Small, medium and micro enterprise development challenges in a post apartheid South Africa: Lessons learnt

Abstract

A problem of the South African economy is the pervasive unemployment in particular amongst the black population. Double-digit unemployment figures had become the norm within post - apartheid South Africa. The newly elected government in 1994 identified the informal sector as a strategic growth area. The SMME sector was seen as unexplored and a potential conduit and possible answer to create employment opportunities and address the unemployment crisis. The question that guided the research was What are the challenges faced by the SMME sector, in particular black SMMEs, in becoming a sustainable and financially viable business? The study was qualitative in nature and the case methodology was used for this research. The key findings were that, there is an over - reliance on the business owner that in many instances, has very little business experience. Furthermore ,that government support programmes are not well known amongst the SMMEs. The major recommendations are that Government must provide the support to the SMME sector to become sustainable and contribute to employment creation. Government must explore the possibility of financially supporting the SMMEs. Lastly, that Government must review the regulatory and policy framework to reduce and create an enabling environment for SMMEs to grow and become lucrative.