Development finance and SMME support

The Wild Coast Sun has a new water supplier. L’aQua Joyce, owned and run by Thumeka Mcobothi, pictured, from Bizana in the Amadiba A/A Marina Location, will provide water-cooler equipment and bottles as part of the resort’s Enterprise Development initiative.

The three-year contract follows Thumeka’s attendance of a two-day SMME Business and Networking Conference run by the resort to help educate and assist SMMEs with information related to procurement opportunities. She has also been selected to attend the Wild Coast Sun Academy to study an SMME business course. The resort aims to achieve 90% procurement of all goods and services from BBBEE level 1 suppliers within the next five years.

The Department of Economic Development, Environmental Affairs and Tourism (DEDEAT) is working with the Eastern Cape Development Corporation (ECDC) to increase the support of SMMEs. This is done by helping SMMEs gain access to finance and markets, as well as ensuring that provincial government contracts are accessible to small businesses. Provincial government departments are encouraged to buy from SMMEs.

Three of the ECDC’s four business units are devoted to small business: Rural, Enterprise Finance and Business Support; Investment Management, Trade and Investment Promotion; and Economic Development Coordination and Sector Support.

The ECDC has several financial and non-financial products tailored to SMMEs through various programmes offered by these business units. Export Help Desks have been established to support small business in the Nelson Mandela Bay and Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipalities.

The Small Enterprise Development Agency is an agency of the National Department of Small Business Development (DSBD) which gives non-financial support to entrepreneurs through training, marketing and assistance in the writing of business plans. The Seda Technology Programme (Stp) helps potential businesses become trading entities. The Seda Incubation Unit supports 14 incubators in the province to the value of R29.8-million.

Work is underway to refurbish several state-owned industrial parks. Areas like the Dimbaza Industrial Park assist SMMEs with affordable space and the

Eastern Cape Development Corporation: www.ecdc.co.za

Eastern Cape Rural Development Agency: www.ecrda.co.za programme has so far created 379 jobs and involved 71 local SMMEs.

The DSBD has a Shared Economic Infrastructure Facility, which is investing R34.7-million in support of Eastern Cape projects: the KwaNtozonke Product Market in King Sabata Dalindyebo Municipality and the Chris Hani Co-operative Development Centre in Chris Hani District. A further R1.9million has been allocated to 141 informal and microbusinesses in the Amathole and Joe Gqabi District Municipalities.

Volkswagen South Africa (VWSA) has a project called Ntinga (“to soar” in Xhosa) whereby suppliers receive training and are mentored for 18 months. ■