scholarly journals Education And SMME Business Growth: A Gender Perspective From South Africa

2013 ◽  
Vol 12 (8) ◽  
pp. 855 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pradeep Brijlal ◽  
Visvanathan Naicker ◽  
Ricardo Peters
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Positive Relationship ◽  
Business Owners ◽  
Western Cape ◽  
Business Growth ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Level Of Education ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Support Programmes

Entrepreneurship is becoming an increasingly important source of employment for women in many countries. Policymakers and other stakeholders typically fail to differentiate between the needs of different SMME sectors when designing support programmes. Using survey data obtained from SMME owner managers in the Western Cape, this article attempts to identify whether the level of education and gender has an impact on business growth. A survey instrument in the form of a questionnaire was utilized to capture the data from 369 face-to-face interviews. The findings from this research reveal a positive relationship between the level of education of business owners and their respective business abilities to increase business growth. There were no significant differences between men and women in relation to business growth. The research has implications for policymakers seeking to understand the factors that influence business growth.

scholarly journals Education And Small Business Growth: A Gender Perspective Of Two Divergent Provinces In South Africa

2014 ◽  
Vol 13 (5) ◽  
pp. 1127 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ricardo Martin Peters ◽  
Garth Van Gensen ◽  
Eslyn Bleighnaul Hugh Isaacs ◽  
Mark Jonathan Botha ◽  
Visvanathan Naicker
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
South African ◽  
Business Owners ◽  
Western Cape ◽  
Business Growth ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Level Of Education ◽  
Women In Business ◽  
Kwazulu Natal ◽  
The Impact

The article attempts to identify whether the level of education and gender has an impact on the business growth of SMMEs in a developing economy. The study furthermore looks at the contribution made by the SMME sector from a spatial perspective. The Western Cape is seen as a more affluent province and a bigger contributor to the countrys GDP as opposed to KwaZulu-Natal, which comprises of the former province of Natal and the Zululand homelands. Entrepreneurship can be considered as one of the means of creating an enabling environment conducive to reducing poverty, stimulating economic growth, and creating employment opportunities, particularly in a South African context. Hence, activities in the SMME sector are often considered to be the bedrock of an economy and a key driver of growth and development. This holds most true for women assuming the role of entrepreneur, especially in developing countries. This study aims to explore and test this delicate relationship between women entrepreneurs and SMME sustainability, and to conduct empirical investigations into high-density SMME operations in two South African provinces. Survey data were collected from SMME owners/managers in the Western Cape and KwaZulu-Natal provinces of South Africa. In building on previous academic literature on SMME sustainability and women in business, various measures are developed and tested for reliability and validity. The study is cross-sectional in design, making use of trained fieldworkers to administer face-to-face surveys to a diverse set of SMMEs. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data from 465 owners/managers in the two provinces. The findings show (i) a positive relationship between a business owners/managers level of education and business growth, (ii) no correlation between a business owners/managers education and employment, and (iii) no relationship between gender and business growth. The findings of the study can benefit the South African Government in directing policy, SMME owners, educators and women in business by increasing awareness of the nature of sustainable SMMEs, and the effect of operational skills, gender and education on the development thereof. This study focuses on the growing sector of women in business and the impact of education in SMMEs linked toward business sustainability. A contribution is made toward theory development through empirical research.

A History of the Present

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ashwin Desai ◽  
Goolam Vahed
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Economic Life ◽  
Quarter Century ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
South Africans ◽  
Transnational Organizations ◽  
Intellectual Interest ◽  
History Of ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Fitting In

While small in number, the place of the Indian in South Africa has historically loomed large because of their strong commercial and professional middle class, international influence through India, the commitment of many Indians to the anti-apartheid struggle and the prominent role that they have played in political and economic life post-apartheid. A History of the Present is the first book-length overview of Indian South Africans in the quarter century following the end of apartheid. Based on oral interviews and archival research it threads a narrative of the lives of Indian South Africans that ranges from the working class men and women to the heady heights of the newly minted billionaires; the changes wrought in the fields of religion and gender; opportunities offered on the sporting fields; the search for roots both locally and in India that also witnesses the rise of transnational organizations. Indians in South Africa appear to be always caught in an infernal contradiction; too traditional, too insular, never fitting in, while also too modern, too mobile. While focusing on Indian South Africans, this study makes critical interventions into several charged political discussions in post-apartheid South Africa, especially the debate over race and identity, while also engaging in discussions of wider intellectual interest, including diaspora, nation, and citizenship.

