Die hoofdoel van die studie is om vas te stel of die verhoudingsvoorneme van motorkopers in die Vrystaat as basis vir marksegmentering gebruik kan word ten einde te bepaal of klante ân positiewe verhoudingsvoorneme toon en derhalwe in ân verhouding met die onderneming wil verbind (sien afdeling 1.7). Die sekondêre doelwitte om hierin te slaag was om: ô Die bedryfsinisiatiewe binne die verhoudingsbemarkingkonteks van die Suid- Afrikaanse motorbedryf te ondersoek. ân Literatuurstudie is onderneem en die resultate word in hoofstuk 1 bespreek. Die bevindinge uit hoofstuk 1 is toegepas op die aanbevelings van verhoudingsvoorneme van kopers van nuwe motors in die Vrystaat; ô Verhoudingsbemarking te definieer en die ontstaan, ontwikkeling en rasionaal daarvan te ondersoek. ân Literatuurstudie is onderneem en die resultate is in hoofstuk 2 bespreek. Die bevindinge uit Hoofstuk 2 is toegepas op die aanbevelings van verhoudingsvoorneme van kopers van nuwe motors in die Vrystaat; ô Die dimensies van verhoudingsvoorneme te ondersoek. ân Literatuurstudie is onderneem en elke dimensie van verhoudingsvoorneme (betrokkenheid, verwagtinge, vergewensgesindheid, terugvoer en risiko vir verhoudingsverlies) is bespreek. Die resultate wat uit die literatuurstudie verkry is, is in hoofstuk 3 bespreek en is gebruik in die ontwikkeling van die vraelys wat klante se verhoudingsvoorneme meet; ô Marksegmentering en teikenbemarking te ondersoek en verhoudingsvoorneme as Å nuwe basis vir marksegmentering voor te stel. ân Literatuurstudie is onderneem en al die beginsels van marksegmentering is ondersoek. Die resultate is in Hoofstuk 4 bespreek. Die verskillende segmenteringsbasisse, wat ook verhoudingsvoorneme en winsgewendheid insluit, is bespreek. Die bevindinge uit hierdie hoofstuk is gebruik in die ontwikkeling van die vraelys wat ten doel gehad het om ân profiel van klante met ân verhoudingsvoorneme te bepaal; ô Om die verhoudingsvoorneme van kopers van nuwe motors in die Vrystaat te ondersoek en aanbevelings aan die Suid-Afrikaanse motorbedryf te maak ter verbetering van aksies. ân Aangepaste vraelys is ontwikkel om die verhoudingsvoorneme van kopers van nuwe motors in die Vrystaat te bepaal. Hierdie vraelys is gebruik tydens ân opname onder kopers van nuwe motors in die Vrystaat. Die navorsingsmetodologie en empiriese resultate is in Hoofstuk 5 bespreek. In Hoofstuk 6 is gevolgtrekkings en aanbevelings afgelei vanuit die resultate in Hoofstuk 5. Hierdie navorsing het dus suksesvol verloop en bogenoemde doelwitte is bereik.

