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Showcasing and celebrating township entrepreneurs. PHOTO BY OMOTAYO TAJUDEEN FROM PEXELS
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SUCCESSFUL JOURNALS
CONTENTS
Cover Design by Aasif Sirkhotte
4 EDITOR'S NOTE LONWABO MARELE 7 FIRE PIECE: ORGASMIC GAWULO - THE SUCCESS OF GUGULETHU'S HIGHCULTURED FOOD CUISINE 13 EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: INGA ATELIER THE CREATIVE WHO DESIGNS 3 TIMES A YEAR 21 #AD: BATSAMAYI SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT 22 TOP READ: SILULO ULUTHO TECHNOLOGIES - HOW TO BUILD A TOWNSHIP ECONOMY THROUGH CAREER AND BUSINESS INCUBATIONS 25 SJ MEDIATV: BECOME A VIDEO CONTENT CONTRIBUTOR 27 BUSINESS TECH: BATTLING SA'S RISING YOUTH UNEMPLOYMENT 29 SUCCESSFUL JOURNALS NEW APP
13 COVER STORY The Creative Who Designs 3 Times A Year
Inga Gubeka, founder and creative director of Inga Atelier, a contemporary lifestyle brand that makes unique luxury leather goods.
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START NOW, START SMALL, STAY CONSISTENT Big things are coming! That is the message for all our fellow entrepreneurs and global readers. Start now, start small and stay consistent is the theme for our August/September issue. We have managed to share some inspiring journeys of success from entrepreneurs across South Africa. They have all been through different struggles relating to business. And as a result of the Covid19 Pandemic, they had to innovate in order to stay consistent and to deliver their crafts in their different industries.
We are led by creative designer, Inga Gubeka, who made his market in the luxury industry with Inga Ateleliers' customised leather bags. Gubeka is from a small town of Ngqeleni in the Eastern Cape, his company is based in Gauteng, Dubai and USA. We also share the story of Thulani Mguda, the co-founder of Orgasmic Gawulo, a fine dining cuisine and gourmet restaurant in the heart of Gugulethu, Cape Town. And, of course, Silulo Ulutho Technologies' brothers, Luvuyo and Lonwabo Rani, share their success journey of how they went from selling refurbished computers from the boot of their car, to taking over the township economy with career and business centres across three provinces. These stories of hope are what keeps us going. When we see other entrepreneurs do it, we are inspired to share these stories to inspire more entrepreneurs. Our economy, the employment of the nation and the investment in Africa depends on prosperous entrepreneurship, and we are happy to be at the forefront of this vision. Together we can build a better tomorrow, today!
LONWABO MARELE FOUNDER & CEO SUCCESSFUL JOURNALS hello@successfuljournals.com www.successfuljournals.com
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EDITOR'S NOTE
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Bridgestone Supports Safety and Efficiency for Athletes and Operations at Olympic and Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020.
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SUCCESSFUL JOURNALS | FIRE PIECE
FIRE PIECE
ORGASMIC GAWULO: THE SUCCESS OF GUGULETHU'S HIGH-CULTURED FOOD CUISINE By Lonwabo Marele
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"JUST LIKE ANY BUSINESS WE STARTED VERY SMALL WITH THE FOOD TRUCK.
Thulani Mguda, a young entrepreneur in his late 20s, was in tears when he shared the story of Orgasmic Gawulo, a fine dining and gourmet restaurant in the heart of Gugulethu, Cape Town. Orgasmic Gawulo translates to pleasurable food in South African slang. The business started as a food truck in 2017. Fast forward a couple of years later, it is rapidly becoming one of the coolest go-to spots in the city. Influenced by his father who was a professional chef, Mguda says their menu is typical of a list a foodie would get at a restaurant at the V&A Waterfront. “Our space is more of a fine dining cuisine and gourmet dishes kind of vibe, all under one umbrella; but we still serve the experience of the Kasi culture”, he says. Over the years, tourists visiting the city have been interested in the township experience. They have visited places such as Khayelitsha’s restaurant and chill place, The Milk and Rands; as well as former Gugulethu shisa-nyama hotspot, Mzolis. Mguda says that at their joint, they have added a bit of youth and modern flair to attract their market while giving back to society through employment. “The response has been amazing. Just like any business, we started very small with the food truck. We currently have our own space. We have tapped into a market outside of our comfort area”, he says.
