IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/adi/ijbess/v7y2025i2p153-162.html

Exploring the impact of women's leadership and governance towards stability and development: a case study of Limpopo Province

Author

Listed:
  • Phoke Alpha Rakgwata

    (University of Venda)

  • Talifhani Trevor Ramatswi

    (University of Venda)

Abstract

This study explores the impact of women’s leadership and governance on stability and development in Limpopo province in South Africa, employing a qualitative research approach to provide a comprehensive analysis. Limpopo Province, with its complex socio-political landscape and historical context, presents a unique case for examining the role of women in leadership positions within both governmental and non-governmental sectors. The research integrates qualitative data to assess how women in leadership contribute to fostering stability, promoting socio-economic development, and influencing policy reforms. The qualitative component involves in-depth interviews and focus group discussions with women leaders, policymakers, and community members to gain insights into the strategies, challenges, and impacts of female leadership in governance. The findings showed that women in leadership positions have a positive influence on governance practices, social cohesion, and inclusive development, though challenges related to gender-based discrimination, political power dynamics, and institutional barriers remain significant. This study contributes to the broader discourse on gender equality in leadership, offering policy recommendations aimed at enhancing women’s participation in governance to achieve sustainable development and long-term stability in South Africa. Anti-discrimination laws must also be given top priority by governments and organizations, and prejudices in hiring and promotion procedures must be actively addressed. Key Words:Development, gender equality, governance, women’s leadership.

Suggested Citation

  • Phoke Alpha Rakgwata & Talifhani Trevor Ramatswi, 2025. "Exploring the impact of women's leadership and governance towards stability and development: a case study of Limpopo Province," International Journal of Business Ecosystem & Strategy (2687-2293), Bussecon International Academy, vol. 7(2), pages 153-162, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:adi:ijbess:v:7:y:2025:i:2:p:153-162
    DOI: 10.36096/ijbes.v7i2.749
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.bussecon.com/ojs/index.php/ijbes/article/view/749/432
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://doi.org/10.36096/ijbes.v7i2.749
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.36096/ijbes.v7i2.749?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Hessami, Zohal & da Fonseca, Mariana Lopes, 2020. "Female political representation and substantive effects on policies: A literature review," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 63(C).
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Opoku, Eric Evans Osei & Acheampong, Alex O., 2025. "Women's political participation and disease prevention: Evidence from access to water and sanitation services," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 365(C).
    2. Gutmann, Jerg & Metelska-Szaniawska, Katarzyna & Voigt, Stefan, 2024. "Leader characteristics and constitutional compliance," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 84(C).
    3. Baskaran, Thushyanthan & Hessami, Zohal & Schirner, Sebastian, 2024. "Young versus old politicians and public spending priorities," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 225(C), pages 88-106.
    4. Bruce, Raphael & Cavgias, Alexsandros & Meloni, Luis & Remígio, Mário, 2022. "Under pressure: Women’s leadership during the COVID-19 crisis," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 154(C).
    5. Baskaran, Thushyanthan & Hessami, Zohal, 2022. "The gender recontest gap in elections," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 145(C).
    6. Keneck-Massil, Joseph & Foudjo, Suzie Imelda, 2025. "Natural resources dependence and climate vulnerability: Do women's political empowerment and political ideology make the difference?," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 102(C).
    7. Passarelli, Francesca & Boto-García, David, 2025. "Gender quotas and politicians’ education," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 239(C).
    8. Monica Bozzano & Simona Scabrosetti, 2024. "What Drives Gender Gaps in Preferences for Redistribution? New Evidence from the European Social Survey," Working papers 118, Società Italiana di Economia Pubblica.
    9. Jose Garcia-Louzao & Ruben Perez-Sanz, 2025. "Women’s voice at work and family-friendly firms," SERIEs: Journal of the Spanish Economic Association, Springer;Spanish Economic Association, vol. 16(3), pages 699-717, December.
    10. Israel Garcia & Bernd Hayo, 2022. "The Influence of Politicians’ Sex on Political Budget Cycles: An Empirical Analysis of Spanish Municipalities," MAGKS Papers on Economics 202223, Philipps-Universität Marburg, Faculty of Business Administration and Economics, Department of Economics (Volkswirtschaftliche Abteilung).
    11. Chauvin, Juan Pablo & Tricaud, Clemence, 2022. "Gender and Electoral Incentives: Evidence from Crisis Response," IDB Publications (Working Papers) 12411, Inter-American Development Bank.
    12. Luna Bellani & Marisa Hidalgo-Hidalgo, 2023. "Educate Some to Represent Many? Education and Female Political Representation in Europe," Working Papers 23.12, Universidad Pablo de Olavide, Department of Economics.
    13. Bhattacharjee, Shampa & Roy Chaudhuri, Arka, 2024. "Electoral quotas and developmental outcomes: Evidence from India," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 85(C).
    14. Liya WANG & Ritsu KITAGAWA & Takuya TAKAHASHI, 2026. "Affirmative Action, Competitive Intensity, and Effort: Evidence from Japanese speedboat racing," Discussion papers 26003, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI).
    15. Hessami, Zohal & Khasanboev, Temurbek, 2024. "Gender Bias in the Reelection of Politicians (When a Crisis Strikes)," IZA Discussion Papers 17081, IZA Network @ LISER.
    16. Rios, Vicente & Barba, Izaskun & Gianmoena, Lisa & Pascual, Pedro, 2024. "Clearing the smog ceiling: The impact of women’s political empowerment on air quality in European regions," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 85(C).
    17. Nguyen Doan & Canh Phuc Nguyen, 2025. "Women in parliament and fiscal decentralization," Economia Politica: Journal of Analytical and Institutional Economics, Springer;Fondazione Edison, vol. 42(3), pages 771-798, October.
    18. Portmann, Marco & Stadelmann, David & Eichenberger, Reiner, 2022. "Incentives dominate selection – Chamber-changing legislators are driven by electoral rules and voter preferences," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 193(C), pages 353-366.
    19. Simplice A. Asongu & Cheikh T. Ndour & Judith C. M. Ngoungou, 2023. "The effects of gender political inclusion and democracy on environmental performance: evidence from the method of moments by quantile regression," Working Papers of The Association for Promoting Women in Research and Development in Africa (ASPROWORDA). 23/013, The Association for Promoting Women in Research and Development in Africa (ASPROWORDA).
    20. Asatryan, Zareh & Baskaran, Thushyanthan & Birkholz, Carlo & Hufschmidt, Patrick, 2023. "Favoritism by the governing elite," Ruhr Economic Papers 1029, RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-University Bochum, TU Dortmund University, University of Duisburg-Essen.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:adi:ijbess:v:7:y:2025:i:2:p:153-162. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Umit Hacioglu (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/ibihutr.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.