At present municipalities in the Republic of South Africa are under pressure as a result of poor financial control and accountability that give cause to extensive corruption and financial mismanagement with the subsequent detrimental consequences for effective and efficient rendering of goods and services to the inhabitants. Hence, it is of the utmost importance that serious attention be given to the implementation of effective and efficient financial control and accountability at municipalities. Financial control and responsibility are definitely of the utmost importance in determining either the success or failure of local government in the Republic of South Africa. Financial control and accountability serve as important building blocks for a democratic dispensation relying on effective and efficient municipal government and administration. It is imperative that financial control should take place continuously and that a guiding and guarding hand should be held upon the manner in which money is spent or has been spent. This must then be reported to the municipal council who in turn must report to the inhabitants of the municipality. In order to account to the inhabitants regarding the functions and activities of municipal officials it is of vital importance that a council should execute sound control over the activities of its officials. Sound financial management will enhance a positive attitude and trust among the inhabitants towards the council. Accountability is in fact a responsibility that has to be accepted by everyone who has come into a position of authority. This implies that accountability has to be accepted in the manner of which the acquired responsibility is executed. The inherent aim of financial management at municipalities is to account for expenditure in public. The taxpayer has to be in a position to determine whether the money as appropriated in the budget has been used for that specific purpose. This purpose should be for the service rendering of particular goods and services bearing in mind the scarcity of funds and the complexity of needs. Statutory financial control at the sphere of local government consists of two components, viz. an external component (preparation of the budget, control over loans, expenditure, revenue, and external auditing) and an internal component (internal auditing, reporting, ethical conduct, and financial regulations). By means of these, it can be determined whether funds for approved programmes have been spent effectively and efficiently and whether the local community has received value for money. Several issues exist that can make it more difficult for the effective and efficient financial management at municipalities in the Republic of South Africa. These issues inter alia, include a lack of expertise, inability to collect arrear debt, extensive corruption, and exorbitant salaries and bonuses. In order to eliminate these issues it is necessary to create a basic set of ethical principles and values. Ethics is linked to the evaluation of specific forms of human behaviour or decisions that determine what is right or wrong, good or bad, or acceptable or not acceptable for the inhabitants of a particular municipality. Ethical conduct and the acceptance of proper values can prohibit municipal councillors and officials to be attracted to corrupt activities. A new positive development at the local government sphere is the implementation of Municipal Public Accounts Committees at municipalities in Gauteng. This body will enforce accountability at the local government sphere. A Municipal Public Accounts Committee is a committee of the municipal council that is appointed by the council to investigate financial issues and to report to the council. The media can also play an important role with the functions of this committee as it will keep the inhabitants informed about issues investigated by the committee. The effective and efficient enforcement of financial control measures of public accountability can ameliorate the occurrence of corruption and financial mismanagement at municipalities. This surely serves as a guarantee for excellent municipal financial management and can add to the public opinion and interest â the fundamental objectives of a democratic local government and management. The execution of proper financial control over municipal finances in order to enforce accountability at local municipalities to avoid maladministration and corruption and to contribute towards efficiency and effectiveness at local government level in the Republic of South Africa.

The principles of accountability and transparency serve as important building blocks for a democracy that wants to enhance sound and efficient governance. The South African government experiences increased allegations of insufficient public accountability, corruption and maladministration against them and therefore it is essential to pay in-depth attention to the role of public transparency in the enhancement of sound democratic governance. Transparency is not merely an aim in itself, but serves as a means to reach the planned government objectives and to make effective and efficient participation of all role-players possible. Open and transparent governance refer to, amongst other, access to information, participation in public decision-making and the freedom of the media. An excellent relationship of trust between the public sector and the public should continuously be developed and maintained. This makes it essential to keep the public well-informed about the management of national and regional public institutions, how well they perform, the money spent by them to reach the approved public objectives and how control is exercised to ensure successful implementation of the approved government programmes. Correct and sufficient information must be available to the citizens to enable them to determine the quality of public goods- and service delivery and to therefore contribute to improved service delivery by the public sector. A public institution can be viewed as transparent when it can deliver information to various roleplayers and/or stakeholders, as prescribed by different Acts, for example the Promotion of Access to Information Act, 2000 (Act 2 of 2000). By being transparent, a public institution confirms its respect towards the countryâs Acts; justifies its mere existence; confirms its willingness to follow the strategies of the government-of-the-day and to strive towards the improvement of the public welfare. Public accountability in a democratic government means that the political officebearers and public officials must account to the taxpayers for the collection and spending of public money. Public accountability therefore forms a central theme in the theory and practice of public transparency and the basis for sound public administration, as the taxpayer has a right to know how public money has been collected and spent. The South African government must implement well-planned programmes and projects to fight corruption in their strive towards the establishment of transparent, corruption-free and responsible governance. It is essential that the government-of-the-day itself fight corruption by adhering to a policy of zero tolerance towards corrupt officials, irrespective of who the individual is, and to involve the media as a partner that can publish information about corrupt practices in order for the public to be well-informed. Ethics and transparency are closely related. Ethical behaviour can lead to greater transparency in the activities of public officials. In a democratic government there is no place for keeping secrets and for confidentiality when it comes to activities which are financed with public money. Not always serving the publicâs interest, but rather its own, is unfortunately part of human nature. It is therefore essential to develop and implement control mechanisms, for example auditing and reporting techniques, which will contribute to public officials adhering to the requirements of transparency and openness. It is the duty and responsibility of all public institutions (political and administrative) to continuously exercise their actions in a transparent and open manner. Transparency is the so-called oxygen of politics and the public life. In the Republic of South Africa it is important to ensure transparent governance to establish equal and effective goods- and service delivery to the citizens; to establish excellent accountability and the involvement of citizens in public decision-making; to improve a legitimate government-of-the-day; to improve the policy formulation and implementation processes; to increase international investments and lastly to decrease the rate of corruption in the country.

