Policymakers and scholars universally accept and recognise the influence of small, macro, and medium enterprises (SMMEs) on stimulating economic growth and job creation. South Africa in particular, has the challenge of a high unemployment rate, particularly among the youth, coupled with high inequality levels and stagnant economic growth over the recent years. These challenges have made the role of SMMEs even more important in South Africa. Despite the known importance of the influence of SMEs on the economy and the government initiatives to grow SMEs, SMEs continue to face challenges of access to finance and high failure rates in their start-up phases. Against this background, this study examined the key reasons SMMEs struggle to gain access to banking finance with the aim of understanding the root causes of those reasons. This study aimed to provide solutions to addressing the root causes of SMMEs inaccessibility to finance to narrowing the finance gap in this segment. The study employed the parallel convergent mixed methods approach that combined both qualitative and quantitative approaches in data collection and analysis. Convenient sampling was used to identify the SMMEs for quantitative research. The empirical evidence was collected using survey data. The survey was distributed among the SMMEs sampled. For qualitative research, purposeful sampling was used to identify the research participants. Four bank managers working specifically with SME finance were selected and approached for the research. Qualitative data was collected using semi-structured interviews. The study found that most SMMEs struggle to get access to finance with the majority citing a poor credit record as the main reason for being declined for credit. Most SMMEs are deterred from applying for banking finance and find the processes long and complicated. The study also found that the root cause of SMMEs low access to banking finance is a lack of education and understanding of bank processes and factors influencing their creditworthiness. These include poor governance by SMMEs and lack of proper bookkeeping. It is recommended that SMMEs upskill themselves with financial literacy and basic business management skills. Banks should find innovative ways of assessing creditworthiness for SMMEs and should consider other data sources. A collaboration between banks, government agents, and DFIs is advised.

