Ugo Aliogo and Favour Edgar
A report by Visa Incorporated has revealed that over 50 per cent of women owned SMEs in Nigeria and Kenya have strong e-commerce presence with a high likelihood of offering customers an option to pay online.
The report added that at least seven out of 10 women expect their customers’ use of e-commerce platforms to increase after the pandemic.
Visa in the report entitled, “Understanding Women Owned SMEs,” stated that it has digitally enabled 16 million small and micro businesses (SMBs) worldwide, just over 30 per cent of the multi-year goal it set in 2020 to digitize 50 million SMBs.
The research which was unveiled during a virtual meeting with the theme: ‘Unlocking Digital Capabilities for African Women Entrepreneurs in The Age of Access,’ explored the role of technologies including digital payments in enabling the business success of female entrepreneurs in South Africa, Kenya, and Nigeria.
The report further highlighted the top business challenges experienced by women entrepreneurs in South Africa, Kenya and Nigeria, the impact of Covid-19 on these businesses and how digital payments have accelerated business growth in over 80 per cent of the businesses surveyed.
Speaking at the virtual meeting, the Senior Vice President and Head of Sub-Saharan Africa at Visa, Aida Diarra, said a report by the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor, revealed that Sub-Saharan Africa has the highest percentage of women entrepreneurs in the world, with 26 per cent starting and managing a business on the continent in 2020.
Diarra remarked that the company aims to encourage and enable even more participation of women in driving the economy, through the company’s She’s Next initiative.
She added that their research shows that female-led businesses face unique challenges throughout their entrepreneurial journey, adding that they are committed to helping these business owners across Africa to identify opportunities for growth.
The research also highlighted that the lack of technological infrastructure, economic fluctuations and a regulatory environment were identified as the top business challenges for women entrepreneurs in South Africa, Nigeria, and Kenya.
The research pointed out that seven out of 10 women-owned SMEs in Sub-Saharan Africa claim the pandemic has had a significant negative impact on their business revenue.
According to the research, “The impact of introducing digital payments for businesses is positive, but the study shows room for improvement in adoption. 83 per cent of respondents that did adopt digital payments experienced improvement in revenue.
“So far, Visa has digitally enabled 16 million small and micro businesses (SMBs) worldwide, just over 30 per cent of the multi-year goal it set in 2020 to digitize 50 million SMBs. The Visa Foundation also announced $3,500,000 million in funding to organizations across Sub-Saharan Africa that support small and micro businesses (SMBs). This funding includes grants and impact investments to programmes that provide SMBs with training, support services and access to capital, with a gender inclusive and diverse lens.”
Visa added, “As the rate of women entrepreneurs across Sub-Saharan Africa continues to rise, Visa is expanding its global She’s Next initiative to empower women entrepreneurs on the continent, bringing practical insights and valuable tools needed to grow and advance their businesses.
“The initiative comprises a series of programmes giving women entrepreneurs access to insights through research and engagement with small businesses, private and public sector communities and educational resources. She’s Next, empowered by Visa, will also bring networking opportunities in partnership with She Leads Africa; a community of over 700,000 women entrepreneurs, and lastly financial support and solutions to enable digital capability.”
