Calls for bill to address small farmers, fishers’ needs

During the public hearings on the National Small Enterprise Amendment (NSEA) Bill, the community of Overberg District in the Western Cape called for the insertion of a new clause in the bill that will address the specific needs of small-scale farmers and fishers.

The public hearings are being conducted by the portfolio committee on small business development on the NSEA Bill in line with section 59(1)(a) of the Constitution, which requires the National Assembly to facilitate public involvement in the legislative and other processes of the assembly and its committees.

SUBMISSIONS

Committee chairperson Violet Siwela said the bill sought to, among other things, provide for the establishment of the Small Enterprise Development Finance Agency (SEDFA) and the Office of the Small Enterprise Ombud Service.

The committee invited all interested individuals and organisations to attend the hearings to express their views on the bill. According to a statement issued by the Parliamentary Communication Services, the residents made their submissions during the public hearing at Overberg Academy of Sports in Bredasdorp.

“The fishermen said that although it has been proven over the years that fishing can be financially viable, access to finance from commercial banks has remained a serious challenge.

“They told the committee that they were pinning their hopes on the proposed Small Enterprise Development Finance Agency,” read the statement.

According to Siwela, the bill makes provision for the establishment of SEDFA through the amalgamation of the Co-operative Development Banks Agency, Small Enterprise Development Agency and Small Enterprise Finance Agency.

It proposes that the Minister of Small Business Development be the sole shareholder representative on behalf of the government and the people of South Africa.

The small-scale farmers who participated in the public hearings raised concerns that included the lack of agricultural land, according to the statement. “They suggested that the bill should contain a clause that addresses this type of challenge.

DISPUTES TRIBUNAL

“According to them, this clause should outline explicitly the different sizes of land that the government should be obliged to allocate to small-scale farmers and the allocation should be determined by levels of development in farming. Other participants suggested that over and above the Office of the Small Enterprise Ombud Service, the bill should also make a provision for the establishment of a small enterprise tribunal that will adjudicate when disputes arise between small-scale and well-developed businesses,” the statement said.

The Western Cape was the fifth province where the committee conducted public hearings on the bill. The committee had successfully conducted public hearings on the bill in Limpopo, the Northern Cape, Mpumalanga, and Free State. –