HerVenture in South Africa

In South Africa, starting a business can be challenging, as the regulatory environment is complex and bureaucratic. In fact, the country ranks 139th out of 190 countries on ease of starting a business, according to The Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) National Entrepreneurship Context Index. Formalisation of businesses can also be costly, resulting in a large number of small and medium-sized enterprises remaining informal.  

For women in South Africa, business ownership is even more difficult and often less profitable. With sub-Saharan African economies losing an estimated $100 billion every year due to the labour market gender gap, supporting women entrepreneurs must be prioritised.

With support from our partners, DHL Express, the Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) Entrepreneurship Development Academy and the Small Enterprise Development Agency (Seda), HerVenture has been available in South Africa since June 2021. 

HerVenture is one of the Foundation’s five programmes. Through the app, women gain foundational business knowledge and skills, confidence and self-belief to start and grow businesses, support their entrepreneurial journeys and digitise their enterprises. HerVenture offers essential business training and support on the go, with learning tracks such as business resilience and e-commerce, which we developed with local partners to address the specific needs of South African women entrepreneurs.  

HerVenture is data-light and can even be used offline, a key feature as smartphones and computers are commonly used in South Africa, but data is extremely expensive and electricity isn’t always accessible.  

So far, almost 5,000 South African women entrepreneurs have used the app, which has led to fantastic outcomes: