Pretoria – Small Business Development Minister Lindiwe Zulu has called for investment in research in the field of small business development.
“We need to aggressively invest in this area and address the paucity of relevant information on Small, Medium and Micro Enterprises (SMMEs). I am positive that such investments can yield enormous benefits in the long term,” Minister Zulu said.
She said research by Global Entrepreneurship Monitor showed that small businesses were significant contributors to job creation, creating more than 50 percent of all employment opportunities in South Africa.
Minister Zulu was speaking at the inaugural National Small, Medium and Micro Enterprises (SMMEs) policy colloquium, which was launched in partnership with the Small Business Development Institute (SBDI) at the Industrial Development Corporation in Johannesburg on Tuesday.
An array of inspired thought leaders from broad and specific areas of economic development participated in the conference, which will develop policies to accelerate economic growth and development.
Minister Zulu said the SMME sector contributed more than 45 percent to the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Government believes that partnerships should be created with the private sector to encourage apprenticeships, Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE) procurement opportunities and business support services.
“The private sector could voluntarily support the nurturing of young and emerging businesses and share professional expertise through already existing company-level enterprise development programmes.
“Synergy will be needed across several different areas in order for small businesses to be able to thrive, grow and create jobs in the South African economy,” she said.
Minister Zulu said her department wanted to improve the institutional framework for SMME development by ensuring a cohesive and integrated approach across all three spheres of government and stakeholders and role players across various institutions.
Minister Zulu said her department would raise awareness on entrepreneurship as a viable career path and build a nation of entrepreneurs.
She said Further Education and Training (FET) and universities needed to instil the spirit of entrepreneurship in its students.
“We will be working hard to increase financial support through tax incentives, informal sector funding tools and other funding networks in partnership with other financial institutions,” Minister Zulu said.
She said her department would continue to reduce regulatory constraints through red-tapes reduction roll-out programmes.
“We will continue to do the regulatory impact assessment and regulatory simplification, targeting relevant government personnel and departments, in all three spheres of government,” Minister Zulu said. – SAnews.gov.za
