Initiative launches to develop township businesses
ALEXANDRA – Programme participants will receive the benefit of a hands-on, practical entrepreneurial learning curriculum, says CEO of Raizcorp Allon Raiz.
Townships across South Africa generally suffer from low levels of local economic activity especially in the manufacturing sector but this is all set to change, following a partnership that seeks to develop the township economies.
A partnership deal has been struck between The South African Future Trust and Raizcorp to launch Scaffold, a pilot programme focused on developing high-growth potential small businesses based in the townships that deal in this sector.
Piloting the development of the manufacturing sector businesses in the townships of Alexandra and Thembisa, the strategy over time will be to build value chains within a township context.
With the right support and skills development, the partnership between the Trust and Raizcorp believes small businesses in these areas have the potential to build sustainable and highly profitable businesses.
“Raizcorp and the Trust are aligned in wanting to tap into opportunities to create jobs and value chains within township environments over a period of three years, in which we will work with a range of small businesses on year-long programmes.
“These will be businesses that have the potential to scale on a very intensive, high-touch programme to increase skills, provide mentorship, and offer the backup of Raizcorp’s access to market,” said the interim head of the Trust Bridget Fury.
Once the pilot project has been tested and refined in Alexandra and Thembisa, Fury said it can then be replicated in other townships across the country to improve the lives of township folks and create much-needed jobs by upscaling townships businesses.
Raizcorp focuses on incubation and business acceleration for entrepreneurs by assisting them in scaling their businesses. The company has 21 years of experience in an incubation environment in which approximately 80% of the entrepreneurs it has supported come from or is based in the township or rural contexts.
“Townships across South Africa suffer from low levels of local economic activity. However, with the right support and skills development, small businesses in these areas have the potential to build sustainable and highly profitable businesses,” said Allon Raiz, founder and CEO of Raizcorp.
Through Scaffold, Raiz said, they will identify high-potential entrepreneurs who possess basic manufacturing skills and will enhance their skills to the point where fewer people can replicate them.
Scaffold is a year-long, high-intensity business development programme designed to help entrepreneurs scale their businesses in a sustainable way by offering a broad range of support and learning.
It aims to accelerate sustainable scaling so that businesses can become significant suppliers to large corporate clients. Some of the standard scaling issues the programme will address include capital, staff, process and consistent access to the market.
Programme participants will receive the benefit of a hands-on, practical entrepreneurial learning curriculum, as well as individual mentorship in the areas of leadership, management, personal development, finance and sales.
Recruitment will take place as of December 2021 and January 2022 and the project aims to kick off sometime in February 2022.
Details for registration: www.raizcorp.com/entrepreneurs/
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