It is vital that a culture of entrepreneurship is developed in order to unleash the economic potential of all people in South Africa. However, because of the South African woman’s inherited gender role and historical imbalances, women entrepreneurs are faced with unique challenges and barriers when attempting to establish and grow their own businesses. Thus, this study investigated the unique challenges and barriers faced by women when conducting entrepreneurial activities. The literature study provided background information on entrepreneurship in general as well as information on the importance of entrepreneurship to the economy and constraints of entrepreneurship. The woman entrepreneur was explored in terms of her characteristics, motivation to become an entrepreneur and the unique challenges she had to face. The empirical study consisted of a questionnaire developed by the North– West University, specifically the Potchefstroom Business School situated on the Potchefstroom Campus. A total of 120 questionnaires were distributed and 87 were fully completed and collected, which resulted in a response rate of 72.5%. The data collected was statistically analysed using Statistica 10 (Statsoft, 2011). The data from questionnaires was coded and investigated and then transformed to useful outputs such as frequency tables. The frequency tables were used to draw conclusions and to make recommendations regarding the development of women entrepreneurs in South Africa. / Thesis (MBA)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2012.

It is vital that a culture of entrepreneurship is developed in order to unleash the economic potential of all people in South Africa. However, because of the South African woman’s inherited gender role and historical imbalances, women entrepreneurs are faced with unique challenges and barriers when attempting to establish and grow their own businesses. Thus, this study investigated the unique challenges and barriers faced by women when conducting entrepreneurial activities. The literature study provided background information on entrepreneurship in general as well as information on the importance of entrepreneurship to the economy and constraints of entrepreneurship. The woman entrepreneur was explored in terms of her characteristics, motivation to become an entrepreneur and the unique challenges she had to face. The empirical study consisted of a questionnaire developed by the North– West University, specifically the Potchefstroom Business School situated on the Potchefstroom Campus. A total of 120 questionnaires were distributed and 87 were fully completed and collected, which resulted in a response rate of 72.5%. The data collected was statistically analysed using Statistica 10 (Statsoft, 2011). The data from questionnaires was coded and investigated and then transformed to useful outputs such as frequency tables. The frequency tables were used to draw conclusions and to make recommendations regarding the development of women entrepreneurs in South Africa. / Thesis (MBA)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2012.