Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality’s economic development, tourism and agriculture portfolio head, Councillor Siyasanga Sijadu, believes that investing in small businesses in townships will impact positively on the city’s economic recovery plan.
Sijadu recently conducted a site visit to SMMEs and incubators that are supported by the City. She visited cooperatives in KwaZakhele, incubators at Veeplaas and the informal traders in KwaDwesi.
The visits were aimed at overseeing operations within the hubs and zooming in on the challenges they face.
Sijadu said it was a good experience to see that, even after the harsh lockdown that had had a detrimental effect on people’s businesses, many were trying to get back into action and working hard to ensure that their businesses functioned.
“We recently embarked on a beautiful journey of looking at the different local businesses that we have, in particular township businesses. Some of them are those that we directly assisted and some still need assistance from us.
“When we talk about the township economy, it’s largely informal, but the work that I have seen today has proven to us that we can be professional as businesses in our townships, if we operate and take ourselves seriously, and these businesses are doing exactly that,” Sijadu said.
The MMC promised to revisit the SMMEs and incubators to address their grievances, after making necessary consultations within her directorate.
“It’s not a one-day visit. We will be coming back to see progress and to hear how we can assist them further. I am taking this as a challenge for myself and a team that we will assist them with marketing their businesses so that they can grow, employ more people and show that the township economy is growing and is contributing to South Africa’s economy.”
Some of the challenges that were raised during the visit included electrification of containers for informal traders operating in KwaDwesi and proper sanitation for the area and its surroundings.
The businesses also requested more containers in order to expand their businesses and operate in a conducive environment.
Image Ambassadors director (incubator), Mzikayise Mthandani, said, “Inasmuch as we are incubators operating in a municipal building, we did not expect a visit of this nature.
“We are also grateful that she has come to listen to our challenges, hoping that action will be taken to address those issues.”
Issued by: NMBM Communications Office
