Parliament, Wednesday, 10 July 2019 – The Portfolio Committee on Small Business Development has recommended a budget of R8.1 billion for the Department of Small Business Development over the medium term of this, R5.9 billion will be transferred to the Small Enterprise Development Agency for its operations and also to the Small Enterprise Finance Agency for administering the Small Business and Innovation Fund.
In its report for budget vote 31 for the 2019/20 financial year, the committee further called on the department to spearhead a process of developing a wholesale and retail charter, as well as a market access strategy.
The committee has identified small enterprises’ and cooperatives’ access to market as one of the critical delivery areas for the department in the medium term.
The Chairperson of the committee, Ms Violet Siwela, said that both the charter and strategy should state how small enterprises will benefit from government’s 30% procurement policy and R100 billion infrastructure fund, recently announced by the President.
The committee further recommended that the department should review the National Small Enterprise Act and table a Bill to Parliament in quarter three of this financial year.
“Our proposal is that the revised Act or a new Bill should incorporate dispute resolution mechanism, such as a small enterprise commission or tribunal in a similar fashion to National Credit Act and Competition Act,” said Ms Siwela.
The committee undertook to address all the outstanding issues from the fifth Parliament, highlighted in the legacy report, including the investigative report of the Auditor-General on allegations of fraud and corruption in the department.
Budget vote 31 will be debated on Friday, 12 July 2019 in a mini-plenary of the National Assembly.
ISSUED BY PARLIAMENTARY COMMUNICATION SERVICES ON BEHALF OF THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE ON SMALL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT, MS VIOLET SIWELA
For media enquiries or interviews with the Chairperson, please contact media officer:
Name: Mr Justice Molafo
Tel: 021 403 8444
Cell: 081 424 7481
Email: jmolafo@parliament.gov.za
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