SMEs urged to drive job creation

Johannesburg - With small and medium enterprises (SMEs) providing an estimated 60% of all employment opportunities in the country, their potential to provide social upliftment and development is unlimited.

As policy makers, businesspeople and civil society put measures in place to work towards economic recovery; small business entrepreneurship must be at the centre of public discourse as one of the key opportunities to solve South Africa’s most pressing economic and social challenges.

Executive manager for Impact Investing at Business Partners Limited David Morobe says after seeing small business confidence decrease steadily as SMEs struggled to navigate the challenges of the pandemic years, a recent SME confidence index found that this is shifting.

“We are encouraged by that small businesses have confidence levels of 77% that the current economic conditions are conducive to business growth, the highest it has been in a decade. This is a positive sign that the sector is finding its feet again after two years of instability. This is of particular relevance now, given the country’s on-going unemployment crisis,” he adds.

A report by Finfind, in partnership with the South African SME Fund, puts the total number of SMEs in the country at around three million.

According to the report, the average number of employees per SME varies between 12 and 27, with most full-time positions being offered by mediumsized enterprises with an average annual turnover of R10m.

Morobe says creating the number of jobs required to make a dent in the unemployment rate is an ambitious task, but one that can be realised by unwavering collaboration between the public and private sectors, as well as other stakeholders who provide support for South Africa’s entrepreneurs.

“Fortunately industry trends locally and abroad are expanding the landscape of opportunity and providing entrepreneurs with a chance to explore uncharted business territories. As financiers we must continue to provide the necessary sup- port to SMEs to facilitate their growth and sustainability,” he says.

The increasing development and application of technology such as cloud computing has the potential to revolutionise the SME sector.

According to the 2022 State of South Africa Small Business Report by accounting technology firm, Xero, half of businesses now use cloud technology, with 30% claiming that it has enabled them to expand their customer base and 28% saying cloud technology has made a direct impact on the efficiency of their operations.

Morobe says cloud technology presents SMEs with reach and enormous growth potential.

“SMEs will continue to grow as new and emerging entrepreneurs adopt the remote working trend and digital nomad approach to work: Cloud technology has been found to dramatically reduce the cost of doing busi-

Police and Bemssel college in GBV march

Police in conjunction with Social Crime Prevention had a march with Bemssel College learners, staff, security agents and organizations, to rescue them from the jaws of GBV, domestic violence and violence in all its forms.

They are committed, as individuals and a collective, to render any form of support which they can render, within their power, in order to end violence in communities.

They have decided to embark on this campaign, code-named *”END IT NOW “* with the hope of seeing these evils eradicated from our homes and public places as soon as yesterday.

BEMSSEL College further pledged, as individuals and as a collective, that we will not be propagators or perpetrators of violence. Their dream is to live in a violencefree South Africa.

Police in conjunction with Social Crime Prevention had a march with Bemssel College learners.

“The main aim was to sensitise them about GBV, we requested them to become our eyes and ears in the fight against crime,” Mbele said.

A memorandum was handed to Lt Colonel Sithole on behalf of the Station Commander Brigadier Perumal.

ness, which could free up capital for human resources, innovation and other business avenues.”

On a global scale business and social activism are merging to form the basis of a new class of entrepreneurship, a kind that values profitability in the same way as it prioritises aspects such as community development, social justice and charitable objectives.

“We have seen some organisations being developed around issues such as education, access to public services, environmental conservation and climate change. The rise of social entrepreneurship also presents a range of opportunities. It can be summarised as problem solving. In South Africa, which has its fair share of unique socio-economic challenges, these problems are opportunities in disguise for entrepreneurial individuals,” Morobe says.

Another trend driving innovation within the SME sector is evolution of customer experience. Given the fierce rate of competition SMEs are increasingly making use of optimised customer service experience as a point of differentiation and the basis of their value proposition.

