This article reviews employee HIV and AIDS-related corporate social responsibility (CSR) practices by small business in Zimbabwe and South Africa. The article aims to present a comparative snapshot of how SMMEs are responding to the epidemic as a basis for developing a CSR framework that could be implemented by SMMEs in both countries. The article applies an exploratory literature review methodology to extract data from secondary sources. Research findings show that HIV and AIDS-related CSR in Zimbabwe appear disengaged from the direct influence of corporate business, the opposite of what South African SMMEs experience. In South Africa, SMME CSR practices experience pressure from large firms. However, differences in economic status between the two countries show no effect on the CSR behaviors of SMMEs in both countries when compared with each other. In both countries, findings reveal that SMMEs hardly establish HIV and AIDS policies and therefore rely on informal CSR practices to assist employees to deal with the pandemic in the workplace. Thus, the article submits that while HIV and AIDS practices are not formalized in both countries, SMMEs fulfil their epidemic-related CSR obligations towards employees’ corresponding with their smallness. In conclusion, the study recommends an empirical examination of the research question to establish a grounded recommendation for the development of a SMMEs CSR framework that could be implemented by SMMEs in both countries.
Purpose: Female entrepreneurship discourse continues to receive heightened attention owing to various factors including the value of their contribution to national socioeconomic development. While the patriarchal nature of African societies remains one of the major issues impacting female entrepreneurs, the Covid-19 pandemic exacerbated the situation, therefore necessitating research that addresses interventions. This study examined the challenges of female entrepreneurship before, during, and the post-Covid-19 prospects in South Africa. By examining these challenges, the study aimed to shed light on factors militating against the success of female entrepreneurship, including the Covid-19 era and proposed solutions to overcome some of the challenges.
Design/methodology/approach: A descriptive literature review methodology was used to conduct this study.
Findings: The findings indicate that numerous cultural, economic, and institutional factors militate against productive female entrepreneurship. In addition, the results show that while Covid-19 affected all types of firms, and female-led enterprises suffered the most. Female-owned enterprises suffered the most in terms of lost revenues, business closures, and women retreating to traditionally assigned roles as family caregivers.
Research limitations/implications: Given that the pandemic resulted in some cases of business closures and scaling down operations, there is a need for targeted support efforts to resuscitate female entrepreneurs in the post-Covid-19 era. Thus, extensive government and institutional financial and non-financial support are needed for female entrepreneurs.
Practical implications: The study contributes to the overall discourse on supporting women’s participation in economic activities through entrepreneurship.
Originality/value: This paper is original
Paper type: a Research Paper
We used an integrative qualitative descriptive review methodology to survey the literature on the COVID-19 pandemic to understand how the pandemic devastated businesses as well as emphasise the benefit of understanding the possible opportunities that emerge from a crisis. The discussions are framed within the purview of resilience and vulnerability theory, including the resource-based view. Findings indicate that as a result of the sudden emergence of COVID-19, many businesses' unpreparedness and untested resilience capabilities led to their demise, with others downsizing or ceasing operations. COVID-19 required businesses to adopt a speedy adaptation of business practices, thinking, and processes to capitalise on emerging opportunities. Thus, businesses adopted e-commerce, virtual operations, and the development of new channels. Overall, the study concludes that businesses confronted a mixed bag of COVID-19 consequences. The study, therefore, recommends that developing nations' governments institute radical economic transformation efforts to secure the business ecosystem and overcome business turnaround challenges. Moreover, studies that track the improved fortunes of firms that downscaled during the pandemic in the post-COVID-19 era are recommended. The study's major limitation is that most of the literature reviewed is set in Africa, which may limit the applicability of the findings to other regions. However, the COVID-19 theme retains global relevance. The study contributes to the literature by providing insights into the specific impacts of the COVID-19 crisis on businesses, the importance of resilience mechanisms, the role of government support, and the need for entrepreneurship education in the post-pandemic era.
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