Gender differences

There is an interesting gender difference in street hawking here (Juliet pointed this out). You see men street selling random objects they seem to have happened upon, aimlessly wandering amidst gridlocked cars with a a set of power strips and tape measures in one hand, and a lint brush and foam block in other other (an actual example...another today: "tummy trimmer" exercise machine, laptop screen cleaner, and barber kit). In contrast, women tend to be focused on the key junctions and bus stations, where they operate small businesses selling goods like "pure water" bags, fried plantains, or baked goods...things you might actually want to impulse buy.

I don't have a clear explanation for why women don't sell random crap, but maybe it has something to do with social expectations / lack of prestige associated with running a street business. Maybe by hawking random stuff men can pretend it's not their job, it's just something they happen to be doing.

That explanation seems like too much a projection of western values / reasons for job choice, but I don't have a better idea.