En los últimos años, el sistema financiero peruano ha logrado constituirse en uno de los pilares del crecimiento económico del Perú. Nuestro país ha superado todas las expectativas en Latinoamérica, puesto que los índices macroeconómicos han evidenciado una notable mejora respecto a décadas anteriores. Pieza fundamental del tejido empresarial de Perú, como de cualquier país desarrollado o en desarrollo, es la pyme, una organización de limitado tamaño que anhela el sólido desarrollo y la competitividad. En el sector agrícola, la pyme es el conjunto de pequeñas y medianas empresas que generan empleos y permiten abastecer la demanda de productos agrícolas en el mercado. La pyme realiza gestión administrativa, donde el proceso de planeación se ejecuta, de este modo, en todos los niveles define las funciones y responsabilidades de todos los involucrados en la organización y los administradores resultan ser gestores de campo y responsables de generar productos apropiados para su público objetivo. En el presente trabajo, el objetivo de evaluar la relación del acceso al crédito con el desarrollo y la competitividad de la pyme agrícola viene abordado desde tres aspectos: a) El acceso al crédito que permite a las pymes tener mayor capacidad de desarrollo, realizar nuevas y más eficientes operaciones y ampliar el tamaño de la infraestructura; b) El desarrollo de las pymes, apoyado mediante un marco de apoyo fiscal, permite que las empresas se mantengan, crezcan y progresen en un entorno dinámico, siguiendo estrategias que le permitan alcanzar sus metas. Las pymes constituyen un elemento importante en el esquema productivo nacional, jugando un papel primordial en el crecimiento económico del país; c) La competitividad de la pyme, como la capacidad de alcanzar una posición destacada y sostenida en el mercado, permite a la empresa una mejora en la calidad de sus productos, la eficiencia de procesos y un incremento en la producción de las empresas. Así, la pyme acrecienta sus beneficios y, bajo condiciones de libre mercado, un país puede producir bienes y servicios que pasen el test de la competencia internacional. De este modo y en concordancia con las características de las empresas seleccionadas para abordar el tema de manera específica, se llegó al planteamiento del siguiente tema para su desarrollo: el acceso al crédito y su relación con el desarrollo y la competitividad de las pymes del sector agrícola de Lima-Perú en 2015. La respuesta a este planteamiento se dará a través del alcance de objetivos puntuales detallados en los objetivos específicos, que permitirá brindar una mirada general al efecto del acceso al crédito en las pymes del sector agrícola. En el presente estudio se realizó una encuesta a una muestra de 120 pymes del sector agrícola de Lima - Perú. Los elementos de la muestra han tenido acceso al crédito en 2015. Durante 1 mes, se realizó la encuesta que tiene un cuestionario de 29 preguntas en escala de Likert y presenta 5 niveles (desde totalmente de acuerdo hasta totalmente en desacuerdo). La hipótesis general tuvo como método de análisis la correlación de Spearman. El resultado del análisis estadístico indicó que el acceso al crédito afecta positivamente en el desarrollo empresarial de las pymes (p=0.000). La relación es directa y de nivel bajo (Rho=0.372) con un tamaño de efecto de 13.8%. De igual modo, el resultado del análisis estadístico indica que el acceso al crédito afecta positivamente en la competitividad de las pymes (p=0.000). La relación es directa y de nivel bajo (Rho=0.329) con un tamaño de efecto de 10.8%. Sobre la base de los resultados obtenidos, podemos afirmar que el acceso al crédito se relacionó de manera positiva con el desarrollo y la competitividad de las pymes del sector agrícola de Lima – Perú en 2015. / In the last years, the financial Peruvian system has achieved to be constitute in one of the pillars of the Economical growth of Peru. Our country has exceeded all Latin America expectations, due to the remarkable improvement that has been evidence into the macroeconomic index to the previous years. One of the most important pieces in the Peruvian business, like in any other country is the SME (Small Medium Enterprise), it is a limited sized organization that longs for a solid growth and competitivity. In the agricultural sector, the SME is the group of small and medium businesses that generates jobs and allows to supply agricultural products to the market. The SME makes administrative management, where the planning process runs, thereby, in all the levels it defines the functions and responsibilities of the people involved in the organization and the administrators are field managers and responsible to generate appropriate products to target audience. In this present work, the objective is to evaluate the relationship of access to credit with the development and competitiveness that the agricultural SME comes from three aspects: a) the access to credit that allows the SMEs to have higher growth capacity to make new and more efficient operations, also to expand the size of infrastructure; b) the development of the SME, helping through a fiscal support, that allows the enterprises to maintain, grow and progress in a dynamic environment, following strategies that permit them to achieve their goals. The SME constitute an essential element in the national productive scheme, playing a key role in the country’s economic growth; c) the competitivity of the SME, like reaching the capacity of an outstanding and permanent position into the market, allowing the improvement of their products, the efficiency of the process and a raise in the production of the enterprises. Therefore, the SME increase their benefits under free market conditions. A country can produce goods and services that pass the test of international competition. In this way and in accordance with the characteristics of the selected companies to address the issue specifically, the approach to the following topic for its development is reached: the access to credit and its relationship with the development and competitiveness of the SMEs in the agricultural sector of Lima-Peru in 2015. The answer to this approach will be given through the scope of punctual objectives detailed in specific objectives which will provide a general overview of the effect of access to credit in SMEs in the agricultural sector. In the present study a survey was conducted on a sample of 120 SMEs of the agricultural sector in Lima – Peru. The elements of the sample have had access to credit in 2015. For one month, a survey of entrepreneurs was conducted. The survey has a questionnaire of 29 questions on Likert scale and has 5 levels (from Totally agree to Totally disagree). The general hypothesis was evaluated by the Spearman Correlation as a method of analysis. The result of the statistical analysis indicated that the access to credit positively affects the business development of the SMEs (p=0.000) the relationship is direct and low level (Rho=0.372) with an effect sized of 13.8%. In the same way, the statistical analysis result indicated that the access to credit positively affects competitiveness of SMEs (p=0.000) the relationship is direct and low level (Rho=0.329) with an effect sized of 10.8%. Based on the results obtained, we can assure that the access to credit is positively related on the development and competitiveness of SMEs of the agricultural sector in Lima – Peru in 2015. / Tesis