“As the customer experience evolves more job opportunities will arise at every level, from call centres and customer service agents to community managers and product support executives. Technology will continue to provide entrepreneurs with the opportunities they require to grow successful ventures. Coupled with the government’s drive to increase infrastructure development, attract foreign investment and promote training programmes, the SME sector stands in good stead to create much-needed employment opportunities for millions of South Africans,” Morobe says.

Robbers get 12 years jail

“They entered the shop pretending to be customers, pointed a firearm at the cashiers and took an undisclosed amount of money and one of the cashiers’ cellphone and fled.”

Johannesburg - On Wednesday the Johannesburg magistrate’s court sentenced two men to 12 years imprisonment after they were found guilty of armed robbery.

Police spokesperson Captain Xoli Mbele said the men, Mlungisi Hudle, 29, and Phakamani Ximba, 27, of Nancefield Hostel were found guilty of business robbery and sentenced to 12 years imprisonment each.

“The men robbed the Engen garage at Westdene on 21 December 2019. They entered the shop pretending to be customers, pointed a firearm at the cashiers and took an undisclosed amount of money and one of the cashiers’ cellphone and fled. The cashiers screamed for help, community members and police chased and arrested both men. The cellphone, money and a firearm were recovered,” Mbele said.

He added that the conviction resulted from investigation by Sergeant Mbali Mbense of Johannesburg Central Trio Detectives.

“We hope this sentence will deter would-be offenders from the same crime,” he added.

Prasa introduces electrical motor trains in Gauteng

“In its recovery strategy the agency adopted a phased-in approach in rebuilding the passenger rail corridors that were decimated.”

Johannesburg - The Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa) says it has introduced new electrical motor trains in Gauteng.

Several lines were damaged by vandalism and theft, and Prasa says it is making steady progress with repairs.

The agency said eight major lines have been repaired in Pretoria, Durban and Cape Town this year, and it plans to open all railway lines by the end of this year.

Prasa spokesperson Andiswa Makanda said in its recovery strategy the agency adopted a phased-in approach in rebuilding the passenger rail corridors that were decimated.

“Since the recovery of the corridors and reopening of the lines, Metrorail has transported around 4.1 million people in the second quarter and created 1 096 job opportunities,” Makanda said.

Police search for armed robbers

Cleveland - Police are searching for suspects who are linked to armed robberies in Jules Street, Malvern, and the Denver informal settlement.

Police spokesperson Captain Johan Jordaan said one of the suspects is known as Mteki Dlamini.

“It is believed that he might be somewhere in Soweto, while the other two are still unknown,” Jordaan said.

He added that anyone with any information of the suspect’s whereabouts may contact investigation officer DetectiveSergeant Mocheke of Cleveland police on 072 931 1430, and all information will be confidential.

Boost for African music industry

Arts Correspondent

Pan-African communications consultancy service All Africa Music Awards (AFRIMA) has appointed APO Group founder Nicolas Pompigne-Mognard to its international committee.

The AFRIMA International Committee is a group of music professionals and prominent African stakeholders.

The committee, together with the African Union Commission, organises the annual AFRIMA Awards which recognise the best African talent in diverse musical genres from all over Africa.

This year’s AFRIMA Awards will be held from 8 to 11 December, culminating in a ceremony that will be broadcast live to over 80 countries around the world.

In his role with the AFRIMA committee Pompigne-Mognard will leverage his vast experience of African business and communications, having founded APO Group in 2007 and seen it grow into a pan-African public relations consultancy reaching into all 54 African countries.

Pompigne-Mognard and APO Group have built relationships with some of the most prominent public and private institutions, sporting organisations and multinational companies operating in Africa, making them well placed to help AFRIMA achieve its core mission of a peaceful, prosperous and integrated Africa through the celebration of excellence in African music and culture.

Africa has been influential in shaping the global music industry.

Genres from rock to hip-hop to bluegrass all have their origins in traditional African styles and the music created by African slaves in America.

Today the African music industry is growing fast, and increased popularity of African music on the global stage creates a pathway to increased commercial opportunity