SMME one-stop shop

Barely a week after Reserve Bank governor Gill Marcus said the economic scales were skewed in favour of big business, Transnet unveiled a R60-million enterprise development hub at its Carlton Centre, Johannesburg, head office yesterday.

Speaking at the launch, Public Enterprises Minister Malusi Gigaba said the hub would be a "one-stop shop" for entrepreneurs and newcomers. The focus would be on black-, youth- and women-owned business to "address the economic imbalance of the past".

"This is a first of its kind in South Africa. State-owned enterprises must play a catalyst role in ensuring growth for small, medium and micro enterprises and create opportunities for new entrants who otherwise would have been excluded from the economic participation if the public sector did not intervene to change the situation they are facing," he said.

Transnet has established partnerships with SARS, Gauteng Enterprise Propeller, BEE Verification Agency, the National Youth Development Agency, Small Enterprise Development Agency and the Department of Trade and Industry's Companies Intellectual Property Commission to offer financial and non-financial support to SMMEs.

Transnet, which in the year to March spent R27.5-billion as part of its seven-year R307-billion infrastructure investment programme, will provide the bulk of the R60-million funding for the hub. The Johannesburg hub will initially operate five days a week.

"The enterprise development hub must assist SMMEs to succeed. We have been failing SMMEs. The sector is sitting with frustration as nobody tells small business owners how to access funding. The hub will solve this massive headache," Gigaba said.

Transnet CEO Brian Molefe said it had a two-year plan to roll out similar hubs to all the major centres of the country.

"We have identified the need to create an enabling environment for small players to take full advantage of the economic opportunities presented by our investment programme. Our intention is to assist black-owned entities that struggle to build their businesses into sustainable and profitable undertakings," Molefe said.

Gigaba said research revealed that small business contributed about 50% to the economy in major industrialised countries, but in South Africa it was below 30%.

"More than 12 million people rely directly on small businesses for their livelihood. Small enterprises employ between 60% and 70% of the population. I believe it is our responsibility as government to harness this opportunity."