Promoting effective entry and participation of women entrepreneurs in the South African economy : Pro-competitive principles for government and non-government stakeholders

Recently, economic development organisations and competition authorities across the world have started paying attention to the gender divide that permeates society, its institutions and markets.8 The competition law community has been interrogating the role that competition policy can play in addressing these issues and in building open, fair and efficient markets aimed at levelling the playing field for women and men alike. In joining these global efforts, the Competition Commission of South Africa launched the Women in Business project in 2021 to better understand the barriers that inhibit women entrepreneurs from meaningfully participating in the South African economy. The Commission has also sought to understand the strategies that women entrepreneurs are adopting to overcome these barriers in their quest to enter and effectively participate in markets and build successful businesses. The Commission’s objective is to identify measures that are required to eliminate the barriers faced by women entrepreneurs and to promote their inclusion in the broader South African economy. The Commission’s project encompassed several initiatives, including a series of workshops with stakeholders and a survey that was rolled out nationally to women entrepreneurs. The first workshop titled “Barriers to Entry and Participation for Women in Business” took place on 12 March 2021 and was focused on understanding the key barriers faced by women entrepreneurs. Amongst the issues that For example, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has initiated a Gender Inclusive Competition Law Project. Available at: https://www.oecd.org/competition/gender-inclusive-competition-policy. htm;The Canadian Competition Bureau has supported the OECD project as part the competition authority’s broader initiatives on gender equality. Available at: https://www.competitionpolicyinternational.com/the-competition-bureaus-journey-towards-inclusive-competition/. United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) (2014). Empowering Women Entrepreneurs Through Information and Communication Technologies. Available at: Empowering Women Entrepreneurs through Information and Communications Technologies (unctad.org). Accessed on 24 October 2021.