- Members of Parliament challenged the Department of Small Business Development over severe delays in distributing more than R300 million from the Spaza Shop Support Fund
- Lawmakers raised red flags about strict eligibility criteria that regularly shut out township traders and cooperatives from accessing the allocated funds
- The committee also flagged an audit regression, a 10.4% budget variance, and a 15.8% vacancy rate within the department
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SOUTH AFRICA — Members of Parliament sitting on the Portfolio Committee on Small Business Development have called on the Department of Small Business Development to account for the non-disbursement of more than R300 million set aside for the Spaza Shop Support Fund, warning that township businesses and cooperatives are being left without assistance during difficult economic times.
Sunday World reported that the concerns came to a head during committee deliberations on the Budgetary Review and Recommendations Report, where lawmakers questioned how significant public funds could remain unspent while informal traders and small enterprise owners across the country continue to struggle.
Township traders shut out by red tape
MPs pointed specifically to registration and banking requirements as barriers that routinely disqualify micro-enterprises from accessing the fund. Legislators argued that these thresholds are impractical for the very businesses the fund was designed to support.
The use of external intermediaries and implementing agents also drew sharp criticism, with committee members demanding full transparency on the terms and scope of those contracts. Parliament further requested comprehensive beneficiary lists to confirm that disbursements, where they did occur, reached legitimate and active businesses rather than non-operational entities.
On the question of accountability, MPs were unambiguous: administrative officials responsible for delays in delivering funds that Parliament had approved must face consequence management.
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Broader departmental concerns raised
The Spaza Shop Support Fund dispute formed part of wider governance concerns tabled during the same committee session. Although the department met 38 of its 41 annual performance targets, researchers flagged a budget variance of 10.4%, nearly double the department's own 5% threshold.
Adding to the pressure, the department recorded an audit regression, moving from a clean audit outcome to a qualified opinion. A vacancy rate of 15.8% across departmental positions was also noted as a structural risk.
Committee members additionally raised concerns over rising non-performing loans held by the Small Enterprise Development Finance Agency, and questioned the prolonged delay in processing the Business Licensing Bill through the legislative pipeline.
Zimbabwe owes SAA R900 million
In a related article, Briefly News reported on Zimbabwe’s R900 million debt to South African Airways, which has accumulated since 2020 from ticket sales on routes to Harare and Victoria Falls. South African officials say repayment talks are continuing, but no deadline has been agreed.
The airline rejected Zimbabwe’s proposed payments of $1 million per quarter in 2024, a rate that would have taken more than 16 years to clear the debt. The outstanding amount is part of the roughly R1.4 billion SAA is owed by countries worldwide, which the Auditor-General has warned could threaten the airline’s long-term sustainability.
Source: Briefly News