scholarly journals Barriers to Student Entrepreneurship in South Africa

2013 ◽  
Vol 5 (7) ◽  
pp. 449-459 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard Shambare
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
South African ◽  
Entrepreneurial Activity ◽  
University Graduates ◽  
Economic Policies ◽  
Student Entrepreneurship ◽  
Job Opportunities ◽  
Career Option ◽  
Youth Entrepreneurship ◽  
Entrepreneurial Activities

As rising unemployment levels continually erode job opportunities in South Africa, it is sensible to assume that entrepreneurship would be considered as the next-best career option; however, university graduates show very little interest in becoming entrepreneurs. Having observed this disinterest, South African economic policies have put in place initiatives encouraging youth entrepreneurship; however, these have failed to significantly affect the willingness to engage in entrepreneurial activities. It is against this background that this paper investigates barriers to entrepreneurship as experienced by students. A survey of 235 university students was conducted. Their views regarding entrepreneurship were collected by means of self-completion questionnaires and studied using cluster analysis. It was concluded that a taxonomy of two distinct categories of student exist – sceptics and optimists – based on respondents’ predispositions to entrepreneurship barriers. The author identifies the themes that underlie the formation of the taxonomy, namely, family and social influence, exposure to entrepreneurial activity, entrepreneurial support, and education. The paper concludes with a discussion of practical solutions and strategies to mitigate the problem of a lack of student entrepreneurship.

The influence of creativity on the entrepreneurial intention of university female graduates: An SEM approach

2021 ◽  
pp. 095042222110612
Author(s):  
Mohamad Osmani ◽  
Ramzi El-Haddadeh ◽  
Nitham M Hindi ◽  
Vishanth Weerakkody
Keyword(s):  
Entrepreneurial Intention ◽  
Positive Influence ◽  
Entrepreneurial Intentions ◽  
Entrepreneurial Activity ◽  
University Graduates ◽  
Business Programs ◽  
Business Graduates ◽  
Career Option ◽  
Entrepreneurial Activities ◽  
The University

Entrepreneurial activities have been vital to economic growth as a feasible career option for many university graduates. Nonetheless, it has been recognised that the lowest intentions to undertake entrepreneurial activity are among female graduates. While entrepreneurship is claimed to be a reflection of creative activity from which individuals generate value, graduates’ creativity can be a crucial aspect of entrepreneurship, with innovative concepts, products and services. This study examines the role of creativity skills in the entrepreneurial intentions of female university students attending business programs. Built on the Theory of Planned Behaviour, the survey results collected from 303 female business graduates identified the positive influence of creativity on entrepreneurial intentions. Recognising the need to embed creative skills and activities in the university curriculum is fundamental to encouraging entrepreneurial aspirations among female graduates.

The Oxford Handbook of the South African Economy

2021 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
South African ◽  
Economic History ◽  
Economic Policies ◽  
The South ◽  
Economic Sectors ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Strategic Issues ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
Depth Analysis

While South Africa shares some characteristics with other middle-income countries, it has a unique economic history with distinctive characteristics. South Africa is an economic powerhouse with a significant role not only at the southern African regional and continental levels, but also as a member of BRICS. However, the country faces profound developmental challenges, including the ‘triple challenges’ of poverty, inequality and unemployment. There has been a lack of structural transformation and weak economic growth. Ongoing debates around economic policies to address these challenges need to be based on rigorous and robust empirical evidence and in-depth analysis of South African economic issues. This necessitates wide-ranging research, such as that brought together in this handbook. This volume intends to provide original, comprehensive, detailed, state-of-the-art analytical perspectives, that contribute to knowledge while also contributing to well-informed and productive discourse on the South African economy. While concentrating on the more recent economic challenges facing the country, the handbook also provides historical and political context, an in-depth examination of strategic issues in the various critical economic sectors, and assembles diverse analytical perspectives and arguments that have implications for policymaking.

Support for Entrepreneurship at the University of Twente

1998 ◽  
Vol 12 (6) ◽  
pp. 367-372 ◽  
Author(s):  
P.C. van der Sijde ◽  
J.A. van Alsté
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Expert Knowledge ◽  
Higher Education Institutions ◽  
Research Unit ◽  
Entrepreneurial Activity ◽  
Student Entrepreneurship ◽  
Limited Company ◽  
Entrepreneurial Activities ◽  
The University

The authors describe the University of Twente (UT) as an innovative and entrepreneurial university. In demonstration of this approach, they discuss the ways in which the University participates in the encouragement of individual and institutional entrepreneurial activity and disseminates expert knowledge on issues relating to entrepreneurship. Graduates as well as faculty can benefit from UT schemes for entrepreneurs, and the establishment of a Student Entrepreneurship Centre is underway. The paper concludes with two case studies of projects which have followed the progression from a research unit or activity at UT into a limited company. The authors argue that higher education institutions must adopt active policies to enable both students and staff to initiate entrepreneurial activities.

