibition of industrial product: To increase demand for industrial product govt. and
non-govt. organization may arrange exhibition.
8. Reduction of tax and duty: Govt. may encourage industrialization by lessening duty
rate of industrial product. That will also lessen cost of industrial product, which is
helpful in capturing market.

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REFERENCE
 https://www.slideshare.net/
 https://www.investopedia.com/
 https://en.wikipedia.org/
 https://www.linkedin.com/
 https://www.triplepundit.com/
 https://www.scribd.com/
 www.ijaiem.org/
 http://panthersocial.com/
 http://www.academia.edu/
 http://gsdl.easternuni.edu.bd/
 https://www.tbd.community/en/t/social-business
 https://www.britishcouncil.org.bd/
 https://www.britishcouncil.org/ (The state of social enterprise in Bangladesh)
 http://www.thedailystar.net/ (How Bangladesh can profit from social business)
 http://www.dhakatribune.com/ (Social enterprises and how they work in Bangladesh)
NB: This document is prepared for educative purpose and data are collected from the
referred website searching by Google.