Question 2: Do you have sufficient financial resources for your business?
4.6 DISCUSSION OF THE RESULTS
According to the demographic research, the Lepelle-nkumpi region is a typical example of a township in South Africa, and its population is mostly composed of Africans and Blacks. All of the women that were questioned were of African descent. Women who are the only providers for their families and operate their own businesses are mostly single moms who are compelled to launch and successfully manage their companies so that they may provide for their families. The findings agree with Akhalwaya and Havenga, (2012) who opines that the majority of women are of middle age, and the vast majority of them have no education beyond a high school diploma. This is the amount of education attained by the majority of businesswomen. According to the data, a sizeable proportion of the women-owned small enterprises had never engaged in any activity in the past.
71 According to the conclusions based on the business and operational information, the vast majority of the businesses have been functioning for more than 10 years. The vast majority of women who own their own small companies are found at their establishments for extended periods of time both before and after traditional business hours, agreeing with the findings by Turker & Yılmaz, (2016). Even though Lebowakgomo locale is mostly rural, it is regarded to be one of the Capricorn district growth sites (IDP 2018/19). The majority of responders are conducting their enterprises from the Lebowakgomo region. Due to the fact that the enterprises were run under the guise of sole proprietorships, their legal structures required them to be run almost exclusively by the owners themselves, without any outside assistance. According to the statistics, the majority of small enterprises are classified as belonging to the retail industry, followed by firms belonging to the agricultural sector, and then the industry of beauty salons. The majority of women who own small businesses started out by utilizing their own personal money to launch their own companies.
Small companies in the Lepelle-Nkumpi Local Municipality that are owned and operated by women are eligible for the non-financial assistance provided by the municipality, which includes aiding the acquisition of funds and organizing training. On the basis of the responses they are receiving, the officials who were questioned have a strong conviction that the communication between the municipality and women-owned small businesses is beneficial. Because the municipality is so focused on the community as a whole, the amount of infrastructure that is available is insufficient. These difficulties constitute a significant burden that must be carried by the small enterprises that are owned and operated by women.
The lack of assistance from the local municipality is one of the most significant problems that women-owned small enterprises must overcome. The majority of these firms run without licenses, which, in turn, affects the organizational structures of the businesses.
The infrastructure is lacking in necessary components. A lack of knowledge of how to use technology in their firms, insufficient management and accounting abilities, and an inability to create business strategies are further obstacles. Agbenyegah, (2013) also noted that a lack of marketing knowledge, particularly on price methods to use in order
72 to maximize profits; pressure brought on by family responsibilities and socio-cultural concerns. In spite of the fact that the government of South Africa is doing all in its power to combat gender inequality, the members of our community are still a long way behind;
many still do not believe that women can operate companies. Although a minority of women-owned small companies is aware of the laws and regulations that regulate small enterprises, the majority of women-owned small businesses are not even aware that such rules exist.
When it comes to the operation of their companies, women confront a variety of challenges on a regular basis because of the preponderance of enterprises operated by women in the informal sector. Because of this, there is a pressing need for an all- encompassing strategy to solve these problems. Even though funds have been set aside to assist women-owned small businesses in Lepelle-Nkumpi Local Municipality through the provision of training, enabling grants, and consultation support services, the municipality is still facing an issue with the high rate of failure of these female-owned businesses.
In spite of the fact that the government recognizes the importance of women to the economy, there is still a need to understand their unique characteristics, such as the environment in which they operate and the manner in which they do business. In light of this, the purpose of this research was to investigate the challenges that were faced by women-owned small businesses in the Lepelle-Nkumpi Local Municipality located in the Limpopo Province of South Africa. Therefore, in order to address this issue, the Lepelle- Nkumpi Local Municipality has to devise a strategy that is more comprehensive in order to support and monitor the commercial activity that occurs among businesses that are owned by women.
In the past, men mostly dominated the business ownership sector; however, recent data indicates that an increase in the number of women who are in enterprises is occurring.
It's possible that this has anything to do with the fact that the days when the "place of women was in the kitchen" are becoming more rare. Even though there are more women working in business now than ever before, the gender gap is still rather considerable in many different fields. In spite of the fact that women are obviously
73 interested in starting their own businesses, they face a lot of obstacles and have to break through a number of roadblocks before they can achieve any level of commercial success with their ventures. They are forced to contend with intolerance and prejudice, as well as the attitudes of society and culture, and a lack of education and expertise.