SMEs, Success, and Capital Startups: Evidence from the Service Sector in South Africa

Ogujiuba, Kanayo; Olamide, Ebenezer; Boshoff, Estelle; Agholor, Azikiwe Isaac.; Ogujiuba, Chinelo

doi:10.3390/admsci13050127

Cited by 4 publications

(1 citation statement)

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“…In South Africa, the role of agri-preneurship is central given the increase to prominence over inequality, poverty, and food security. However, the agribusiness sector accounts for less than 2.5% of the national GDP and contributes about 4.6% to labor (Ogujiuba et al 2023;Statistics South Africa 2015). Current economies worldwide appreciate the underlying importance of service sectors culminating in sectorial growth and satisfactory performance in agri-preneurship.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaluating Inspiring Factors and Obstacles in the Start-Up of Owned Agri-Preneurial Businesses: Underlying Evidence from South Africa

Agholor,

Chowdhury,

Olamide

2024

Administrative Sciences

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Contemporary economies worldwide appreciate the underlying importance of service sectors, culminating in sectorial growth and satisfactory performance of agri-preneurship. This study is premised on two simple explanations that cascaded into two hypothetical questions: (i) Are there inspiring factors for individuals to start up their own agri-preneurship business? (ii) Are there factors hindering individuals from starting up their own agri-preneurship business? These two hypothetical constructs triggered four primary arguments established in the study. This study was conducted in Mbombela local Municipality in category ‘B’, which is made up of the Ehlanzeni District, Mpumalanga South Africa. From a population of 1021 farmers, 458 samples of respondents were obtained and considered to be realistic for the study. The study embraced the mixed research approach, and the field survey was done between the months of February 2022 and June 2022. Descriptive statistics, involving the frequency count and percentages, were used to determine the motives and obstacles of starting up one’s own business. The hypothesis was assessed by employing multinominal logistic regression to determine the relationship between demographic variables and predictor variables. The findings revealed that potential agri-preneurs are affected by an array of inspiring factors in the decision-making process. Further, the results revealed that agri-preneurial spirit is inhibited by numerous challenges. In the shared view of respondents, there was a portmanteau of obstacles impeding the commencement of one’s own business. The results also showed that, in the self-realization variant, age (p < 0.035) and marital status (p < 0.033) were found to be correlated and statistically significant as an inspiration for setting up an agri-preneurship business, while the self-satisfaction variant specified marital status (p < 0.001) to be significant and to negatively (β −1.564) influence inspiration for agri-preneurship. In the independence variant category, two crucial variables, level of formal education (p < 0.005) and farm experience (p < 0.007), were found to be correlated and statistically significant in determining agri-preneurial decisions. This study has several policy propositions: the government and allied stakeholders must consider the motives that inspire potential investors in agriculture. The government must also oversee the reasons for young and old agri-preneurs leaving agri-businesses because of failure. This study underscores the need to subjectively analyze agri-preneurial inspiring factors and obstacles to performance. The contributions of agri-preneurial businesses to economic growth and poverty alleviation justify the need for a concerted effort to motivate potential investors. Another pertinent contribution of the study is highlighting the obstacles of agri-preneurs to enable the government to support and prepare responsive, innovative, and resilient agri-preneurs in South Africa. This paper recommends that starting up one’s own agri-preneurial business is a good idea for abating hunger and unemployment.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaluating Inspiring Factors and Obstacles in the Start-Up of Owned Agri-Preneurial Businesses: Underlying Evidence from South Africa

Agholor,

Chowdhury,

Olamide

2024

Administrative Sciences

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Re-imagining the complexities faced by rural entrepreneurs in South Africa: Implications for local economic development in the post COVID-19 pandemic period

Utete,

Zhou

2024

Journal of Rural Studies

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Are there differences in business ethics within SMEs’ most important business sectors in the V4 countries? Empirical research

Belas,

Zvarikova,

Streimikis

et al. 2024

Ethics &Amp; Bioethics

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Business ethics represents an important aspect that influences each country’s socio-economic system, and is important to society, environment, and economy. The present article aims to define significant attributes of business ethics in the sector of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and compares their attitudes within the three most significant business sectors in the Visegrad Group countries (V4 countries: Czech Republic, Slovak Republic, Poland, and Hungary). An empirical study, focusing on the attitudes of small and medium-sized firms, was conducted in June 2022 in Visegrad Group countries through the reputable hired company MNFORCE, using the Computer Assisted Web Interviewing research method. The total number of respondents in the Visegrad Group countries was 1,398. Statistical hypotheses were tested using descriptive statistics, chi-square, and Z-score at a significance level of α = 5%. The most important conclusion of this research is that there are no significant differences in the approach of SMEs to business ethics based on the sector in which the companies operate. Some notable differences in attitudes among SMEs in Slovakia and the Czech Republic were identified, but these were marginal. Therefore, differences in the transformation process within selected economic sectors do not impact the formation of attitudes of small and medium-sized companies in business ethics. It is evident that business ethics is significantly determined primarily by the personal characteristics of the owner/manager of the company, and the specificities of individual sectors do not influence this field.

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SMEs, Success, and Capital Startups: Evidence from the Service Sector in South Africa

Cited by 4 publications

References 42 publications

Evaluating Inspiring Factors and Obstacles in the Start-Up of Owned Agri-Preneurial Businesses: Underlying Evidence from South Africa

Evaluating Inspiring Factors and Obstacles in the Start-Up of Owned Agri-Preneurial Businesses: Underlying Evidence from South Africa

Re-imagining the complexities faced by rural entrepreneurs in South Africa: Implications for local economic development in the post COVID-19 pandemic period

Are there differences in business ethics within SMEs’ most important business sectors in the V4 countries? Empirical research

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