The study of bankruptcy is becoming more relevant and important as even large companies are failing that cause economic and social problems to the society. Using financial distress models to predict failure in advance is for most businesses absolutely essential in their decision making process. Hence, this study involves a critical investigation in the applicability of the Altman (1968) and Springate (1978) z-score models in predicting financial distress in IT and Services companies of South Africa. The Altman and Springate models were however developed in a different economic environment, time horizon, industry and country. Testing these models in the South African context is important to determine the practical applicability and relevance of the models. The main objective of the study is to test the Altman and Springate models in determining practical predictive ability of failure in selected South African IT and services companies listed on the Johannesburg Security Exchange and to comment on the models applicability according to the empirical results. The study is designed into three sections. The first section will discuss the theoretical aspects of the study. The second part will be the discussion of the research results, and finally the conclusion and recommendations of the study will be presented. The first sample companies was 24 failed and 46 nonfailed information technology and services companies listed on the Johannesburg Security Exchange from 1999 to 2003. The failed companies were matched to two nonfailed companies in the same sector according to their turnover size. Additional nonfailed real estate and information technology companies were added to evaluate the prediction ability of the models in these sectors using substantial samples, as the first sample results were inconsistent, especially on the nonfailed companies. Therefore, the final sample of the study is composed of 86 (24 failed and 62 nonfailed) services and information technology companies. The study employed an analysis of financial statements and derived the z-score of the sampled companies to test the predictive ability of the models in forecasting bankruptcy. The analysis utilized ratios, which are related to the models in the study. The results reported in the empirical study for total failed and nonfailed sample companies show these models fail to predict failure and non-failure amongst South African service and information technology sample companies. The study is also extended to predict failure and non-failure to investigate if the models are more applicable to predict failure in some sub-sectors of the sampled services and information technology companies. The results are not consistent as the models predicted failure but not nonfailure, or vice versa. Therefore, the models are not successful to predict any sub-sector correctly. It is generally assumed bankruptcy prediction models are useful regardless of industry, time horizon, and country. The findings reported in the study for each model indicated that the overall accuracy of the Altman and Springate z-scores models accuracy rate were reduced when used on the South African service and information technology sample, which is different from those companies used to develop the original models. Therefore, the study concluded that the Altman and Springate bankruptcy prediction models are not justifiable to be applied to predict bankruptcy in the South African service and information technology. Hence, it is not advisable to use these models in predicting failure in the non-manufacturing firms, especially in South African services and information technology companies. Important recommendations were outlined based on the results of the study. Some of the recommendations are the development of practically applicable bankruptcy prediction models in the IT and services companies of South Africa to elevate inappropriate financial decisions, incorporation of other important indicators of financial well-being during bankruptcy prediction process, checking the practical applicability of prediction models after some period of time. The future research work based on this study is also suggested as developing models to the database in the study, developing new bankruptcy prediction model to the services and information technology companies of South Africa, testing the Altman and/or Springate models on the South African manufacturing and retailing companies, and testing bankruptcy prediction models to the non-listed relatively smaller turnover sized firms where the incidence of business failure is greater than larger corporations.

