Purpose Entrepreneurship has increasingly become a subject of interest for scholars and policymakers in an attempt to reduce poverty in agricultural communities across the world, especially in Africa. Accordingly, the purpose of this paper is to examine the role of entrepreneurship in reducing poverty in agricultural communities of Lower Gweru, Zimbabwe. Design/methodology/approach Exploratory research design informed the data collection and analysis in this study. In-depth interviews were conducted with 20 owners of agribusinesses from various socio-economic backgrounds. The collected data from the field were analyzed using thematic analysis. Findings The results revealed that entrepreneurship plays a catalytic role in poverty reduction in agricultural communities through food security, skill transfer, employment creation, income generation and a decrease in food costs. Research limitations/implications This study focused on four agricultural communities in Lower Gweru which can limit the generalizability of the results to other contexts. Furthermore, this inquiry is a cross-sectional study that did not capture the longitudinal factors that can affect entrepreneurship and poverty reduction in agricultural communities. Practical implications The research outcomes have some practical implications for the Zimbabwean government and microfinance institutions in designing policies and programs to reduce poverty in marginalized agricultural communities. The findings are also useful for non-governmental organizations in designing, monitoring and evaluating poverty reduction programs in agricultural communities. Originality/value This study advances, contextualizes and enriches the body of knowledge concerning agricultural entrepreneurship and poverty reduction in the under-researched setting of agricultural communities. Notably, this study captures the African flavor in the agricultural entrepreneurship and poverty reduction discourse by focusing on the unique Zimbabwean context.
During the past two decades, corporate restructuring in the banking sector has gained much scholarly and public attention in both more developed and less developed countries as a strategic response to a decline in organizational performance. Surprisingly, there is fragmented and scant evidence on corporate restructuring through digital transformation in the banking sector, especially in the Zimbabwean context. With this in mind, this chapter aims at capturing worldwide issues and controversies linked to corporate restructuring through digital transformation, reviewing the success stories of corporate restructuring through digital transformation in the banking sector of Zimbabwe, identifying the challenges associated with digital transformation so that recommendations are proffered to top management and policymakers accordingly, and presenting suggestions for future research.
Recently, there has been an exponential increase in microfinance institutions leading to intense competition. This has impelled the interest of scholars, practitioners, and researchers in customer loyalty. Nonetheless, there is a dearth of empirical evidence on the determinants of customer loyalty in the microfinance sector. Accordingly, the main objective of this study is to establish the determinants of customer loyalty. Employing correlational research design with a sample size of 132 customers of microfinance institutions in Gweru who completed a highly structured questionnaire, the hypotheses are tested using Pearson correlation and regression analysis. The findings reveal that service quality, customer trust, and customer satisfaction have a strong statistically significant positive effect on customer loyalty. Nonetheless, a weak insignificant positive relationship between perceived microfinance image and customer loyalty is observed. It is, therefore, recommended that the managers should devise strategies to augment service quality, customer trust, and customer satisfaction.
Youth entrepreneurship has become an interesting phenomenon that has attracted much attention from academics, practitioners, and policymakers across the globe during recent years. The main objective of the paper is to analyze the demographic determinants of youth entrepreneurial success. Employing explanatory research design with a sample of 100 youth entrepreneurs in Gweru who completed the questionnaires, the hypotheses are analyzed using Pearson's correlation and regression analysis in an effort to empirically determine the influence of demographic factors on youth entrepreneurial success. The results show a strong and significant association between entrepreneurial experience and youth entrepreneurial success, a weak positive and significant association between educational qualification and youth entrepreneurial success, a weak negative association between age and youth entrepreneurial success, and a weak negative and significant relationship between gender and youth entrepreneurial success. These outcomes have significant implications for theory, practice, and future research.
Necessity-driven nascent entrepreneurship, which often associated with new firm creation and innovation, has emerged as a topical issue in entrepreneurship scholarship across the globe in recent times especially in developing countries. While the increase in necessity-driven nascent entrepreneurs appears to be widely regarded as a powerful tool for the reduction or elimination of unemployment and poverty worldwide, insufficient attention has been given to the challenges faced by necessity-driven nascent entrepreneurs. With this literature gap in mind, this chapter aims at providing a comprehensive understanding of challenges faced by necessity-driven nascent entrepreneurs. The research establishes six challenges, namely, personal or family problems, lack of entrepreneurial self-confidence, lack of information, lack of entrepreneurial mentorship, legal and regulatory issues, and lack of adequate personal funds. The recommendations to deal with these challenges are proffered and the suggestions for further study are captured.
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