Ramaphosa’s plea to entrepreneurs

South Africa’s hopes for a thriving and inclusive economy rest in the hands of small businesses, says Cyril Ramaphosa.

Johannesburg - Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa has urged entrepreneurs to ignite a revolution of small business to employ millions of people so that unemployment could form part of history.

Speaking at the South African Business Incubation conference in Midrand on Thursday, Ramaphosa said it was through small businesses that the government wanted to change the trajectory of the economy.

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His comments came amid uncertainty over the prospect of rating agencies downgrading South Africa’s creditworthiness to junk status.

Officials from rating agency Moody's, which placed South Africa’s rating under review this week, are expected to arrive in the country next week on a fact-finding mission.

“I dream about a South Africa that lies ahead but that we must work for today,” Ramaphosa said.

“In 2030, we should look at ourselves as traders... through your efforts I am certain that we can achieve this vision.”

He said that, in line with the National Development Plan, the government had embarked on a journey of lowering the cost of doing business and cutting red tape. This was a demonstration that the government was serious about the development of small business. He added the government placed the nation's hopes on a thriving and inclusive economy, led by the success of small business.

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“If you are (running) small business and ever thought that what you are doing in your garage does not matter, I am here to tell you that it does matter to this economy,” he said.

Ramaphosa shared his personal experience, jokingly saying he was a “lapsed lawyer and failed trade unionist” but that he had to embrace failure even in business. He said, however, that he kept propelling himself to rise and run another race.

He said the conference was about sharing best practice to learn, generate ideas, to strengthen co-operation and to find common strategies and solutions to build the economy.

“This platform must encourage entrepreneurs to persevere and it must encourage them to succeed,” he said.

thabiso.thakali@inl.co.za

@thabiso_tk

THE STAR