MICRO and small business holders have a strong desire to grow and develop their businesses, but their ambitious motives are blocked by lack of access to finance, particularly from local commercial banks.
business
April 30, 2021
NEO SENOKO
3 min read
Fiscal boost to MSMEs can grow economy
The Minister of Small Business Development, Cooperatives and Marketing, Chief Thesele ’Maseribane
Financially developing the sector would, among other things redress the high level of youth unemployment, currently at around 32 percent.
The country’s economy would also grow significantly as the sector would contribute massively to the GDP.
But the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) sector is faced with numerous challenges that inhibit its growth, some of which include access to finance, low production capacity as well as access to national, regional and international markets.
Government, through the Ministry of Small Business Development, Cooperatives and Marketing has realised these challenges, attesting to the fact that mechanisms for addressing these challenges are through effective dialogue and collaborations with the business community.
The ministry has therefore partnered with the private sector to create an open platform aimed at enabling effective dialogue and collaborations between the MSMEs, cooperatives and the public sector.
Under the title “Sethala”, the platform seeks to ensure that solemn continuous discussions are held between the public and the private sector to discuss and resolve some of the challenges and remove barriers to finance and market access.
On Wednesday, during the launch of the programme, the Minister of Small Business Development, Cooperatives and Marketing, Chief Thesele ’Maseribane said the barriers to access finance should be dealt with accordingly.
“This ministry is responsible for growing and developing small businesses in the country. But we have to invest into these businesses financially and with clear legal frameworks in order to break the barriers. The MSME sector should actually be the national agenda in this country.
“We have to break barriers towards access to finance because small businesses also deserve financial assistance to grow. Working hand in hand with all stakeholders will allow us to break these barriers and eventually export some of our products to South Africa,” Chief Maseribane said.
For his part, the Project Manager at the Private Sector Competitiveness and Economic Diversification Project, Chaba Mokuku showed that local commercial banks should have products that cater for the MSMEs in the country.
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The Project Manager of the Private Sector Competitiveness and Economic Diversification Project, Chaba Mokuku
He said the project is currently working on a policy that will develop the sector to easily access finances.
Once completed, Mr Mokuku said, such a policy would be turned into a law, the MSME Act, adding that it should be completed before the end of the year.
“We are also working on an investment policy that would also go a long way towards addressing these challenges. We are working together with the ministry to improve the situation. After the pandemic, we really have to bounce back quite stronger than before,” Mr Mokuku noted during the same event.
The development of the private sector is also contained in the National Strategic Development Plan II (NSDP II) as one of the key priority areas to enhance inclusive and sustainable economic growth and private sector-led job creation.
The SMMEs sector plays a major role in the growth of the economy of a country and a crucial role towards achieving industrial and economic development that are expected to be key drivers of sustainable growth going forward.
Governments view the sector as a major source of employment, economic growth and wealth creation.
Its development would directly contribute to poverty alleviation and generation of potential entrepreneurs.
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