Este trabalho busca compreender e mensurar as características dos produtores rurais que ampliam a probabilidade para que o mesmo tenha acesso ao crédito rural. Utilizando os dados do Levantamento das Unidades Produtivas Agropecuárias (LUPA) do Estado de São Paulo (2006/2007), que abrange todas as UPAs pertencentes aos 645 municípios do estado, foi possível detalhar as características observáveis dos produtores e das propriedades que acessaram o crédito rural em 2007. Para tanto, foi utilizado o método de Árvores de Classificação e Regressão. As estimações realizadas para todas as UPAs de estado de São Paulo mostraram que a diferença de tamanho das unidades produtivas é o principal determinante para o acesso ao crédito. Quando se analisa o acesso ao crédito para unidades produtivas de pequena, média e grande extensão, algumas variáveis apresentam maior impacto no acesso ao crédito. Para as unidades de pequena extensão (até dez hectares), a diversificação de cultura, entre cultura temporária e perene, aumenta a probabilidade dos produtores acessarem o crédito. Para propriedades de média extensão (até quinhentos hectares), a presença de vínculos institucionais, seja cooperativa, sindicato ou associação, e melhorias em gestão (uso de computador, acesso á assistência técnica oficial), além da diversificação de cultura, elevam as probabilidades de acesso ao crédito. A análise mostra também que para unidades produtivas de grande extensão as variáveis que impactam a probabilidade de acesso ao crédito rural estão relacionadas a participação em instituições (cooperado e associado), além de variáveis relacionadas à melhoria de gestão, independentemente do tipo de cultura cultivada pela UPA. / This paper aims to understand and measure the characteristics of farmers which enhance their likelihood of having access to rural credit. Using data from the Survey of Agricultural Production Units (LUPA, in portuguese) of São Paulo (2006/2007), which covers all 645 Agricultural Production Units belonging to municipalities in the state was possible to detail the observable characteristics and properties of the producers who have accessed rural credit in 2007. For this, we used the Classification and Regression Trees method. The estimates performed for all UPAs (in Portuguese) in the state of São Paulo showed that the difference in size of production units is the main determinant to access credit. When analyzing the access to credit for production units of small, medium and large extent, some variables have greater impact on access to credit. For units of small extent (up to ten hectares) the culture diversification between temporary and perennial crop, increases the likelihood of farmers to access credit. For production units of medium length (up to five hundred acres), the presence of institutional links, such as cooperative, union or association, and improvements in management (computer use, technical support officer access), and crop diversification, increase the likelihood of access to credit. The analysis also shows that for production units with large extent the variables that have more impact in the probability of access to rural credit are related to participation in institutions (cooperative and associate), and variables related to improvement management, regardless of the type of crop cultivated by UPA.

Master of Science / Department of Agricultural Economics / Vincent Amanor-Boadu / Food insecurity affects 16 percent of the population in northern Ghana, making food security a major focus for many of the development programs in the country. A major initiative to overcome food insecurity may involve the development of effective storage systems to help farmers control the flow of their production to markets and, thus, have higher control over the price they receive. While the poor storage infrastructure in the region is known, there is lack of knowledge about the factors motivating farmers to utilize storage in spite of these conditions. The purpose of this paper is to increase understanding about storage behavior of smallholder maize farmers in northern Ghana. A review of the literature indicates credit plays a large role in storage behavior. The purpose of this thesis is to bridge the gap between literature on storage as a bank, and on storage as a way to ensure food security. Specific objectives include: i) estimating formal and informal credit’s effects on storage behavior of smallholder maize growers, and ii) examining the effect of credit at various levels of storage. This analysis is based on data collected on 527 farmers in Ghana’s four northernmost regions obtained from an agricultural production survey conducted in 2013 and 2014 by USAID-METSS – a project funded by the Economic Growth Office of the USAID mission in Ghana. Ordinary Least Squares modeling was employed to determine the marginal effects of formal and informal credit on storage. Additionally, quantile regression modeling estimated the marginal effects at different levels of storage, including the median. The results indicate that formal credit and on-farm storage had statistically significant negative effects on maize storage at both the mean and median, but only farm output proved to be statistically significant at different levels across the storage distribution. On-farm storage had a statistically significant negative effect on storage when compared to storing off-farm at facilities like local store rooms. Carryover storage from the previous year tested to have statistically significant negative effects on storage. Under the conceptual framework utilized for this study, the results suggest that using formal credit increases a household’s food security.

