**4.2 The positive and negative impacts that Covid-19 has had on south African women entrepreneurs**

This study further revealed that Covid-19 than positively impacted more negatively impacted women entrepreneurs in South Africa. The implementation of a harsh lockdown by the South African government left many women entrepreneurs financially unstable. Many of these women had to borrow money from family and friends in order to provide for their homes or to help them get back into the business once the government permitted them to operate again. It also affected their mental and social well-being. Many female-owned companies suffered more during the lockdown than male-owned businesses due to operating restrictions.

The findings suggested that women entrepreneurs suffered financially from the lockdown implemented by the government. According to Kipns [6], many womenowned businesses had to cut their business costs and decrease the number of workers. Some women entrepreneurs who own businesses located in hotspot areas (high number of Covid-19 cases) suffered more financially than other female businesses. This is due to consumers' fears of going to such stores or locations. This led to a reduction in worker morale and emphasised the importance of financial support provided by the government to assist with paying workers' salaries.

The findings of the study also revealed that numerous female entrepreneurs lack the necessary tools and funding needed to sustain their businesses through the global pandemic. A large number of South African entrepreneurs needed to gain digital knowledge. Covid-19 has placed great importance on digital expertise and a business's ability to transform into a digital platform. This required many businesses, especially SMEs to change from an offline enterprise status to an online enterprise status. This needed to be done to ensure the business's survival ([32, 33] p.4). This knowledge gap has led to many women-owned businesses closing and individuals losing their jobs. Many women had no access to technological devices such as laptops, computers or cellular phones that allowed web browsing. In some cases, women entrepreneurs owned at least one of the three technological devices but had no access to the internet due to them being located in rural areas or not having enough money to purchase data to access the internet.

Further findings suggested that women entrepreneurs faced extra responsibility during the lockdown. Some found this added responsibility to be stressful, leading to difficulty managing their businesses. Women entrepreneurs in South Africa also lacked access to information and knowledge of how to apply for the necessary funding provided by the government for SMEs. Too much paperwork, long waiting periods and not being well-informed led to many women entrepreneurs not using on time or not applying at all for funding by the government. Disruptions in global and national supply chains led to a shortage of stock and many businesses being unable to operate without any stock. This negatively impacted the revenue of women-owned businesses.

The findings revealed the positive impacts that Covid-19 has had on women entrepreneurs. This includes the importance for women entrepreneurs to adapt to market changes and bring about innovative changes to their business operations to ensure their business remains relevant. Some female entrepreneurs could extend the range of products or services they offer. While others were able to take this time during the lockdown to better understand how to meet consumer needs. This creates a better relationship with consumers and helps women entrepreneurs be more attentive to their consumers.

The findings also suggest that more research needs to be conducted on how the virus impacted women entrepreneurs. More research is needed to address the impacts of covid-19 on female entrepreneurs in the formal and informal sectors in the economy.

#### **4.3 The assistance provided to women entrepreneurs by the government**

More funding needs to be allocated to sole female entrepreneurs (spaza shops etc.) and female entrepreneurs who are located in rural areas. The government should also provide sole and rural women entrepreneurs with programs that will better educate them on how to manage their businesses. This funding will help them grow their businesses.

These findings revealed that the South African government acknowledged that more significant steps needed to be taken on their part to assist women entrepreneurs. A primary form of action taken by the South African government is financial assistance, which prioritises women entrepreneurs. Governments across the world provide financial assistance to women entrepreneurs.

The findings also revealed that the South African government had acknowledged the importance of providing female entrepreneurs with funding to help them through the

*A Review of the Impact of Covid-19 Pandemic on Women Entrepreneurs DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.109510*

pandemic. They have also encouraged large corporate firms to create programs that will help educate women entrepreneurs on how to transform their businesses into a digital platforms.

Further findings show that governments worldwide have acknowledged the importance of digital education among women entrepreneurs. Most governments state that female-owned businesses are closed due to women lacking digital knowledge [3]. The South African government and other governments agree that women need more financial support, and more government discussions should focus on female entrepreneurs.

#### **5. Limitations**

The study is a systematic review using desktop research. It is possible that certain information relating to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on women entrepreneurs in South Africa still needs to be collected. The research findings of this study are based on secondary data that was already published. This is a limitation as empirical research was not conducted.

### **6. Recommendations**

Women entrepreneurs within the same area should form support structures for one another. This can be done by creating female entrepreneur support groups within each region. This way they can provide support, exchange business knowledge and motivate one another through difficult times. Women supporting one another creates an unbreakable chain of strong women.

Large South African firms should provide funding to female entrepreneurs only when needed. These firms could acquire the money from either shareholder or deduct a percentage of their annual revenue that would be used to help fund female entrepreneurs. The financial support provided by these companies will help female entrepreneurs sustain their businesses through difficult times.

The government should provide more financial support to female entrepreneurs and prioritise women-owned businesses in economic discussions. The government can provide financial support in the form of financial support programmes. These programmes can equip female entrepreneurs with the knowledge and skills they need to operate their daily businesses, even during unforeseen circumstances.

The government should also change financial policies so women entrepreneurs can gain financial loans much easier from banks and financial assistance from the government. Such changes to financial policies will help save many women-owned businesses.

Technological companies should provide female entrepreneurs in the formal and informal sectors with digital training to help them start their e-commerce business ventures. This will help many females diversify their business and reach a larger target market.

Besides digital and financial advice, female entrepreneurs need training, more information on how to best manage a business and mentoring. If equipped with such knowledge, they can better manage their businesses and know what steps to follow when an economic crisis occurs.

The public and private sectors can provide incentives to people who invest in women-owned enterprises [13]. These sectors can provide incentives such as funding and partnership.

Women entrepreneurs should have more than one supplier. Having more than one supplier will help in ensuring that their business never runs out of stock in future when a global pandemic occurs.

Government should provide more initiatives to support women's mental health.

Entrepreneurs need to build and maintain relationships with consumers on social platforms.

Entrepreneurs should also be innovative in their practices and skills to overcome unforeseen circumstances.

### **7. Conclusion**

Coronavirus unexpectedly occurred, causing disruptions in businesses, travel, supply chains, people's lives and the world economy. No one could prepare for such a destructive pandemic that changed the way of life for everyone. This pandemic spared no human, business or country. Covid-19 has negatively and positively impacted South African women entrepreneurs.

This study shows that women entrepreneurs in South Africa lacked digital knowledge to sustain their businesses. Many women entrepreneurs needed to learn how to utilise social media platforms to engage with consumers, while some needed access to digital devices. It drastically impacted the financial status of women-owned businesses. Disruptions in supply chains affected various women-owned businesses. Mental health issues increased among female entrepreneurs due to added financial stress and the possibility of a business failure. However, this study also found some positive impacts of covid-19 that led to some women-owned businesses serving consumers more efficiently by better understanding their needs, expanding business operations by providing delivery services and selling goods through e-commerce during the harsh lockdown.

Government should allocate more funding and initiatives to help sustain womenowned businesses in the future. Women's entrepreneurship should be more prioritised during government discussions.

Future research should be conducted on women entrepreneurs in rural areas impacted by Covid-19 as there needs to be more data on this topic. Future research is needed on how women entrepreneurs can sustain their businesses for a more extended period during a pandemic. Future studies comparing women entrepreneurs in first-world countries and third-world countries should also be conducted. This will help better understand how different countries value and provide assistance to women entrepreneurs in need. Future studies should also be conducted on women entrepreneurs who are disabled, as few studies have been conducted in this area.

*A Review of the Impact of Covid-19 Pandemic on Women Entrepreneurs DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.109510*