Growing Women Entrepreneurship in the Creative Industries in South Africa

2021 ◽  
pp. 237-261
Author(s):  
Ndwakhulu Stephen Tshishonga
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Job Creation ◽  
Business Owners ◽  
Creative Industries ◽  
Economic Resources ◽  
Women Entrepreneurship ◽  
Women Business Owners ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
New Ideas

This chapter interrogates the potential of women entrepreneurship as an economic strategy to address unemployment and job creation. The chapter focusses on creative industry to demonstrate that creativity and innovations can activate entrepreneurship among women in South Africa. It is through entrepreneurship that entrepreneurs transform their innovative and creative ideas into business enterprises and job creation. Although female entrepreneurship for economic development is recognised internationally, it lags behind those of men especially in the number of women business owners and the size of businesses including access to economic resources. The chapter argues that entrepreneurs are central in boosting the economy and the optimal use of their skills, innovative new ideas that sustain entrepreneurial creative projects. The chapter makes use of a visual profile, participant observation, case studies, and face-to-face interviews with women involved in creative industries such as bead making, pottery, traditional dress-making, and traditional dance.

scholarly journals Nurses’ views on promotion and the influence of race, class and gender in relation to the Employment Equity Act

2019 ◽  
Vol 45 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mariana M. Van der Heever ◽  
Anita S. Van der Merwe ◽  
Talitha Crowley
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Public Sector ◽  
Diversity Training ◽  
Survey Design ◽  
Mixed Race ◽  
Western Cape ◽  
Employment Equity ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Managerial Positions ◽  
And Gender

Orientation: Regardless of the implementation of the Employment Equity Act (EEA), No. 55 of 1998 and the abolishment of apartheid in 1994, African and mixed-race females are under-represented in managerial positions in the public sector of the Western Cape (WC) in South Africa and nationally in the private health sector.Research purpose: The purpose was to explore the views of nurses about promotion to managerial positions in view of the Employment Equity Act (EEA) and the possible influence of race, class and gender.Motivation for the study: South Africa has a history of racial hierarchies and gender inequities. It was therefore important to explore the influence of the EEA and race, class and gender on the promotion of nurses in the post-apartheid context.Research approach/design and method: A cross-sectional descriptive survey design was completed. Six hundred and eighty-eight (n = 688) nurses consented to participate and 573 (83%) questionnaires were returned.Main findings: Race as a social construct surfaced in the superior viewing of white and the inferior viewing of African nurses. Mixed-race and white nurses seemed disgruntled with the EEA because of the benefits it holds for African nurses. African nurses seemed angered by their under-representation in managerial positions in the private and public sectors in the WC. White nurses seemed convinced that African, mixed-race and Indian nurses experience upward mobility. Mixed-race nurses (public sector WC) showed concerns about the career successes of males in a female-dominated profession.Practical/managerial implications: Managerial structures should be required to invest in diversity training, create awareness of the noble intentions of the EEA and communicate the relevance of employment equity plans.Contribution/value-add: The findings provided evidence that reflected a need for diversity training and the creation of awareness about the longstanding influence of racial and gender hierarchies.

scholarly journals Challenges to the growth of African immigrant-owned businesses in selected craft markets in Cape Town, South Africa

2016 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 410-418 ◽  
Author(s):  
Samson Nambei Asoba ◽  
Robertson K. Tengeh
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Sampling Technique ◽  
Jel Classification ◽  
Business Growth ◽  
African Immigrant ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Immigrant Entrepreneurs ◽  
Spss Software ◽  
The Many ◽  
Depth Interviews

