Publications
Partners
Both
government and companies offer loans to women who want businesses
Government
Most loans for business come through the department of trade and industry (the dti) and its associated organisations, such as the Small Enterprise Development Agency. These loans tend to offer lower interest rates than those from financial institutions, and have longer and/or more flexible repayment terms.
- The Isivande Women’s Fund is exclusively available for women. It was established by the dti to accelerate the economic empowerment of women through affordable, usable and responsible finance. For more information, visit thedti.gov.za.
- Khula is the government’s agency for small business finance. It operates across both public and private sectors and is dedicated to providing much-needed funding to businesses. It offers indemnity to financial institutions that provide loans to businesses without assets to put up as collateral. Visit sefa.org.za for more information.
- The National Youth Development Agency offers mentorship, development programmes and grants, and facilitates funding for youth businesses. Visit nyda.gov.za for more information.
- The National Empowerment Fund was established by the National Empowerment Fund Act No 105 of 1998 to promote and facilitate black economic equality and transformation.
Private
Absa has a Women Empowerment Fund, with the criteria for eligibility being that you must be a South African woman permanently residing in South Africa and your business must be a small to medium-sized enterprise, as defined by the dti. This includes start-ups, existing businesses, franchises and businesses switching from other banks.
- Crowdfunding is a way of raising capital in small amounts from a large group of people, using the internet and social-media sites. For an entrepreneur in need of finance, crowdfunding – also known as crowdsource capital – has radically expanded the pool of potential investors for people who might otherwise not be noticed.
