MPs demanded greater transparency from the department and its funding agency.
Picture: iStock
Parliament’s small business development portfolio committee on Wednesday heard that just over a quarter of the R500 million Spaza Shop Support Fund had been approved eight months after its launch.
Only a fraction of the R500m fund disbursed so far
Briefing the portfolio committee on small business development, the department’s deputy director-general Qinisile Delwa said that by 31 July 2026, a total of 5 327 complete applications had been received for the Spaza Shop Support Fund, of which 5 064 had been assessed.
She said the Small Enterprise Development and Finance Agency had approved 1 386 applications across all nine provinces, worth R83.9 million, with R57 million disbursed to 930 spaza shop owners so far.
Applications that failed to progress were mostly linked to businesses that did not exist or discrepancies between applicants and actual operators, she explained.
ANC MP Matsholo Mmolotsane pressed the department on the pace of the rollout, saying she remained unconvinced that enough was being done.
“I am not convinced that the department is doing enough on the outreach programme and the department is not doing enough on the funding of our local spaza shop owners,” she said.
Public protector flags fronting concerns
The department told MPs it had engaged with the public protector after an investigation flagged applicant and operator mismatches, which were described as fronting, at some verified spaza shops.
Officials said none of the flagged applications had proceeded to approval or disbursement.
Delwa said the department had asked that responsibility for verifying municipal licensing data be shared rather than placed solely on the department, noting that “the completeness and accuracy of municipal licensing data remain dependent on the records maintained and verified by municipalities.”
Most funded owners still without training
Officials told the committee that training of approved beneficiaries continued to lag behind approvals.
So far, only 1 026 spaza shop owners had been trained, against 1 386 approved applications.
According to the presentation, those trained were taught to use the devices and stock systems provided for record-keeping and stock acquisition, as well as essential business concepts, including inventory control and understanding profit and loss statements.
Training also covered food hygiene, safety and customer care.
Officials did not explain the gap between the number of owners approved and those actually trained.
Multiple members called for the department to publish a full list of fund beneficiaries.
Officials said they had no objection but had to comply with data protection requirements before releasing details to the public.
