Currently there are over 500 townships in the South Africa, whose combined land mass surpasses that of Johannesburg and Durban combined and which are home to an estimated 40% of South Africa’s urban population. While more is understood about the small and growing businesses (SGBs) in metropolitan areas, less is known about the entrepreneurial ecosystems in the townships and how to support the primarily micro, necessity-based businesses that operate there. This report focuses on identifying the key actors implementing programmes to support entrepreneurs and small businesses operating in townships in the Eastern Cape, Gauteng, and Western Cape Provinces, the challenges the entrepreneurial support providers face, and the opportunities to strengthen this ecosystem.

As investors with experience in gender lens investing (GLI), our peers often ask us for information on how to start their GLI journey. Many useful resources are available to do this. However, this brief addresses a gap in information on the tools and approaches used to design and implement gender-smart technical assistance for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to improve their social and financial performance. We also share our reflections from our collective experience to date.

To understand the network’s current level of support for climate entrepreneurship, ANDE identified which of its members work in climate adaptation, mitigation, and resilience and mapped where and how this support is being provided. Data were collected between March and August 2021 through a survey of ANDE’s member organizations as well as supplementary desk research. While the analysis in this snapshot is static, the information is meant to serve as a catalyst for greater climate action in the SGB sector.

"From the backstreets of Addis Ababa to the offices of Silicon Valley, people are transforming ideas into products that are used by society. Entrepreneurs, as such people are known, are vital to the growth and prosperity of communities. But what role can entrepreneurs play in tackling climate change? How can we help entrepreneurs to rise to this challenge? This policy brief seeks to answer these questions. It highlights the role of entrepreneurs in developing technologies, business models and services that society can use to achieve low-emission and climate-resilient sustainable development. It also suggests ways of encouraging, guiding and supporting entrepreneurs in their efforts to innovate climate technologies. This TEC Brief is part of a long-running series of policy briefs on innovation produced by the Technology Executive Committee. It focuses on the central actor in the innovation process: the entrepreneur."

"Bangkok is the vibrant capital city of Thailand, known for being a popular tourist destination. The city’s population, which accounts for 15% of the country’s population, and its significant urban sprawl make it the country’s largest and a critical part of the national economy. ANDE identified and collected data on 267 ecosystem players actively supporting entrepreneurs and small businesses in Bangkok."

"El presente documento es una guía que contiene la mayoría de los recursos disponibles para consulta en temas de medición de impacto. Con esta guía, pretendemos facilitar el proceso de consulta e investigación de las organizaciones intermediarias y los emprendedores del sector."

"The Adaptation SME Accelerator Program (ASAP) aims to enhance the availability and uptake of climate adaptation solutions by identifying, engaging and empowering SMEs providing such solutions in developing countries."

"This report was commissioned as a product of the working partnership between Root Capital and Value for Women, with the support of the Aspen Network for Development Entrepreneurs and the International Development Research Center. The main objective of this partnership is to build evidence around innovations for gender inclusion within small- and medium-sized agricultural enterprises globally."

"The Gender Equality Scorecard© (GES©) Manual is the collective effort built upon SEAF’s work on the GES©, a tool SEAF developed to assess women’s economic empowerment and gender equality within growth-orientated small and medium-sized enterprises (“SMEs”). The GES© Manual provides clear guidance on how to utilize the tool and objectively score a company when assessing it’s demonstrated commitment to gender equality through six gender equality performance vectors."

"By investing in gender inclusion, businesses can generate opportunities for women while also furthering their business objectives. In recognition of the opportunities outlined above, the Shell Foundation and Value for Women embark on a partnership in 2016 designed to pilot a holistic framework for gender inclusion in enterprise operations, using a "bottom-up", business-first approach, aimed at testing the impact of gender inclusion on business performance. The approach first hones in on business challenges, and then designs practical, measurable solutions with a gender lens."