The research is a quantitative study that formulates an approach to future portfolio asset allocations within the South African domestic equity market, and the diversification of assets across global markets, specifically the U.S.A. The research takes the view that investors are rational, have a long term investment horizon and seek investment wealth maximisation by applying a sustainable investment strategy towards the ongoing management of the portfolio. Investors experience a significant negative divergence in investment outcomes relative to the potentially achievable result. This negative divergence is a result of the lack of a strategic approach to, and an understanding of asset allocations, and the lack of a sustainable approach to the management of a portfolio. Repetitive sub-optimal investment performance, below the levels of inflation, is an investment disincentive with negative micro and macro implications. The purpose of the study is therefore to address the issue sub-optimal investment performance through the effective application of a strategy that includes the integration of the mean-variance model through the use of a mean-variance optimiser, using resampled data inputs, the mean reversion of markets, passive investment management, appropriate asset class selection and the ongoing management of a portfolio, using both calendar and contingent rebalancing techniques, and passive formula strategies. The challenge is accordingly to develop a reliable asset allocation model that accommodates past performance, and which is stable enough to produce optimised forward-looking investment portfolios, which are able to address the issue of optimal asset allocation and selection, within a global context, and which produce optimised investment outcomes, taking cognisance of the fact that the future is unknowable and dynamic. The research methodology makes a positivist assumption that something exists and can be numerically tested. In this regard various portfolios are constructed, using passive investment instruments, in accordance with mean-variance model principles, using resampled data inputs to minimise the instability of the mean-variance optimiser. This resampling process is fundamental to the research, and incorporates the use of a stochastic simulator. A unique aspect of the research was solving the issue of multiple market integration particularly when the domestic markets are comprised of multiple asset classes. Finally, the resultant resampled efficient portfolios are compared to control portfolios in order to ascertain whether the resampling process indeed offers a return premium. Due to the dynamic nature of equity markets contingent and calendar rebalancing strategies are applied to the asset allocation in order to maintain an optimal portfolio. This dynamism may necessitate the adjustment of asset allocations. The test for asset allocation optimality takes the form of measuring portfolio outcome correlations to the actual market outcome. Where the portfolio is sub-optimal the asset allocations are redetermined, otherwise the portfolio is merely rebalanced to the original asset allocations. Regarding the management of the portfolio a value averaged passive formula strategy is applied. This process acknowledges that markets may behave stochastically over the short term, therefore a predetermined value line is derived that the portfolio is to achieve. This value line is based on a long term equity premium plus inflation. Should the portfolio breach the value line on the upside a portion of the investment is liquidated, conversely when the portfolio fails to reach the value line the portfolio is elevated to the value line by means of increasing the investment. The results of the research manifest unambiguous results in favour of resampled portfolios. In this regard, therefore, data resampling does seem to produce stable portfolio results that are effective at capturing a higher proportion of future returns than a simple market portfolio. Furthermore, the rebalancing process, although not absolutely perfect, does provide a level of adjustment to the asset allocation to ensure optimality. Finally, management of the portfolio through value averaging unambiguously provides an internal rate of return in excess of a portfolio that is allowed to stochastically rise and fall. In summary, the integration of the identified processes clearly provides a performance premium in excess of alternative approaches, and within a framework that is sustainable from period to period.

The focus of this study was on cultural diversity and its possible impact on brand management in the cellular industry. The study showed that cultural diversity, as one of the important aspects in the consumerâs environment, is important to consider when carrying out brand management and branding activities. Doing so will play a role in influencing consumers to make favourable purchasing decisions. Data were collected from Free State Province individuals (510). Cross-tabulations, factor analysis and cluster analysis were carried out on the database. The study resulted in the identification of four clusters. The cultural diversity components used to identify these clusters were: age, gender, race, social class and lifestyle. These clusters had different characteristics from one another. In each cluster there was a difference in lifestyle characteristics and perception of brand equity. There was also a difference in the reasons why a cellular phone is used. The results about the clusters show that no single approach can be used to target them. There has to be different approaches of which each can also be an opportunity for marketing managers to differentiate their branding activities. The manner in which clusters were identified is complex and yet gives insightful information which will help marketing managers make better decisions. In other words simple segment approaches should be avoided. Also, the clusters are not constant; they evolve over time. It is therefore suggested that such an activity should be reviewed more often. The main contribution of this study is that cultural diversity is an integral part of brand management from the perspective of the consumer. Furthermore, consumers can no longer just be defined by cultural diversity components in isolation, i.e. age, gender, race, social class and lifestyle. Their definition will vary depending on the industry in concern. In other words, the consumers will need to be defined by the unique clusters they belong to and these clusters will be different depending on the industry concerned.

