WHILE most small South African businesses fail within their first year largely because these entrepreneurs do not have the necessary skills and knowledge to run a successful business and they face language challenges as most business books are written in English. Nokwazi Mzobe, founder of Matoyana Business Solutions. launched the isiZulu edition of The Small Business Handbook, at the Durban Natural Science Hall on Thursday.
According to Mzobe, the available resources that could improve entrepreneurs’ knowledge are usually not in their mother tongue, which made it even more difficult for them to develop their skills.
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“Research shows that the number one barrier to comprehension for the majority of black South Africans is being taught in English. Thus, the isiZulu version of my book, ‘Umhlahlandlela Wamabhizinisi Amancane’, has come into being with the aim of making knowledge more accessible to isiZulu speakers. IsiZulu is the mother tongue of over 22.7% of South Africans. There is a great need for business concepts to be packaged in African languages and this translation is the first of its kind,” Mzobe said.
“The Small Business Handbook’ has all the basic information about launching and running a sustainable business. Small business owners and aspiring entrepreneurs can refer to the book for ideas on how to address issues in business, such as creating an ethical business environment, devising a marketing plan, and understanding different revenue strategies,” she said.
Mzobe’s primary partner in the project was Procter and Gamble, through their P&G Leadership Academy. The P&G Leadership Academy is a training programme for entrepreneurs developed by P&G in partnership with Matoyana Business Solutions, and delivered to small businesses by P&G leaders and entrepreneurship experts.
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“The Small Business Handbook’, which we believe is a comprehensive resource for any entrepreneur will be able to help even more small businesses thrive now that it has been translated into isiZulu,” said Khululiwe Mabaso, CSI Associate Director for Sub-Saharan Africa at P&G.
Thobela Ngidi, Manager: Libraries & Heritage, eThekwini Municipal Libraries said: “The book will be a great addition to the ‘business corners’ in our libraries. These ‘business corners’ address our country’s dire need for local economic development, by making business-related information and knowledge resources available for all citizens of eThekwini so that they can use these resources to either start or develop their businesses.”
The handbook Umhlahlandlela Wamabhizinisi Amancane is also available to order online from Matoyana, or via Snapplify. For further enquiries, email info@matoyana.co.za.
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