Este trabalho busca compreender e mensurar as características dos produtores rurais que ampliam a probabilidade para que o mesmo tenha acesso ao crédito rural. Utilizando os dados do Levantamento das Unidades Produtivas Agropecuárias (LUPA) do Estado de São Paulo (2006/2007), que abrange todas as UPAs pertencentes aos 645 municípios do estado, foi possível detalhar as características observáveis dos produtores e das propriedades que acessaram o crédito rural em 2007. Para tanto, foi utilizado o método de Árvores de Classificação e Regressão. As estimações realizadas para todas as UPAs de estado de São Paulo mostraram que a diferença de tamanho das unidades produtivas é o principal determinante para o acesso ao crédito. Quando se analisa o acesso ao crédito para unidades produtivas de pequena, média e grande extensão, algumas variáveis apresentam maior impacto no acesso ao crédito. Para as unidades de pequena extensão (até dez hectares), a diversificação de cultura, entre cultura temporária e perene, aumenta a probabilidade dos produtores acessarem o crédito. Para propriedades de média extensão (até quinhentos hectares), a presença de vínculos institucionais, seja cooperativa, sindicato ou associação, e melhorias em gestão (uso de computador, acesso á assistência técnica oficial), além da diversificação de cultura, elevam as probabilidades de acesso ao crédito. A análise mostra também que para unidades produtivas de grande extensão as variáveis que impactam a probabilidade de acesso ao crédito rural estão relacionadas a participação em instituições (cooperado e associado), além de variáveis relacionadas à melhoria de gestão, independentemente do tipo de cultura cultivada pela UPA. / This paper aims to understand and measure the characteristics of farmers which enhance their likelihood of having access to rural credit. Using data from the Survey of Agricultural Production Units (LUPA, in portuguese) of São Paulo (2006/2007), which covers all 645 Agricultural Production Units belonging to municipalities in the state was possible to detail the observable characteristics and properties of the producers who have accessed rural credit in 2007. For this, we used the Classification and Regression Trees method. The estimates performed for all UPAs (in Portuguese) in the state of São Paulo showed that the difference in size of production units is the main determinant to access credit. When analyzing the access to credit for production units of small, medium and large extent, some variables have greater impact on access to credit. For units of small extent (up to ten hectares) the culture diversification between temporary and perennial crop, increases the likelihood of farmers to access credit. For production units of medium length (up to five hundred acres), the presence of institutional links, such as cooperative, union or association, and improvements in management (computer use, technical support officer access), and crop diversification, increase the likelihood of access to credit. The analysis also shows that for production units with large extent the variables that have more impact in the probability of access to rural credit are related to participation in institutions (cooperative and associate), and variables related to improvement management, regardless of the type of crop cultivated by UPA.

Development work focused on gender equality usually concentrates on easily measurable practical needs, but rarely on structural change and social justice. The purpose of the present research is to analyze a women’s grassroots organization’s (MBUP) role in promoting social change through Self-help groups, a medium commonly used to give women access to credit. The analysis explores how collective action can bring about structural change to oppressive gender norms. Drawing on a power-conscious feminist approach, the study involves 32 in depth qualitative interviews. The findings show that MBUP is promoting social change and women’s rights in certain ways, namely in creating social awareness in women, access to information for women, and active citizenship in women. However, the organization is limited in encouraging systemic change through the promotion of collective struggle. Moreover, while the organization is inclusive and displays diversity in the entirety of its structure, its critical introspection remains limited.