scholarly journals Challenges and Prospects of Youth Entrepreneurship Development in a Designated Community in the Western Cape, South Africa

2014 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 10-20 ◽  
Author(s):  
Saphetha Appie Gwija ◽  
Chux Gervase Iwu .
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Research Effort ◽  
Western Cape ◽  
Entrepreneurship Development ◽  
Inhibiting Factor ◽  
Prime Concern ◽  
Specific Factors ◽  
Youth Entrepreneurship ◽  
Entrepreneurial Activities ◽  
Insight Into

In a job-scarce environment, where unemployment is rife the need for fostering entrepreneurship especially among youth is a prime concern. This is arguably the case in South Africa, where despite a number of government-pioneered interventions, the level of youth entrepreneurship, particularly in township areas remains unsatisfactory. This study takes a two-pronged approach to establish specific factors that are inhibiting youth entrepreneurship development, and determine the prospects of youth entrepreneurship development in Khayelitsha in the Western Cape, South Africa. The data was collected via self-administered questionnaires that were distributed to 132 respondents, which were randomly drawn from a population of 200 youth entrepreneurs registered on the database of a local organisation which promotes and develops entrepreneurship in the Western Cape. The findings revealed, among others, that a major inhibiting factor to entrepreneurship development is the lack of awareness and inaccessibility of youth entrepreneurship support structures and initiatives in this community. Interestingly though, this hindrance does not appear to have a negative bearing on the identified growing enthusiasm of the youth to engage in entrepreneurial activities. Overall, on the basis of the challenges and prospects revealed, recommendations to improve the current situation are made. This study is an applied research effort and its relevance is linked to the fact that it provides rare insight into the state of youth entrepreneurship in a large but under-researched township community in the Western Cape. The findings and recommendations therefore bear far-reaching ramifications for all stakeholders who are concerned about developing youth entrepreneurship in this society.

The South African Female Entrepreneurship Context

2018 ◽  
pp. 164-185
Author(s):  
Sybert Mutereko
Keyword(s):  
South African ◽  
Entrepreneurial Activity ◽  
The South ◽  
Economic Activities ◽  
Female Entrepreneurs ◽  
Long Time ◽  
Feminist Theories ◽  
Global Entrepreneurship ◽  
And Performance ◽  
Entrepreneurial Activities

For a long time, women have been excluded from economic activities in male-dominated organizations and patriarchal society. Therefore, due to this factor, their participation in economic activities such as employment and entrepreneurial initiatives has been a subject of scholarship for some time. Drawing on institutional and feminist theories, this chapter argues that feminist entrepreneurship should consider the emerging economies as heterogeneous regions with unique contexts that affect the entrance into and performance in entrepreneurial activities. Any entrepreneurship scholarship that conflates the different regions and contexts within which female entrepreneurs are found, underplays the nuances that affect them through a compressive use of the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor and Global Entrepreneurship Development Institute databases. This chapter illustrates how the South African context enables, as well as impedes, women from total entrepreneurial activity. While current regulative institutions are in place, the number of women entering TEA and flourishing is still low.

Understanding one’s rights when arrested and detained: An assessment of language barriers that affect comprehension

2021 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-30
Author(s):  
Terrence R Carney
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
South African ◽  
The Other ◽  
University Graduates ◽  
Judicial Process ◽  
South Africans ◽  
South African Police Service ◽  
South African Police ◽  
The One ◽  
Readability Level

Difficult text formulations, on the one hand, as well as poor linguistic skills and comprehension on the other, can severely hamper the communication effort of basic human rights during the judicial process. The rights entrenched in s 35 of the Constitution of South Africa (Act 108 of 1996), as they apply to individuals who are arrested, detained and accused, and read out by a member of the local South African Police Service (SAPS), are written in a legal register that can be too difficult for additional language speakers to understand. This begs the question of whether arrested, detained and accused individuals are fully aware of their rights and whether they can exercise these rights if they do not understand the language that expresses them. This article appraises the potential comprehensibility of the notice of rights (SAPS 14A), as provided to arrested, detained and accused individuals by the SAPS. The researcher’s assessments indicate that the text is pitched at an English readability level suited to university graduates and could be too difficult for South Africans with limited schooling and linguistic abilities to comprehend. A revision of SAPS 14A is offered as an illustration of a possible improvement to increase readability and, subsequently, better access to the mentioned rights.

