Assessment of Factors Affecting Access to Finance by Small and Medium Enterprises : Evidence from Kitwe Zambia

The purpose of the study was to assess factors affecting access to finance by small and medium enterprises in Zambia with a focus on Kitwe based small and medium enterprises. The research was quantitative in its approach. An online questionnaire was distributed to Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) owners and managers. A total of 220 survey responses were obtained. Correlation and multiple regression analysis were used to explore the data. The Software Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 23 was used to for data analysis. The findings show that managerial experience, financial literacy and financial management regulation had a positive influence on SMEs access to finance whilst business plan had an insignificant influence. A number of scholarly, practice and policy recommendations are made. The findings of this research contribute to the body of knowledge on SMEs access to finance and supplement the current literature on SME financing