‘Long overdue’ B-BBEE talks in eSikhaleni
'Entrepreneurs need to understand it covers more than procurement'
THE Director of Compliance at the Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE) Commission, Busisiwe Ngwenya visited eSikhaleni on Wednesday to educate and encourage community members to take advantage of the policy.
Ngwenya said information sessions are vital to raise awareness on the B-BBEE Act and the role of the Commission is to guide stakeholders on possible pitfalls and how to circumvent them.
‘Educational programmes and community participation can benefit small businesses that were unaware of all benefits that government policies provide, especially those associated with Black Empowerment.’
Despite widespread criticism that the policy is inefficient, she asserted it is ‘not narrow-based’, but seeks to benefit start-ups, SMMEs, women and youth.
She added entrepreneurs need to understand it covers more than procurement.
But eSikhaleni scrapyard and car service owner, Siphosethu Sithole said it has been difficult to understand how the B-BBEE policy benefits entrepreneurs in the service sector and other industries.
‘With the newly established Commission, we hope all the issues we had with B-BBEE will be resolved and everyone will have access to all economic benefits that it provides.
‘The B-BBEE policy education is long overdue.
‘One cannot be a business owner and only associate the policy with tenders, after all these years it has been around,’ said Sithole.
He urged the Commission to also educate those who are working in government, especially in local municipalities, so that information or any changes in the policy can be easily accessible to those who need it.
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