2128 International Journal of Innovative Research and Scientific Studies, 8(5) 2025, pages: 2128-2139 ISSN: 2617-6548 URL: www.ijirss.com The effect of financial literacy on the growth of women-owned small and medium enterprises in Africa Ka Muzombo Kandolo 1 , Oluwasegun Julius Aroba 2* , Manduth Ramchander 3 , Vinay Bugwandin 4 1 Department of Entrepreneurial Studies and Management, Faculty of Management Sciences, Durban University of Technology, Durban, South Africa. 2 Department of Operations and Quality Management, Durban University of Technology, Durban, South Africa. 2 Centre for Ecological Intelligence, Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment, University of Johannesburg, South Africa. 3 Department of Operations and Quality Management, Durban University of Technology, Durban, South Africa. 4 Entrepreneurial Studies & Management Department, Faculty of Management Sciences, Honorary Research Associate, Durban University of Technology, Durban, 4000, South Africa. Corresponding author: Oluwasegun Julius Aroba (Email: oluwaseguna@dut.ac.za) Abstract In Africa, women-owned small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) are crucial to both gender equality and economic progress. Nonetheless, research and discussion on the effect of financial literacy on the expansion of these businesses continue. The purpose of this systematic review is to investigate the impact of financial literacy on the expansion and advancement of women-owned small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Africa. It was carried out using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) approach. A thorough search strategy was used to locate pertinent English-language studies that examined the connection between financial literacy and the expansion of women-owned SMEs throughout Africa. Important databases were thoroughly examined, such as Google Scholar, Web of Science, PubMed, and Scopus. The selected studies were evaluated for quality, and to identify recurring themes and patterns, the studies underwent quality evaluation, data extraction, and synthesis. The analysis emphasizes how important financial literacy is to improving women-owned SMEs' chances of expanding in Africa. The results show a strong correlation between better financial management, access to finance, business sustainability, and overall business growth and higher financial literacy among female entrepreneurs. Keywords: Africa, Financial literacy, PRISMA, SME’s, Women-owned SME. DOI: 10.53894/ijirss.v8i5.9435 Funding: This study received no specific financial support. History: Received: 25 June 2025 / Revised: 29 July 2025 / Accepted: 31 July 2025 / Published: 22 August 2025 Copyright: © 2025 by the authors. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no competing interests. Authors’ Contributions: All authors contributed equally to the conception and design of the study. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript. Transparency: The authors confirm that the manuscript is an honest, accurate, and transparent account of the study; that no vital features of the study have been omitted; and that any discrepancies from the study as planned have been explained. This study followed all ethical practices during writing. Publisher: Innovative Research Publishing