This paper sought to ascertain the factors that impact on the growth of African immigrant-owned craft businesses in selected craft markets. The purposive and snowball non-probability sampling technique was deemed to be the best method to use in this study to select the respondents. The study utilized a mixed method approach to collect and analyze data. Questionnaires (quantitative) were administered to 122 African immigrant entrepreneurs, and in-depth interviews (qualitative) were conducted with the three municipality managers responsible for the four selected craft markets. The quantitative data were analyzed using the Statistical Packages for Social Sciences (SPSS) software, and face-to- face interviews were analysed by content analysis. Pushed by the need to survive and pulled by the many tourists in South Africa, African immigrant entrepreneurs turned to the craft business Seasonal and irregular nature of trade, competition, and xenophobia were noted to be the main growth challenges. Recommendations were made to the relevant stakeholders. Keywords: African immigrant entrepreneur, business growth, survivalist businesses, craft markets, SMEs. JEL Classification: M10, M13

scholarly journals Owners' Characteristics and the Financial Bootstrapping Strategies Used by Rural Small Businesses in South Africa

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (4(J)) ◽  
pp. 277-286
Author(s):  
Maurice Nchabeleng ◽  
Olawale Fatoki ◽  
Olabanji Oni
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Small Business ◽  
Small Businesses ◽  
Business Owners ◽  
T Test ◽  
Limpopo Province ◽  
Small Business Owners ◽  
Snowball Sampling ◽  
Level Of Education ◽  
Financial Bootstrapping

The purpose of this study was to examine if there are significant differences in the financial bootstrapping strategies of rural small businesses on the basis of owners' demographic characteristics (level of education and gender). The research followed a quantitative research method with descriptive research design. A sample of 104 rural small businesses participated in the survey. Data was collected through the use of self-administered questionnaires in a survey. The participants in the study were rural small business owners in Fetakgomo Municipality located in the Limpopo Province of South Africa. The study utilised the convenience and snowball sampling techniques to select the study participants. Data analysis included descriptive statistics, factor analysis and the T-test. The Cronbach alpha was used to measure reliability. The results of the T-test showed significant differences between gender and level of education and the financial bootstrapping methods used by rural small businesses. Recommendations are made to improve the awareness of bootstrapping by small business owners. 

YOUNG ENTREPRENEURS’ EXPERIENCES OF NAVIGATING THEIR SUCCESS

2016 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 30-40
Author(s):  
Margie G. Booyens ◽  
Roshan Galvaan
Keyword(s):  
Young People ◽  
Small Businesses ◽  
Youth Unemployment ◽  
Young Person ◽  
Business Owners ◽  
Business Development ◽  
Western Cape ◽  
Small Business Development ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Instrumental Case Study

One of the pathways out of youth unemployment is purported to be youth initiated business development. While the range of difficulties related to establishing small businesses has been widely documented, less is known about the ordinary experiences of young people who have successfully transitioned into work through small business development. We undertook a pilot instrumental case study to find out how the agency of young people is activated and supported to advance successful enterprises. Purposive sampling was applied to select three young business owners in three rural towns in the Western Cape. Two semi-structured face-to-face interviews were conducted with each business owner and one interview with a key mentor chosen by each young person. The findings focus on the relationship between the personal and social factors that contributed to opportunities for these young people. We also highlight key achievements, from the perspective of the young business owners, which do not point to financial success but to the value the owners place on their increased social standing and the social wellbeing their business has promoted in their home communities. Recommendations are made for the consideration of researchers, policy makers and providers of support for young business owners.

scholarly journals Health risk behaviours of stroke patients in the Western Cape, South Africa

2008 ◽  
Vol 64 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Biggs ◽  
A. Rhoda
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
At Risk ◽  
Western Cape ◽  
Stroke Patients ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Lifestyle Choices ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Depth Interviews ◽  
Self Administered Questionnaire

