Calling all women entrepreneurs

The findings of the survey will influence national economic policies and programmes and assist government in support initiatives geared towards the woman business owner.

The Director of the Gender and Women's Empowerment Unit at the DTI, Mmabatho Matiwane, is looking to interview women all over in South Africa who have founded and/or operate their own businesses.

The study is intended to inform the programme strategies and influence policy-making within the Gender and Women Empowerment Unit and SAWEN in relation to women entrepreneurs in South Africa by understanding the profile of women entrepreneurs in South Africa as well as the contextual influences on their work. It is further hoped that by extensive publication of the findings of this study the level of awareness amongst all economically active agents will be raised and that the important issues highlighted as a result of this study will contribute to, or influence all economically influential sectors of society, be it directly or indirectly.

In most of the developed countries in the world there are far more women mentors and role models to support the women entrepreneur than in developing countries. Access to capital and the acceptance of women in the workplace and as business owners has improved dramatically (Sherman, 2003).

Women in the developed countries (Western) face obstacles that are societal and based on old norms. In developed countries formal training is offered to equip women entrepreneurs in the principles of business planning and organisation.

Women entrepreneurs in South Africa remain on the periphery of the national economy. The concentration of activities of women in business is located in the areas of crafts, hawking, personal services and the retail sector. There are low participation levels of women entrepreneurs in value-adding business opportunities. Some of the chief barriers to promoting women in business include cultural and societal problems, psychological impact of cultural norms, employment legislation and policy, lack of information, training, finance, markets, technology and business infrastructure, absence of vehicles for skills development and capacity building; fragmented approaches to identifying issues and developing strategy to influence policy affecting business and government interventions. Accordingly, more and more women are taking the route to informal sector entrepreneurship (Bolas and Valle, 2003; Erwee, 1987; Mahadea, 2001).

South Africa has long recognized the need to support entrepreneurship to boost economic growth and job creation, the existing policy interventions and programmes are not making a big enough impact as anticipated The narrowing of the gap between the growth in women entrepreneurship and the contextual reality is contingent on skills training and tertiary education; removal of hidden and subtle gender discrimination; change in existing prejudices and stereotypes regarding the role of women in male dominating economy; the demand for socio-economic rights; and policy advocacy. The effective voice of women in business is necessary to shift from the survivalist sector to small business ventures and medium to large-scale enterprises. (DTI, 2001; "South Africa: Economic Policy Analysis", 2000; Khosa, 2000; Miller, 2003).

The nature of the multitudinous challenges and obstacles facing women entrepreneurs suggest that their full economic potential is not fully actualised and women do not feature on the mainstream of the economic agenda.

Support provisioning for women entrepreneurs include:

Education from dependency and entitlement to self- sufficiency and economic growth;

Develop/facilitate information and communication technologies that bridge the gap between new enterprises and established businesses;

Establish networking linkages, international partnerships, community participation and access to national and global markets;

Develop partnerships between stakeholders (government, private sector, NGO's, trading partners;

Provide business skills training, facilitation of business incubation, mentoring and support services;

Establish appropriate changes to trade, investment and tax policies that promote sustainability and not stifle the economic dream of women entrepreneurs; and

Review/ change regulatory frameworks that stifle women entrepreneurs and accelerate economic growth (Nasser, du Preez and Hermann, 2003).

There is a dearth of empirical studies on women entrepreneurs in South Africa, in spite of the widely recognised fact that it is one of the important sectors of the economy with the potential of contributing to economic growth, economic development and employment generation. The data available only skims the surface and helps to scrutinise the important issues in relation to the entrepreneurial activities of South African women.

Whilst it is strategically important for the government to target 'women's entrepreneurship' in South Africa for policy attention, it is critically important to address the limitations and exclusions of issues affecting women entrepreneurs and the ways in which these are interred within policy and state regulatory practices. Government policy and the availability of inputs determine the success of women's business enterprises:

Policy	Input
Trade	Access to raw materials
Monetary and Fiscal	Access to finance
Education, training and labour	Availability of skilled human resources
Finance	Access to capital, equipment
Infrastructure/development	Access to power, utilities, communication, transport

A major problem in South Africa is the lack of empirical studies on women entrepreneurs and the inadequate quality of statistical data. Research on women entrepreneur's contribution to the South African economy is non-existent. However, few studies point to a general profile of women entrepreneurs in South Africa. The data available and the profile that emerges are indicative rather than complete. Thus the available data is interpreted carefully recognizing potential inaccuracies.

All information gleaned in the interviews will be treated with the strictest confidence.

If you would like to contribute to the research or know of any women business entrepreneurs who would like to participate in the survey, please contact Bob Currin at