Mguda says his father’s influence sparked an interest for him to follow suit in the cooking industry; but along the way, the streets had a fair share on him. In his teen years, Mguda joined the wrong crowd and fell victim to gangsterism. In many of the townships across the country, it is easier to find a role model in the streets than it is to find one at school. Many of the idols rode in cool cars, like the Gusheshe (BMW 325i) or the latest Volkswagen Golf GTI, drank expensive alcohol, carried weapons, and changed girls every weekend. And so, Mguda quit school. Mguda says nobody made a married man, a doctor, a teacher, or a business person look cool. It was always a celebrity, a sports juggler, or a gangster the kids looked up to. AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2021 | SUCCESSFUL JOURNALS
He survived multiple gun shootings in his late teens. But when some of the people he knew lost their lives to the streets or went to prison, he had a decision to make. Going back to school required money that his family did not have. The only way out of the game was to seek legal employment. When his daughter was born, he made a vow to give her the best life possible. He went into entrepreneurship with his friend Tumi Mayende, cofounding Orgasmic Gawulo. Prior to Orgasmic Gawulo, Mguda failed at numerous attempts in business. He sold handbags, African accessories and shoes. But the skill passed on by his father at a young age turned out to be a saviour in his entrepreneurship journey. He says that one of his aims in entrepreneurship is to make it look cool for youngsters in townships. Mguda and Mayende came far with Orgasmic Gawulo; from a food truck near the Gugulethu mall, to renting out a place in ny12, to their new venue located at ny7 opposite the sports complex.
While both entrepreneurs of Orgasmic Gawulo have big visions in business, their ideas clashed, forcing Mguda to go solo. The food joint's success made waves in the local news scene, attracting influencers from across the country, including Johannesburg-based rapper, Dee Koala, from Khayelitsha; as well as Redbull and Adidas ambassador, Andrew Ngcaba, to name a few. “The initial aim is to change the perception of food and close the gap of ‘you have to go to the suburbs to get nutritional food’. We are also spreading the message of reaching your dream irrespective of where you come from”, he says. Like many businesses hampered by the Covid-19 Pandemic, Mguda says the national lockdown and Eskom's load shedding forced them to adjust their business dramatically to keep the lights on and to take care of their four staff members. He recently introduced a delivery service to cater for the market outside of Gugulethu.
2017
2021
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SUCCESSFUL JOURNALS | FIRE PIECE
“It does not end here. We still need to grow and go further. The plan is to franchise the business in the future. The idea now is to get the right culture and systems. We are planning to have our own Orgasmic Gawulo’s chef academy; and to collaborate with many businesses to give a luxury experience in the townships”, he says. Mguda says one mind is good, but three or more minds together are great.
“As much as our businesses and industries differ, when you start up as an entrepreneur, capital is a challenge. Systems and operations are similar. Our struggles are similar. "I started without a mentor, but with a mentor we can go very far. The best win is when entrepreneurs work together in townships”, says Mguda. SJ
"THE BEST WIN IS WHEN ENTREPRENEURS WORK TOGETHER IN TOWNSHIPS.
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PHOTO BY MATEUSZ DACH FROM PEXELS
"All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them. - Walt Disney WWW.SUCCESSFULJOURNALS.COM
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INVEST IN CRYPTOCURRENCY
PHOTO BY ALESIA KOZIK FROM PEXELS
Cryptocurrencies are digital assets people use as investments and for online purchases.
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW
THE CREATIVE WHO
DESIGNS 3 TIMES A YEAR By Lonwabo Marele
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SUCCESSFUL JOURNALS | EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW
AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2021 | SUCCESSFUL JOURNALS
AFRICA'S VERY OWN PREMIUM LUXURY BRAND From a small town of Ngqeleni in the Eastern Cape, South Africa, to selling customised leather accessories worldwide, Inga Gubeka shares his success story.
