Government must assist SMME with tender compliance
Rigid procurement regime hinders the participation by small businesses in government projects.
JOHANNESBURG SOUTH – Gauteng Infrastructure Development Minister MEC Nandi Mayathula-Khoza, blamed procurement process for hindering to Small, Medium and Micro Enterprise (SMME), when applying for tenders, on June 17, at the GDID Open Day, at Gallagher Estate.
Rigid procurement regime hinders the participation by small businesses in government projects, said Mayathula-Khoza.
“Our people are excluded from participation in government projects because they do not qualify, as they often don’t comply with our complex procurement requirements,” she said.
Mayathula-Khoza addressed over 400 stakeholders, including young people, military veterans, women, people with disabilities and SMMEs.
She said GDID officials would assist emerging businesses to comply with tender requirements,as part of government’s radical economic transformation programme.
“We must change how we relate to our people. Gauteng government is transforming the economy to break the patterns of ownership that perpetuate the Apartheid status quo, wherein very few South Africans benefit,” she explained.
”We are building the state that listens to the people and a government that is responsive; that means we must change the mind-set of those in the public service to treat people with dignity at all times.
“We must fast track how we implement government’s policy of building township economy. This means we must have set asides for SMMEs, pay small businesses within 30 days and deal with corruption,” Mayathula-Khoza concluded.