According to the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor survey, South Africa has a low early stage entrepreneurial activity rate of 7.8%, which is significantly lower than the average for all efficiency-driven economies (11.4%) as well as the average for all middle to low income countries (13.2%).Also, high levels of poverty, income inequality and unemployment are major issues that impact the economic growth of South Africa. Pahad (2008) acknowledged that South Africaâs social-economic goals are to reduce inequalities, reduce wealth and asset gaps between rich and poor, halve unemployment by 2014 and meet the Millennium Development Goals. However, one way of solving these issues is to encourage more foreign SMEs as they are capable of providing investment injections in various sectors of South Africaâs economy, such as agriculture, industry, education, and health. Likewise, these foreign SMEs can help eradicate poverty, improve employment and reduce income inequality and wealth disparity between the rich and poor. The main objective of this study was to investigate the motives of Chinese SMEs foreign direct investment in the Free State Province (FSP) and their perception about the external business environment in South Africa. The study examine empirically the motives of Chinese SMEs operating in the Free State province and determined if they were driven by the supply/resourcebased or the market driven factors. The study also identified the external environmental factors which can hinder foreign SMEs from investment in South Africa. Across-sectional study using the survey method was used to collect the data. Simple random sampling method and a non-probability snowball sampling method were used to determine the sample size of Chinese SMEs in the Free State province. A standard questionnaire was designed after a detailed literature review of the business environment and foreign SMEs investments. Data was gathered through self-administered questionnaires. The specific methods of data analyses used include descriptive statistics, cross-tabulations, frequency tables and T-tests. Reliability was tested using the Cronbachâs Alpha. Pre-testing the research instrument in a pilot study was used to determine the validity of the research. The research findings showed that the motives of the Chinese SMEs foreign direct investment in the Free State was predominantly market-seeking FDI. The findings also showed that the many external factors were impacting the operation of the foreign businesses negatively with crime, corruption, labour regulations and xenophobia being reckoned as the main external factors severely impacting the businesses. In addition, the Chinese SMEs had a negative perception about the external business environment of South Africa with 86% of them indicating that they had suffered from crime. Furthermore, the empirical findings revealed that SMEs in the manufacturing sector employed the highest number of employees and have stayed in SA for a longer period. Similarly, most of the exporters were in the manufacturing sector. However, the majority of those who were unsatisfied about their investment decisions and were willing to leave South Africa were in the manufacturing sector. The study provided some recommendations to improve the external business environment of SA so that more effective and efficient FDI is attracted. The recommendations include the need to improve the fight against crime as it is seen as the number one factor impacting and deterring away FDIs from SA. To attract sufficient supply/resource-based FDI, the government also needs to improve its labour regulations, thus easing the hiring process. To add, South Africa has to make its legal system more efficient by shortening the long procedures and duration of court judgments as well as making it more affordable. A better legal system can reduce crime, corruption and unethical behaviour.

In the past twenty years there has been major change in the way business support services are rendered in the global economy. These shifts have brought new insights into the process of business support services. Six main changes in the approach to business support were identified. First, permanent government or donor funding was replaced by a mere start-up funding approach in order to provide sustainable business support services. Second, a larger range of market-driven and market-priced services that were delivered at a quality/price mix determined by end-users replaced the high costs of a limited range of services that used to be subsidised. Third, historically, literature shows that government and donors could not reach all small business but a limited number, and therefore a targeted client approach was introduced in order for the government and donors to reach them effectively. This paradigm shift was intended to place an emphasis on service providers in the private-sector. Fourth, the emphasis on the impact of poverty changed from one of short-term benefits to one of long-term benefits to providers and clients, indirectly benefiting the poor through job creation. Next, the mainly male clientele was replaced by small-enterprise owners which included females. Finally, there was a significant shift towards being demand-driven in respect of the needs of enterprises. This meant both that the range of services was expanded and that they were mostly delivered on a cost-recovery basis. It is against this background that South African Small Micro and Medium Enterprise (SMME) policy aims to address the issues of SMME support and development in the country. SMMEs in South Africa were operating in the era of the apartheid regime but were not given enough support and were not a priority. Before democratic transition, the South African government was mainly giving attention to large businesses as well as state-owned enterprises. It was only in the late 1970s and the early 1980s that the South African government realised the importance of the small enterprise sector and its contribution to the countryâs economy. The democratic regime of the early 1990s gave SMMEs an opportunity to participate in the South African economy. A White Paper of 1995 came up with the strategy to promote and develop SMMEs in South Africa and to design an SMME policy framework that will focus its attention on supporting and developing SMMEs. The aim was to enable SMMEs to grow as a way of creating a balance in the economy (away from state-owned and large enterprises) As a result, different support mechanisms have been implemented to support and develop SMMEs in the country since the