Caution! Women at Work - Site Under Construction

Poverty in South Africa has a strong gender and age dimension. Female-headed households have 50% higher poverty rate than male-headed household. . . and suffer partricularly from the lack of
access to services in rural areas.
World Bank Report on Key Indicators of Povery in South Africa

In this section on Women and Enterprise, Women'sNet has collected resources intended to connect women to the money, services, information and organisations that can help them start and improve their "SMME".

What is a "SMME"?

A Small, Medium or Micro Enterprise is an enterprise that is privately and independently (or co-operatively) owned and has an annual turnover of less than R10 million. Click here for a detailed description.

Already it is estimated that SMMEs contribute over 60% (45% from SMMEs and 15% from the informal, or micro sector) of the country's GDP (IRR '95/96). The small and medium sector alone accounts for the employment of 2,5 million people. Many more are involved in the informal sector.

South African Women and Enterprise
Information on where women are and why in the SMME sector; characteristics of women-friendly financial services; credit facilities set up specifically to benefit women and organisations established to support women in microenterprise.

South African Government Initiatives to Assist Small Business
The policy and law that directs the development of the enterprise sector; the Deputy Minister who champions the cause and contact details for provincial SMME desks.

SMME Service Providers
Information and contact details for financial and nonfinancial service providers to the SMME sector.

Finding Markets
Details about resources to help you in marketing and exporting and the possibilities of selling your goods globally through the Internet.

Around the World
What the United Nations has to say about women and enterprise and international enterprise organisations and networks.

Resources
South African and international research, publications and links about enterprise.

What Are You Talking About? Simple Definitions of Microfinance and Enterprise Terminology