ABSTRACT
This chapter provides an introductory overview of the prevalence of entrepreneurship in the informal sector across the world. It analyses the variations in the prevalence of informal entrepreneurship across different sectors of the global economy, followed by an analysis of how the prevalence of informal entrepreneurship varies according to firm age, by the size of firm, export orientation, ownership characteristics, the structure of the workforce and so forth. The scale of informal entrepreneurship does not only vary across global regions and cross-nationally, but also there are variations in its prevalence and impacts, firstly, by sector and, secondly, by firm characteristics such as firm size, firm age and whether it is a domestic or exporting firm. Older firms, moreover, are significantly more likely to state that they suffer from competition from unregistered or informal firms and to view informal competitors as a major obstacle to their operations, as do domestic-owned and non-exporting firms.