Black entrepreneurship: a case study on entrepreneurial activities and ambitions in a South African township

2014 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 162-179 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Preisendoerfer ◽  
Ansgar Bitz ◽  
Frans J. Bezuidenhout
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Black Population ◽  
Entrepreneurial Intentions ◽  
Entrepreneurial Activity ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Structural Problems ◽  
Self Employment ◽  
Black Entrepreneurship ◽  
Entrepreneurial Activities

Purpose – The purpose of this article is to investigate the current self-employment rate as well as entrepreneurial intentions of the township’s population on the basis of an empirical case study of a single township. It is often assumed that the black population of South Africa (mostly living in townships) has a low participation rate in entrepreneurial activities and a low level of entrepreneurial ambitions. Besides the level of entrepreneurship, personal and socio-economic factors affecting participation in entrepreneurship are explored. Design/methodology/approach – The article uses a face-to-face survey of about 350 adult residents of the township under investigation. Findings – Contrary to the common assumption, entrepreneurial activity, which also includes all kinds of informal business ventures, cannot be qualified as low in the township under investigation. The same holds true for entrepreneurial ambitions, that is, people’s intentions to start their own business in the near future. The factors influencing the probability of self-employment are similar to what we know from many other studies in the field of entrepreneurship. Socio-demographic attributes (gender, age), human capital factors (schooling, health) and social network resources (membership of organizations, self-employed friends) are significant predictors of entrepreneurial activity. It proves to be difficult, however, to explain who, in fact, articulates entrepreneurial ambitions. Practical implications – The findings show that the basic prerequisites for expanding black entrepreneurship in South Africa are in place. Politically, it seems appropriate to initiate more public support programs for black entrepreneurship, as such programs can help to translate entrepreneurial ambitions into action. However, to stay realistic, the contribution of entrepreneurship to overcome the structural problems of deprivation and poverty of the black population of South Africa should not be overestimated. Originality/value – The article is based on a careful survey in a township using a random sample. Given the rare access to a disadvantaged township community, the result that there is no evidence of “lack of entrepreneurial impetus” deserves scientific and political attention.

scholarly journals Entrepreneurship in an emerging and culturally diverse economy: a South African perspective

2011 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 47-65 ◽  
Author(s):  
John Luiz ◽  
Martine Mariotti
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
South African ◽  
Culturally Diverse ◽  
Entrepreneurial Activity ◽  
Global Entrepreneurship Monitor ◽  
South Africans ◽  
Entrepreneurial Opportunities ◽  
African Perspective ◽  
Global Entrepreneurship ◽  
Diverse Economy

Of all the developing countries that participated in the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor survey, South Africa was ranked the lowest, in terms of entrepreneurial activity. It is clear that South Africa is not producing a sufficiently entrepreneurial economy and this needs to be addressed so as to create employment, expand markets, increase production and revitalize communities. This paper examines the entrepreneurial traits of a diverse group of young adults in South Africa. It looks at their attitudes towards and perceptions of entrepreneurship, entrepreneurial opportunities and the broader environment in an attempt to clarify how South Africans view entrepreneurship.

Entrepreneurship and SMMEs in South Africa

2021 ◽  
pp. 621-645
Author(s):  
Boris Urban
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
South African ◽  
Growth And Development ◽  
Entrepreneurial Activity ◽  
Entrepreneurial Ecosystem ◽  
Comprehensive Overview ◽  
Policy Issues ◽  
National Economic ◽  
Entrepreneurial Growth ◽  
National Economic Development

Abstract: The chapter provides a comprehensive overview of the multifaceted nature of entrepreneurship and SMMEs in South Africa by presenting a broad range of key economic questions, challenges, and policy issues. Acknowledging the complexity of describing entrepreneurship and SMMEs, due to definitional controversies and the variety of contexts in which these phenomena occur, different typologies are juxtaposed to highlight the heterogeneity in entrepreneurial activity. Despite a lack of consistent and accurate data, the findings show that while entrepreneurship is publicly campaigned as an imperative for national economic development and employment creation, in reality South Africa’s low established-business entrepreneurial activity rate does not result in any significant economic growth. By interrogating a broad range of individual and contextual factors in the South African entrepreneurial ecosystem, it is evident that a number of structural, institutional, market, and policy issues obstruct productive entrepreneurial growth and development.

Is there a future for a Labour Accord in South Africa?

2003 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 81-106 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Harcourt ◽  
Geoffrey Wood
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
South Africa ◽  
South African ◽  
Social Protest ◽  
African National Congress ◽  
Economic Policies ◽  
Track Record ◽  
National Congress ◽  
Wage Increases ◽  
Persistent Inequality

Foreign experience suggests that strong unions with close connections to the state can use political exchanges to mould social and economic policies to more readily reflect the needs of labour. South African unions could conceivably form a similar pact with the African National Congress by agreeing to moderate their demands for wage increases and to cooperate in the restructuring of the economy in exchange for pro-labour policies. Given persistent inequality and a rich tradition of social protest, it could be argued that neo-corporatism represents an unnecessary compromise in the South African situation. Nonetheless, neo-corporatism's track record underscores the role institutions can play in redressing social inequality, yet creating the conditions for economic growth. However, the key actors—labour, capital and government—may be neither able nor willing to strike a comprehensive deal.

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