Stroke is a leading cause of death and a major cause of disability globally. Individuals with physical disabilities, including thosewho have suffered a stroke are at risk of secondary complications due to the impact of their disability, which may be exacerbated by their lifestylechoices. The aim of the present study was to determine the health riskbehaviours and factors that influence these behaviours of stroke patients inthe Metropole Region of the Western Cape, South Africa. A cross – sectionalsurvey, utilizing a self-administered questionnaire on a convenient sampleof 417 stroke patients, was used to collect data. A sub-sample of 10 parti-cipants was purposively selected for in-depth, face-to-face interviews.Approximately forty percent (40.3%) of the participants did not engage in physical exercise. While 30.2% smoked only9% abused alcohol. A significant association was found between age and smoking (p<0.002). Information gathered in the in-depth interviews revealed factors that influenced the behaviours of the participants. These factors includedlack of financial resources and lack of access to information. As participants were found to be at risk of secondarycomplications because of poor lifestyle choices, there is a clear need to implement health promotion programmes topromote well-ness enhancing behaviours in order to enhance the quality of health of patients who have suffered astroke in the Western Cape, South Africa.

Exploring gender-related perceptions of SME success

2014 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 15-27 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paull Christopher Weber ◽  
Louis Geneste
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Business Owners ◽  
Hours Worked ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Social ◽  
Medium Enterprise ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Is Value

Purpose – Small and medium enterprise (SME) research into the meaning and perception of success is now reaching beyond (the somewhat stereotypical) extrinsic success measures such as sales, number of employees, and profit. Researchers now identify the goals and expectations of the owner(s) of a business as central to their likely performance and preferred success metrics. Therefore, this paper aims to overlay perceptions of success and gender to establish whether success is conceptualised in the same way across genders. Design/methodology/approach – The study analyses the responses from 375 male and female SME owners to a range of quantitative success metrics and also explores the responses provided to a number of qualitative questions surrounding the owners' perceptions of success. Findings – Although the average female-owned business in the study is significantly smaller than the average male-owned business, they perform equally well on extrinsic measures that relate outputs (profit) to inputs (assets and hours worked). Further, the female SME owners appear to be more satisfied with both the success of their business and their lifestyle, than their male counterparts. Originality/value – The findings suggest that the social feminists hold sway (men and women have different perceptions of success) and there is value in incorporating a feminine perspective when examining what business owners are looking for from their ventures. That is, measures of SME success need to adopt a person-centered perspective.

scholarly journals Eventual integration or delayed transit: Interaction of residents in reception centres with their new environment in Serbia

Stanovnistvo ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 58 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-23
Author(s):  
Nemanja Vukcevic
Keyword(s):  
Mother Tongue ◽  
Local Population ◽  
Family Work ◽  
Level Of Education ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Voluntary Response ◽  
The Republic ◽  
And Gender ◽  
High Level ◽  
Reception Centre

The purpose of our study was an analysis of reception centre residents? attitudes in the Republic of Serbia toward the state and the local population. Using a questionnaire, we tried to identify the differences in respondents? attitudes toward their new environment depending on their various socio-demographic characteristics. The survey was conducted in the spring of 2019 on a sample of 173 residents of centres using the PAPI method, face-to-face, and voluntary response sampling. The data obtained are the result of descriptive and inferential analysis and were processed by the SPSS statistical data processing program. Our statistical analysis showed that attitudes of reception centre residents toward their new environment may not correlate strongly with their mother tongue, knowledge of foreign languages, marital status, number of family members, number of minor children in the family, work status, or religion. Instead, it is more likely to depend on their level of education, age, nationality, and gender. Such results show us where we need to improve inter-action, especially among women, young people, and people with a low level of education. We can also suggest that, under favourable conditions, these three categories of reception centre residents will be the first to leave the Republic of Serbia, which they probably see exclusively as a transit country. At the same time, older people and people with a high level of education (most likely men) are more likely to integrate into their new environment in the Republic of Serbia. The more interaction they have with local people and institutions and the higher the quality of that interaction, the more likely they are to integrate.

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