Industrial summit a drawcard
Rural, township entrepreneurs gather
MORE than 1 000 delegates flocked to the Rural and Township Industrial Summit which started at the East London ICC yesterday.
Delegates included dignitaries like Deputy President David Mabuza, who delivered the key address to the many SMMEs and government officials who came from around the country to be at the event.
“The issue of township and rural economies form part of our call for radical economic transformation. This is about the quest for inclusive economic development, redress and the reconfiguration of the economic landscape from its current status quo,” Mabuza said.
“Despite the economic advances of the past 24 years of freedom and democracy, the legacy of colonialism and apartheid is still deeply entrenched in our society and is manifest in the economic structure of South Africa.”
Mabuza said this legacy expressed itself in racialised patterns of poverty, unemployment and inequality.
“This is generally evidenced in land and spatial disparities, infrastructure and service backlogs. Through this second provincial B-BBEE Township and Rural Economies Summit, we are provided with an opportunity to engage, and shape policy processes and outcomes that should lead us to the successful realisation of radical economic transformation.”
The deputy president started the day with a tour of a macadamia farm in Ncera, and its agro-processing plant.
The proceedings were directed by small business development minister Lindiwe Zulu, who was furious there were so many people who spent the morning in long queues trying to get in while the summit was already under way.
Economic development, environmental affairs and tourism MEC Oscar Mabuyane said the summit would create a great environment for many entrepreneurs.
“Those of us who grew up in townships and rural communities would agree with me that we cannot conclude this summit without taking bold decisions or recommendations on what we should do about the infrastructure challenges in the rural and township economy setup.
“We grew up seeing motor mechanics operating in our townships and rural communities. We grew up taking our clothes to local tailors and shoe repairers who operated in back rooms. The issue of infrastructure therefore has always been an impediment to the smooth operations of rural and township SMMEs. I know that prior to 1994 in townships such as Mdantsane there were designated areas called small business centres where a plethora of businesses operated. “What is our thinking now? “Equally important is the need to change the economic model of our township and rural SMMEs and focus them more on the manufacturing of goods to service the market than on the consumption of goods that are produced elsewhere. The real wealth and job creation is in production more than consumption,” said Mabuyane.
Businesswoman Sibuyiselwe Tiya said she came from Mthatha to be part of the summit to find out what opportunities were available for her sector.
“This morning I was here from as early as 7am to get accredited, but it seems they opened later and I unfortunately missed the morning section. But nonetheless I’m here to get access to information and funding because I want to create job opportunities for my community,” she said.