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SUCCESSFUL JOURNALS | EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW
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SUCCESSFUL JOURNALS | EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW
UNPACKING THE SPIRIT OF DESIGN IN BUSINESS When the use of imagination becomes a creativity of will, it can only be described as art. It is a simple yet telling analogy. After all, there is nothing more visceral or existential than an imaginative mind inventing and presenting traditional African design to a global market. Behind Inga Atelier is a boy from Ngqeleni, a previously disadvantaged village in the Eastern Cape of South Africa, where people live below the poverty line, are limited, or rather less exposed to finer things. The brand depicts the story of a young man who grew up to become a traveler of the world through the use of creative design. Inga Gubeka is ambitious, with a goal of becoming a household name at only 33; yet as his brand continues to push waves in the United States of America, he remains composed. After giving birth to Gubeka, his mother was determined to finish school. She left him in the trusted hands of his grandmother, a wellknown principal at a school in a nearby village. Academics were a priority in the Gubeka household, although his entrepreneurial spirit triumphed. “I used to create cars with old wires and sell them for R2,50 or R5,00. I remember how I would come back home with the money and get a hiding from my grandmother. She would say I am embarrassing her as a principal. I realised later that what I was doing was actually entrepreneurship, because I was exchanging a product for a monetary value,” he says.
AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2021 | SUCCESSFUL JOURNALS
"MY AIM WAS TO BE A RENOWNED DESIGNER. Inga Gubeka found his purpose as a leader at a young age; more so, his imagination was the driver behind his creative side. “When we went to play by the river, I would make something from the clay and glitter and give it to my grandmother. She would keep it as a souvenir. That is where the whole art started,” he says. At the end of high school, Gubeka went to the Xhosa initiation school where he learnt the values of manhood. The following year, he took a gap year to identify the field he wanted to study at university. He moved to Durban where he stayed with his grandfather. The culture shock of moving from a small village to a multi-cultural suburb propelled him to learn to communicate in English through magazines and lifestyle TV shows.
He studied Arts and Design at the Durban University of Technology. He graduated and moved to Cape Town to add to his profile Graphic Design from the Cape Peninsula University of Technology. “When I came to Cape Town, I was focused. My aim was to be a renowned designer. I had a group of friends around me who were a good support group. We had a brotherly bond that made me focus well. I was fortunate to have friends like that who are still my friends,” he says. Inga Gubeka says he never liked the idea of studying Graphic Design; and in 2012, ventured into his first business, Indalo Décor, named after his son, Ndalo. Two of his friends believed in the idea and joined him on the venture. Of course, African designers have a unique approach to materiality, transforming what is at hand into an unexpected product. “I stumbled upon a shell that was built of wood. I looked at it and it was so cool. And so I thought, ‘How can I make something so cool that I can hang on the wall?’ I said, ‘Hang on a second, this can be a wooden bag’. The money I started with was money I got from my grandmother as a monthly allowance. I went deep into it. I started making bags. It was then that the journey began,” he says.
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Indalo Décor repurposed in ingenious ways while mass producing materials reimagined in novel applications - reflecting traces of a previous incarnation. Indalo Décor made noise through art; and soon they were heard by former CEO of the Cape Town Fashion Council, Bryan Ramkilwan. As Inga Gubeka puts it, Ramkilwan “almost fell off his chair” when he saw the wooden bags. Indalo Décor was invited to participate in the 2013 Mercedes Benz Cape Town Fashion Week. “I remember that the fashion week was in six or seven days’ time. Bryan Ramkilwan said, ‘I want these for fashion week’. He started calling designers that I can collaborate with. "We collaborated with Peacemaker. The bags were a hit. Dr. Tshepo Motsepe personally invited me to the Joburg fashion week, which was three months later. Everyone loved it and we were sold out. That was the beginning of Indalo Décor,” he says. Indalo Décor had three partners and business was booming. Inga Gubeka says he had a fallout with his partners. They were leading the company into a different direction. When he consulted with his lawyer, he was advised to resign and leave without a cent. The after-thought of leaving his first business broke Inga Gubeka down. He went into a deep depression. He spent 42 days at a psychiatric hospital and two months in rehab.
