MMC Mofokeng encourages entrepreneurs to use City’s Opportunity Centres

The MMC for Economic Development in the City of Johannesburg, councillor Tom Mofokeng, visited three opportunity centres to assess their response to alert level two lockdown regulations.

Mofokeng’s visit was also part of creating Joburg as an entrepreneurial City of the future.

The City’s opportunity centres were established to offer a single point of entry for all entrepreneurs and job seekers. The centres are vital in the rebuilding of the City’s economy as they serve as the first access for many emerging small businesses who seek advice on entrepreneur and business support.

The centres also are aimed at cultivating a culture of entrepreneurship in the City and contributing towards employment opportunities as small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs) create much-needed employment.

All the centres’ services are provided for free to SMMEs and cooperatives through a combination of in-house and external resources leveraged through partners.

They include:

Training services

• Business management (financial management, bookkeeping, people management)

• Business planning

• Business idea generation

• Marketing strategy development

• Digital marketing

• Supply chain training so clients can gain increased access to markets

Facilities usage for business

• Access to the boardroom for business use (for meetings, presentations and interviews)

• Access to internet/Wi-Fi for business use (such research, market opportunities, preparation of business proposals)

• The opportunity centres also provide a jobseekers registration database to connect the unemployed to both public and private organisations, and as well as capacity building training such as job preparedness to better equip and prepare jobseekers for an interview. This intervention is done in collaboration with various partners such as NYDA, YES, Social Development, among others.

This brief visit allowed Mofokeng to speak to many young people who were receiving training from these centres and they presented their business ideas to see how the City can assist them.

The MMC expressed his excitement to see young people grabbing opportunities in the City to assist emerging small business owners.

“A lot of people are doing business without this type of guidance and in most cases, they’re not successful. If you can grab this opportunity, your business will be profitable and sustainable because you’re receiving the best knowledge from our facilitators. Business is about a good idea and passion,” Mofokeng told an emerging business owner in Eldorado Park.

For Region F aspiring entrepreneurs they can go to Khoebo Opportunity Centre, 9th Floor Samancor House, 88 Marshall Street, Marshalltown or contact 010 980 0952/3.