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The DA has received a parliamentary reply from the Minister of Finance and Economic Opportunities, Mireille Wenger, which demonstrates the DA-led Western Cape Government’s recovery plan is on track. This follows the severe impact the pandemic had on both lives and livelihoods.

The Department of Economic Development and Tourism’s (DEDAT) Red Tape Reduction Unit (RTRU) has supported the proliferation of job-creating SMMEs in our province by assisting 1410 businesses between the 2020/21 and 2021/22 financial years. Of those businesses which received support, 20% of have been supplied with information on how to start a business and obtain funding.

The Provincial Parliament’s Standing Committee on Finance, Economic Opportunities and Tourism will conduct an oversight visit early next month to the Department’s Procurement Client Centre to see first-hand how the RTRU assists businesses in becoming government suppliers. This will help us to get an in-depth understanding of measures taken to assist SMMEs and ensure that our economic recovery is on track.

To ensure that the Department’s commitment to inclusivity is being fulfilled, I will also be submitting questions to Minister Wenger on how many of the businesses assisted by the RTRU form part of historically economically underrepresented groups within the population.

The RTRU was launched in 2011 to assist businesses with the bureaucratic challenges faced in starting and growing their businesses. The RTRU’s interventions include:

• Influencing bills, draft regulations, and policies through more than 60 commentaries on draft legal instruments such as the National Integrated Small Enterprises Development Masterplan 2022. This advocacy is done to support business owners.
• The RTRU has made it easier for businesses to apply for and obtain licenses from the government. The unit previously supported Western Cape Liquor Authority to digitise its application systems, streamline its processes and make the process more accessible.
• In another proactive step, the RTRU has launched a massive communications campaign to raise awareness of the support it offers. The unit has also used personal engagements and roadshows to make sure its interventions reach the intended audience.
• The unit’s Business Support Helpline has also logged more than 11 000 cases over the past decade, which has allowed for major systemic challenges to be identified and addressed from the information received.

DEDAT also revealed in the reply that the RTRU’s efforts has ensured R1 billion in cost savings and benefits to the economy in the last 5-year reporting period, ending in 2019. These savings are more than 20 times the total cost of the unit to date, proving what is possible when a government focuses on providing a conducive environment for businesses to grow.

The DA in the Western Cape welcomes these interventions which are creating an enabling environment for our small businesses to grow and create jobs.

Issued by Cayla Murray, MPP - DA Western Cape Spokesperson on Finance, Economic Opportunities and Tourism