FOR the second year in a row, the Joe Gqabi Economic Development Agency (JoGEDA), in partnership with the USB Small Business Academy (SBA), brought their development programme \u2013 specifically designed for historically disadvantaged entrepreneurs in low-income areas \u2013 to the Joe Gqabi district in a move also created to encourage sponsorship participation by selected local entrepreneurs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Some 49 small business owners in the Joe Gqabi district have now been put through the programme over the past two years and JoGEDA chief executive, Ayanda Gqoboka, said that results have been \u201coutstanding\u201d \u2013 pointing to success stories and participants\u2019 new-found abilities to structure, focus and plan for their businesses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe SBA programme is achieving exactly the impact we wanted \u2013 through transfer of knowledge and skills, entrepreneurs now have better understanding of their businesses, their results and the trends in their specific sector. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThis translates to business growth and sustainability, and so we are achieving our aim,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Gqoboka said that empowering small businesses to move out of survivalist mode and become sustainable engines of economic growth and employment creation was part of JoGEDA\u2019S strategy to diversify economic activity in the district, to unlock the potential for growth in sectors such as agro-processing and manufacturing, and to create local employment opportunities that would retain young people in the district.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
SBA head, Dr Marietjie Theron-Wepener, said the programme was developed, and first rolled out in the townships of Cape Town, in response to the high failure rate of small businesses, and she was delighted with the positive results seen in its extension to the Eastern Cape.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMany SMMEs don\u2019t survive their first years due to a lack of business knowledge, inability to create a business plan and poor market research \u2013 the SBA business development programme aims to address these gaps and, in the process, give life to the USB vision of having a meaningful impact in society,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOur vision is to make a difference in the lives and businesses of small business owners in low-income communities, building sustainability and eventually supporting them in such a way that they can play a vital role in alleviating poverty by creating employment,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
One of the success stories, Lorraine Makgoantle, said the course had enabled her to market her business better, to properly understand her business costs and manage her finances by reinvesting in the business rather than \u201cjust operating randomly\u201d as she had before.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
With sales improving since starting the SBA programme in January, she has now acquired land and is seeking funding to open a tombstone manufacturing business. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIn this area, we all buy our tombstones from Bloemfontein as there is no manufacturer locally. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBy manufacturing tombstones, I can reduce costs and turn my competitors into my customers, retain spending in the Eastern Cape, and create stable jobs for local people,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
One of the most valuable aspects of the SBA programme has proven to be the allocation of an alumnus of the USB\u2019s MBA programme to each participant as a mentor. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Makgoantle said this sounding board had proved invaluable \u201cfor advice and keeping me on track\u201d and that her mentor believed in her business plan so much that he had offered to continue mentoring her after the course ended.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
FOR the second year in a row, the Joe Gqabi Economic Development Agency (JoGEDA), in partnership with the USB Small Business Academy (SBA), brought their development programme \u2013 specifically designed for historically disadvantaged entrepreneurs in 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