Financial Services, Enterprise Growth, and Sustainability Among Women-Owned Small-Scale Enterprises: A Systematic Review
Seyilnan Hannah Wadak1*, Nanfa Danjuma Kusa2, Enna Godiya Musa3
Abstract
Background/Introduction: Small-scale women-owned enterprises in Sub-Saharan Africa have long-standing but unresolved gaps in access to formal financial services, gaps that directly constrain their ability not only to expand over time, but also to survive.
Purpose: The purpose of the paper is to conduct a review of the existing empirical data on access to financial services, growth, and sustainability of women-owned small-sized enterprises and to rely on the evidence of Nigeria but to include the African and international comparisons.
Methods/Approach: A literature review was developed in a systematic narrative, with studies published and enriched with seminal theoretical literature. Relevance was used to select studies to be included in the research and thematically synthesised in four relationships.
Findings/Results: Results of research in different settings will always reveal that credit, savings, payment, and insurance services produce a positive effect on the growth and sustainability outcomes of enterprises. These effects are severely limited by structural barriers especially collateral requirements. Research in Plateau state proves that microfinance practices have a pronounced ability to forecast SME development whereas financial literacy is a moderator of the strength with which entrepreneurs can translate financial access into performance benefits.
Conclusion/ Significance: Policy interventions should not only focus on increasing financial access, but also include utilisation barriers and lack of financial literacy. Mediating impact of enterprise growth on financial services sustainability relationship is an issue that requires direct empirical testing in the Nigerian context.
Keywords:
financial services, women-owned enterprises, enterprise growth, sustainability, financial inclusion, microfinance, Nigeria, mediation