democratic government took over in 1994. The study focused primarily in the Free State Province, aiming to identify how the SMME policy intends to address the issues of supporting and developing SMMEs, and how the business support programmes assist in supporting and developing SMMEs in the province. Some of the empirical findings suggest that the world-wide shifts in business support programmes have not always filtered through to South Africa. Therefore policies were largely designed to address the equity issues related to SMMEs. The inherent approach of policy and practice was thus on the supply side and not on the demand side. Consequently, not all the lessons from the international experience were incorporated. In addition, the SMME policy and practice have had limited success and in many cases not measurable due to the absence of appropriate M&E systems. In conclusion, the study recommend that there is a need for business support programmes to learn more directly from the international paradigms and practice and apply the relevant practices of business support services in order to develop and promote SMMEs in the Free State and in the process review the SMME policy and make it focus mainly on the demand-driven approach. Moreover, the study recommends that there should be M&E systems available to document the quality of the service delivery to SMMEs in order to ensure compliance with the international standards.

Economies, organizations (small, medium and large) and individuals must discover and commercialize new products in order to compete and prosper in the 21st century global economy. The importance of introducing new products to the market can be seen in the fact that it builds a sustainable competitive advantage for economies, organizations and individuals. Furthermore, these new products do not only lead to profits for individuals and organizations, but it also improves the quality of life of all individuals and generate further economic opportunities. Through the commercialization of innovation, the gap between the needs of the market and the inventions which innovators have can be bridged. However, it remains a key challenge to all innovators to take an invention from the idea phase to the market in order to produce economic returns. Ideas or inventions cannot generate economic returns for the innovator. It is only once the invention is successfully absorbed into the marketplace that the inventor can benefit from its profit, and therefore the importance of commercializing inventions is highlighted. Globally the failure rates of new products are especially high, preventing innovators from gaining financial benefits. New product failure rates are estimated at between 50- 80% and even major companies with sufficient resources struggle with the commercialization of inventions. The high failure rates of inventions can be attributed to a wide variety of factors, including limited access to resources, failure of innovators to sufficiently protect their inventions or weak marketing efforts, among others. One such reason for failure, however, is the fact that innovators are unsure about the steps to follow in commercializing an invention. Innovators either take false steps and waste valuable time, or they leave out critical steps in the process. It is important for innovators to know what the steps in the commercialization process are and to follow them, in order to ensure that they follow a logical process; plan for all the important aspects regarding commercialization and are aware of what will be required of them at the different stages in the process. South Africa is not doing well in bringing new research discoveries to the market and there may be many reasons for this problem. In order to introduce new inventions to the market successfully through commercialization, it is important to know what the problems/barriers are that innovators experience during the commercialization process. It is also important to identify the need for a common framework understood by government, higher education, research councils, technology organizations and venture capital to help identify roles and functional relationships in the system of innovation. This study aimed to acquire information regarding the problems and/or barriers confronting entrepreneurs in the commercialization process, by determining how successful individuals and SMMEs were in commercializing their innovation. The client base of the Centrum for Rapid Prototyping and Manufacturing (CRPM) and the Technology Station (PDTS) for 2005 to 2010 were used in this study. The secondary objectives were to investigate the steps the entrepreneur followed in the commercialization process; to identify the factors, both positively and negatively, that influence the commercialization of innovation; to determine the problems/mistakes that entrepreneurs made in the commercialization process; and to determine the success factors for entrepreneurs in the commercialization process. The results showed that the minority of the respondents (20%) managed to commercialize their inventions successfully. The remaining 80% of the respondents were either still busy moving through the commercialization process or had become stagnant. Furthermore, the results indicated that the typical innovator does not follow the chronological order of the steps in the commercial process, as indicated in the literature. Many of the steps in the commercialization process were not completed as thoroughly as needed and some of the steps were omitted completely. The reasons most often cited by the respondents for their lack of progress and/or stagnation in the commercialization process are a lack of funds and a lack of support. In other words, the respondents did not have sufficient capital to commercialize the invention on their own and either did not know where to go to obtain the financial aid needed or were not successful in their application for funding. The lack of support the respondents referred to include support in terms of knowledge regarding the commercialization process, i.e. what each step in the commercialization process entails as well as what should be done next in the commercialization process. These two reasons were the most often cited barriers to the successful commercialization of the respondents. Several recommendations are made at the end of this study that could bridge the abovementioned barriers. The focus falls mainly on the Government, and various recommendations regarding government support institutions are made that could better aid innovators through the commercialization process.

