SMALL BUSINESS BILL APPROVED BY NEDLAC

5 July 1996

Nedlac's Executive Council has ratified the national small business enabling bill, paving the way for it to be finally approved by Cabinet before being promulgated later this year.

The national small business enabling bill, for the first time, addresses the institutional and regulatory framework required for the promotion of small, micro and medium-sized enterprises (SMMEs), according to Nedlac Executive Director Jayendra Naidoo.

"The Nedlac parties have agreed on the need to promote SMMEs as an effective way of creating jobs. This also reflects government's commitment to the promotion of black economic empowerment as the majority of SMMEs in South Africa are owned by black people," Naidoo says.

Business, labour and government delegates to Nedlac have endorsed the general policy direction taken by the bill.

However, there were a few reservations expressed about the implementation of certain aspects of the bill, and it was agreed that individual organisations will raise their concerns with the parliamentary portfolio committee," Naidoo says.

"There was extensive consultation, and organisations represented at Nedlac were independently invited to participate in these processes, " he says. "The final version of the draft bill was developed by a core team of representatives convened by the Nedlac secretariat."

The bill provides for:

• The setting of standards to define SMMEs.
• The establishment of the National Small Business Council which will represent and promote the interests of SMMEs.
• The establishment of the Ntsika Enterprise Promotion Agency which will provide non-financial support to SMMEs. This could include sharing of information, advice and training.
• The creation of a regulatory framework to assess the impact of laws and policy on SMMEs.The parameters for the relationships between small-business promotion functions at provincial and national levels.