Durban symposium to support women-owned businesses with finance and markets
Sixty women entrepreneurs are due to receive productive assets at a Durban symposium focused on finance, markets and business growth.
Women entrepreneurs will meet government and business-support organisations in Durban on Monday for a symposium focused on access to finance, markets and practical growth support.
Small Business Development Minister Stella Ndabeni is due to lead the Women in Business Symposium at The Station on 14 September.
The event is being organised by the Department of Small Business Development and the Small Enterprise Finance and Development Agency.
Productive assets for 60 entrepreneurs
The department said 60 women entrepreneurs would receive productive assets through the Informal Micro Enterprise Development Programme.
The programme provides equipment intended to help qualifying informal and micro enterprises improve their operations and grow. The announcement did not specify which assets would be handed to each business.
Organisers said the symposium would bring entrepreneurs together with stakeholders who can provide business opportunities, networks and information about finance and markets.
The department framed the event as a move beyond short-term survival towards sustainable business growth. It did not publish the names of the 60 beneficiaries in its announcement.
Monday's event will focus on practical connections between entrepreneurs and institutions that can support growth. Access to finance and markets are listed as two of the central themes, alongside business opportunities and professional networks.
The symposium is scheduled for The Station in Durban. The department has not announced whether its sessions will be open to entrepreneurs who are not among the asset recipients.
The meeting adds to the department's programmes for informal and micro enterprises, where productive equipment can reduce the upfront cost of expanding a business.