The primary objective of this study was to investigate the challenges that urban Zimbabwean women entrepreneurs face. The study was motivated by the theoretical findings that women have always been discriminated against politically, economically, socioâculturally, legally, educationally and at work. Scholars of gender studies assert that despite the fact that over the last decades women had attained educational levels comparable to those of men, women still remained in relatively low paying jobs (Wirth, 2001:49; Carter & Silva, 2010:19, 20â1). Due to frustrations and challenges faced in the workplace, some women in both developed and developing countries had left formal employment to start their own businesses. According to Coulter (2000:114), even in business where women had opted to be, they continued to face challenges. A review of literature further indicated that the historical background of women in developed countries differed from that of women in developing countries because of differences in environmental factors (Adler & Israeli quoted by Woldie & Ardesua, 2004:79). However, the challenges that women faced were similar except that in developed countries more gains had been registered in improving womenâs lives compared to developing countries. Theoretical findings about Zimbabwe showed that historically, women were excluded from actively participating in politics and in decision making. Economically, women were denied ownership of resources such as land and were thus dependent on men who were regarded as bread winners. Socioâculturally, activities were arranged according to gender; thus, there were activities strictly done by men and others reserved for women. Legally, women were regarded as minors and for that reason women could not enter into any contractual obligations in their own right. In regards to education, girls were encouraged to take up subjects that were not strategically linked to the mainstream economy, while boys were channeled towards subjects that would enable them to occupy meaningful and strategic positions in the workplace. However, it was worth noting that the Government of Zimbabwe, just like governments in other countries had instituted legal amendments to redress discrimination on the basis of sex and positive developments had been achieved. These developments had enabled women to start their own businesses. According to Ministry of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), Zimbabwe, 2010), in Zimbabwe, there are 20 665 registered urban women entrepreneurs. In the light of the statement by Coulter (2000:114) that in business women continued to face challenges, it was fundamental that the challenges faced by urban Zimbabwean women entrepreneurs be identified, hence the need for this study. Identification of these challenges would enable the government of Zimbabwe and other stakeholders to devise specific policies and strategies to minimise the impact of these challenges on women owned businesses. This would enable women entrepreneurs to operate viable and sustainable businesses. An empirical study was therefore conducted to investigate what the challenges women entrepreneurs faced were. This study was a combination of quantitative research design and descriptive research in which the simple random sampling technique was used to draw the sample. The sample comprised 580 registered women entrepreneurs drawn from the Small and Medium Enterprises sector in the four major cities of Zimbabwe, namely, Harare, Bulawayo, Gweru and Masvingo. The survey method was adopted as the data gathering method where a self constructed and self administered questionnaire was used as the data gathering instrument. A pilot study was conducted before the questionnaires were distributed for the main study. Reliability testing of the questionnaire showed a Cronbachâs Alpha value of 0.802 for all Likert questions based on the background of women of Zimbabwe and business challenges. These results indicated that the questionnaire was reliable as a data collecting instrument. Data collected was transformed for statistical analysis through the use of Excel software. After data processing, the Statistical Packages for Social Sciences (SPSS) was used for data analysis. Statistical techniques used in this study included frequencies, percentages, cross tabulations and Pearson chiâsquare tests, descriptive statistics and Analysis of Variance (ANOVA). Relating to respondentsâ demographic profile, empirical results showed that 50.4 percent of the respondents in this study are married compared to 24.5 percent single and 25.1 percent separated, divorced or widowed. Results further indicated that 83.8 percent of the respondents have children and 73.2 percent have dependent children. The average number of children is 2.26 and the average number of dependent children is 1.50. The average age of respondents in this study was 38.0 years. Results further indicated that respondents in this study are highly qualified, with 51.5 percent having tertiary education. The dominant religion in this study was Christianity. Most of the respondents owned businesses in the services sector compared to âotherâ businesses (67.2 percent and 32.8 percent