Corporates must partner with small enterprises to foster economic growth and innovation, moving beyond charity to strategic collaboration and inclusive supply c
Lost your password? Please enter your username or email address. You will receive a link to create a new password via email.Small businesses are central to South Africa’s economic resilience and recovery and corporates should work with them. Photo: David Harrison/M&G
The truth is, without meaningful partnerships with the SMME ecosystem, especially in underrepresented and township communities, large companies risk stagnation. When we talk about true transformation, especially in supply chains, we need to start seeing SMMEs as strategic partners, not tick-box initiatives.
Supporting SMMEs should not sit only with one division or a social impact mandate. It should sit across the business, as a priority for operations, procurement and product teams. Transformation is not only about representation. It is about inclusion in meaningful, income-generating opportunities. And inclusion does not start with access to funding. It starts with access to networks, to decision-makers, to industry information and to market opportunities. This is where large corporates can unlock real value. Not by building parallel programmes but by finding points of synergy within their own ecosystems and supply chains.
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