E5BN SPRINGBOARD FOR SMES

MBABANE – The Post-COVID-19 Recovery Plan E5 billion benefit is a springboard for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) to catch up on lost opportunities posed by the pandemic.

This was a submission made by Small Enterprises Development Company (SEDCO) Chief Executive Officer Dorrington Matiwane. He said that the plan was feasible especially because it was private sector driven. However, he shared that it just needed the support, which should be visible.  He added that the opportunities must be thrown open because the approach with MSMEs was that of ‘may the best man win’. He submitted that the COVID-19 pandemic halted the activity in the economy, hence for the industry to get back on its feet it needed something that was stimulating like the E5 billion benefit presented in the plan, which would motivate the MSMEs to give it all they’ve got in helping the situation.

Output

“We are trying to cover the lost time from April to September. We have lost six months in a year and we have lost so much, in the next six months we should work towards attaining a 12 months output to make up for the losses so we really need the E5 billion benefit. We are convinced that if the opportunities are transparently available, then the achievement is very promising because with SMEs its always ‘may the best man win’ so that we attain only the best,” he said.

Matiwane also shared that they were also happy that the plan was private sector driven because it would be transparent in that the federations and MSMEs will be at the forefront and there would be no tenders mushrooming from nowhere but all would be transparent. “We also have the National Disaster Management Agency, which would also be at the front and we are optimistic that all will work out because it would be open and everyone will have an equal chance,” he said.  An economist, who spoke on condition of anonymity, shared her thoughts on the subject and submitted that the E5 billion benefit would indeed go a long way in assisting SMEs.

Post your comment

Your name:

Your e-mail address:

Add your comments:

Please enter the code you see in the image:

Image:

Code: