South Africa needs more “capitalists with soul” to drive the economy and to allow small business to become more prominent in smaller communities and townships.

This was the overall message at the fourth National Small and Medium-Sized and Microenterprise Policy Colloquium, held in Tembisa, on Thursday. The yearly colloquium is facilitated by the Department of Small Business Development and the Small Business Development Institute.

Speaking at the event, Parliament’s Small Business Portfolio Committee acting chair Xithangoma Mabasa urged developers of large business complexes to include small business owners, as this will help grow small business.

“It is not right that we must have big malls coming to the townships and pushing away small businesses, because [they should be] capitalists with soul. If you are dreaming of owning a big shopping mall, ask yourself, what role are small businesses and cooperatives going to play?

“Do not be proud of being monopolists, of being the only big shop in the township. . . That butchery must grow with the growth of the mall. The mall must not kill the butchery,” he averred.

Mabasa added, however, that small business should not “take comfort” in being small business and should strive to become bigger businesses to drive employment and prosperity.

“You must gauge yourself, just pick one child in your street that is crawling and say that, by the time that child runs, my shop must also be running. Don’t take pride in being a spaza shop forever, a spaza shop must only be a start,” he illustrated.

Meanwhile, Transnet COO Mlamuli Buthelezi said that programmes such as Transnet’s recently launched R62-million Matlafatšo Centre, at the University of the Witwatersrand were “remarkable” initiatives in promoting small enterprises and improving competitiveness in the industry.

“It is vitally important that we encourage the spirit of entrepreneurship,” he said.

Taking place during the tenth anniversary of Global Entrepreneurship Week, the colloquium sought to tackle challenges inhibiting economic growth and job creation.