Development work focused on gender equality usually concentrates on easily measurable practical needs, but rarely on structural change and social justice. The purpose of the present research is to analyze a women’s grassroots organization’s (MBUP) role in promoting social change through Self-help groups, a medium commonly used to give women access to credit. The analysis explores how collective action can bring about structural change to oppressive gender norms. Drawing on a power-conscious feminist approach, the study involves 32 in depth qualitative interviews. The findings show that MBUP is promoting social change and women’s rights in certain ways, namely in creating social awareness in women, access to information for women, and active citizenship in women. However, the organization is limited in encouraging systemic change through the promotion of collective struggle. Moreover, while the organization is inclusive and displays diversity in the entirety of its structure, its critical introspection remains limited.

Development work focused on gender equality usually concentrates on easily measurable practical needs, but rarely on structural change and social justice. The purpose of the present research is to analyze a women’s grassroots organization’s (MBUP) role in promoting social change through Self-help groups, a medium commonly used to give women access to credit. The analysis explores how collective action can bring about structural change to oppressive gender norms. Drawing on a power-conscious feminist approach, the study involves 32 in depth qualitative interviews. The findings show that MBUP is promoting social change and women’s rights in certain ways, namely in creating social awareness in women, access to information for women, and active citizenship in women. However, the organization is limited in encouraging systemic change through the promotion of collective struggle. Moreover, while the organization is inclusive and displays diversity in the entirety of its structure, its critical introspection remains limited.

Development work focused on gender equality usually concentrates on easily measurable practical needs, but rarely on structural change and social justice. The purpose of the present research is to analyze a women’s grassroots organization’s (MBUP) role in promoting social change through Self-help groups, a medium commonly used to give women access to credit. The analysis explores how collective action can bring about structural change to oppressive gender norms. Drawing on a power-conscious feminist approach, the study involves 32 in depth qualitative interviews. The findings show that MBUP is promoting social change and women’s rights in certain ways, namely in creating social awareness in women, access to information for women, and active citizenship in women. However, the organization is limited in encouraging systemic change through the promotion of collective struggle. Moreover, while the organization is inclusive and displays diversity in the entirety of its structure, its critical introspection remains limited.

Thesis (M.Sc. Agriculture (Agricultural Economics) -- University of Limpopo, 2019 / Agriculture has long been argued to be the dominant sector of the South African economy. Despite the huge agricultural potential of the country, the agricultural sector is underperforming in Less Developing Countries (LDCs) to some extent because female small-scale farmers, who play a vital role in agriculture, encounter credit constraints because of their gender and this in turn reduce their productivity. Therefore, the gender gap in terms of access to credit indicates that there is a need to reassess the problem of credit access by small-scale farmers on the basis of gender. This study was carried out in the Greater Letaba Municipality (GLM) which is situated in the Mopani District of Limpopo Province, with the aim of analysing factors that influence formal credit access by both female and male small-scale farmers. Structured questionnaires were employed to collect the data for the analyses from 140 sampled small-scale farmers (70 males and 70 females) selected using stratified random sampling technique. The findings of the probit regression model discovered that gender, extension services, land ownership, age, collateral and farm size had a significant positive influence on small-scale farmers` access to formal credit in the GLM. Additionally, the findings further revealed that household size, farming experience, farm-income, marital status had an insignificant negative influence on the small-scale farmers` access to formal credit whereas education level had an insignificant positive influence on the small-scale farmers` access to formal credit. On average, male and female small-scale farmers with access to formal credit were 71 % and 29 %, respectively whereas the male and female small-scale farmers without access to formal credit were 35% and 65%, respectively. The female small-scale farmers` perceptions towards the credit system that were derived from the Principal Component Analysis (PCA) are as follows: (i) male smallscale farmers effortlessly get credit from banks contrasted with their female counterparts, (ii) small-scale farmers with more education and collateral tend to access formal credit than their counterparts and (iii) small-scale farmers who are nearest to iii the banks are more likely to access credit than small-scale farmers who are far away. Based on the study findings, a set of recommendations for achieving equitable formal credit access by male and female small-scale farmers were put forward. / National Research Fund (NRF)