Cape Town - Eight million jobs in the small, medium, and micro-enterprises sector are at risk because of the coronavirus lockdown, and these businesses need to be regarded as a national asset to be nurtured and encouraged in the coming months as South Africa struggles to revive the economy post Covid-19, the Cape Chamber of Commerce and Industry said on Saturday.
In fact, before the pandemic hit, the sector was growing. According to the Small Enterprise Development Agency, between the first quarter of 2018 and that of 2019, the number of small firms grew by an additional 450,000. The total number employed by such companies rose to eight million over the same period. At that time, small businesses were the largest employers in the South African economy
"That is a lot of money churning through the economy to the benefit of countless suppliers, and ultimately the taxman. This should be basic knowledge of the kind available to any first-year commerce student, but is still quite rare in society in general," he said. "That is why small, medium, and micro-enterprises should be regarded as a national asset to be nurtured and encouraged in the coming months as we struggle to revive the South African economy post Covid-19.
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