Factors influencing micro and small enterprises’ access to finance since the adoption of multi-currency system in Zimbabwe.

Abstract

Access to financial services is key to Micro and Small Enterprises’ (MSEs) operation and growth in Zimbabwe. A survey was done in a small town (Bindura), medium size city (Kadoma) and the city of Harare (large city) to determine major factors influencing MSEs’ access to finance since the adoption of the multi-currency system in Zimbabwe. A pilot study was done in the city of Gweru to 10 MSEs’. Structured questionnaires were administered to MSEs that have been operating for at least one year as well as registered with the respective town councils and a total of 115 responses were obtained in all the 3 urban areas. The model used was the Binary Logistic model. The best model selected was based on the Omnibus Tests of model coefficients, the Chi-Square tests, the Cox and Snell R-Sqaure and the Nagelkerke R-Squared values. The importance of each factor was determined using the Wald statistic value. The results showed that formality, value of assets, business sector, operating period, financial performance and size are all important factors in determining access to finance.MSEs; Finance; Multi-Currency; Logistic Regression