Small Business Is Big Business, Says Ramaphosa Calling on SAs To Embrace Entrepreneurial Spirit

Riyaz Patel

President Cyril Ramaphosa has emphasised the importance of South Africans embracing a culture of entrepreneurship, in tandem with efforts to attract R1.2 trillion in investment over the next five years.

“We must look at what needs to be done to promote and encourage the entrepreneurial spirit and an entrepreneurial culture. I have long said that entrepreneurial skills should be included in the basic education curriculum,” Ramaphosa told a gathering of small, medium and micro-sized enterprises (SMMEs) on the last day of the Investment Conference in Soweto.

“Far too often our citizens are risk averse when it comes to entrepreneurship, preferring the so-called comfort of gainful employment to the perceived insecurity that comes with self-employment.”

During his closing address at the second South Africa Investment Conference in Sandton Tuesday, the President announced a series of policy and legislative interventions to remove barriers hampering small business growth.