respectively). Results indicated that 54.7 percent of the respondents had been in business for 5 years and below. Results also showed that 37.2 percent of the respondents had relevant startâup experience. In terms of startâup capital, women entrepreneurs in this study used internal more than external sources of finance (79.2 percent and 20.8 percent respectively). Findings also indicated that women entrepreneurs were predominantly sole proprietors compared to those in partnership. The following empirical findings were indicated regarding womenâs background. Firstly, women can now actively participate in politics and decision making processes in spite of the fact that women have more confidence in male than female political leaders. Secondly, economically, women can own property in their own right and the majority of women are no longer financially dependent on men. Thirdly, socioâculturally, women are more confident than they were historically and can now challenge men on religious issues. Fourthly, women can now engage in activities that were previously done by men only, such as being formally employed. Men can also perform duties that were previously done by women only. Fifthly, legally, men and women are equal before the law. Sixthly, after 18 years of age, women can make any legal decisions without consulting male members of the family. Seventhly, some men do not accept women as their equals. Eighthly, some men still abuse their wives because they have paid lobola (bride price) for them. Ninthly, despite their legal rights, married women predominantly still have to consult their husbands before making any business decisions. Tenthly, regarding education, girls are now given equal educational opportunities by their parents and at school girls are free to study subjects and embark on courses of their choices. However, there are still some cultures and religions that expect girls to leave school young to marry. Finally, at work, both in the private and public sectors, there are equal job opportunities for both men and women. There are also fair promotional opportunities for both men and women in the public and private sectors. Men and women doing the same jobs are remunerated at the same levels and there is equal taxation for both men and women. There are no jobs exclusively reserved for women both in the government and private sectors. However, there are more educated men than women in the job market. According to empirical results, women started their businesses due to opportunity (pull) and necessity (push) factors. Findings also showed that some women have left formal employment to start their own businesses due to work related factors such as the âglass ceilingâ that blocked their access to top executive ranks; gender role stereo typing, negative societal influences and pay differentials, lack of acceptance by men, sexual harassment, balancing home and family responsibilities, and stress. The following empirical results were revealed about the market environment: First, customers no longer look down upon women owned businesses. Second, male workers now respect women who have employed them. Third, suppliers now offer both men and women entrepreneurs the same credit terms. Fourth, bank officials in Zimbabwe give women the same treatment as men when applying for loans. Fifth, women entrepreneurs can easily access established private business networks. Sixth, male auditors have developed a positive attitude towards women running businesses. Finally, some men entrepreneurs have accepted women entrepreneurs as equal business partners. The study also revealed some challenges that women entrepreneurs still have to contend with in the market environment. Women still have a problem of lack of collateral. Another challenge that women entrepreneurs face is that of becoming members of formal business organisations. Women also find it difficult to access government networks. According to empirical findings on the macro environment, women now have equal chances of getting business tenders as men. On the socioâcultural front women indicated that their religions allowed them to run their own businesses. There are now support services to enable women to operate their own businesses. Respondents also indicated that they registered their businesses without legal problems and that women can now own property in their own names. Women entrepreneurs also confirmed that amended laws have brought equality between men and women entrepreneurs. However, empirical results also indicated that at economic level, women still find it difficult to enter male dominated sectors like construction. Socioâculturally, most women entrepreneurs indicated that they still face the challenges of balancing home and business responsibilities. Despite the availability of support services, the HIV/AIDS pandemic has also exacerbated their workload. Married women still have to request their husbands to coâsign before they can get any loans. Conclusively, empirical findings indicate that most of the cases of discrimination highlighted in the problem statement in Chapter 1 Section 1.4, and in the historical background of Zimbabwean business women, have been reduced and in some cases eliminated.