“I think it is very important for me to tell this story. There are a lot of other people going through the same journey. Someone might be helped by this story. First things first - you need to seek professional help. And you need to want the professional help. Right now, I consume a lot of positive content,” he says. He turned a new leaf, a fresh leaf, with the introduction of Inga Atelier, tailored for luxury leather bags and accessories. “I got a call from a guy called Mandla Sibeko, the director of the FNB Joburg Art Fair. He called me thinking I am still at Indalo Décor. He said, ‘I didn’t book my space’. I said, ‘No, I have another venture’, and he said, ‘let us book it’.” “With less than five days to go, I had ideas but I did not have a brand. I got in touch with a guy I used to work with, and he was on board. I spoke to my friend who is an attorney and she assisted me with a starting fund,” he says. Inga Atelier’s accessories were sold out in its first week on the market. An Inga Atelier leather bag takes about five hours to make. It is accurately cut, accurately stitched and patiently assembled by hand, by a trained production team. In addition, a special scent is specifically customised to add the final touch to all Inga Atelier bags. “What inspires me everyday is to build a brand that competes on quality, merit, design aesthetics and finishing on a global scale; to build a legacy brand that can best represent South Africa,” he says. Inga Gubeka is doing just that. In 2016, he was named one of the top 30 Africans under 30 on the Forbes list. He was honored as a Glenfiddich Maverick; and was invited as a speaker at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland. At the WEF, Inga Atelier collaborated with Absa. They gave over 120 leather bags to attending dignitaries, including South African President, Cyril Ramaphosa, and former Minister of Finance, Pravin Gordhan. Inga Atelier's attention at the 2018 Sanlam Handmade Contemporary Fair attracted a foreign investment from a Dubai based company.
"THE BAGS WERE A HIT. AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2021 | SUCCESSFUL JOURNALS
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Their investment in Inga Atelier helped the company to employ 35 production staff in South Africa. They have head offices in Dubai, a warehouse in Florida, USA, and the head of production in SA. They are constantly in virtual meetings to keep up to date with the production, distribution, marketing and advertising of Inga Atelier products worldwide. One of their biggest aims is to tap into the Asian market, which has the biggest luxury market in the world. “We are trying to get into retail in Shiroyama or Shinjuku in Japan between now and next year. The Japanese market, in fact the Asian market, is one of the highest spending luxury markets in the world. The first phase is the USA, the second is Emiratis, the third is the Asian market, Europe is the last market,” he says.
Inga Gubeka says he spends three days in the production warehouse to design the latest products. He spends the majority of his time signing off Inga Atelier papers or building and investing in entrepreneurs around South Africa. In the past year, he has helped over five entrepreneurs to develop their businesses in the fashion, entertainment and digital media industry. “As an entrepreneur, I am not going to wait until I am a billionaire to pull others with me. We need to lift each other as we rise to create generational wealth. The future generations of entrepreneurs should never suffer like we did. A child in the Eastern Cape is inspired by MaXhosa, a person from Katlehong or Soweto is inspired by Tshepo Jeans. We should create that sort of inspiration to create generational wealth. We need to lift as we rise.” SJ
"WE NEED TO LIFT AS WE RISE.
AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2021 | SUCCESSFUL JOURNALS
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Confessions is a poetic book written by Percy Temane, also known as Prince J The Bard. The book is available on Successful Journals. AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2021 | SUCCESSFUL JOURNALS
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SUCCESSFUL JOURNALS | TOP READ
SILULO ULUTHO TECHNOLOGIES
TOP READ
HOW TO BUILD A TOWNSHIP ECONOMY THROUGH CAREER AND BUSINESS INCUBATIONS By Lonwabo Marele
AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2021 | SUCCESSFUL JOURNALS
When it comes to the township economy, research shows four types of industries that tend to succeed: the taxi industry, the food and beverage industry, the fashion industry, and the business of insurance. To introduce an Information and Communications Technology company to the poorest of the poor is a leap of faith; a guaranteed path to failure, many would say. But for Silulo Ulutho Technologies, it is the perfect venture. The story of Silulo dates back to 2004 when two brothers, Luvuyo and Lonwabo Rani, quit their jobs to sell computers from the back of their car. At the time, it was not a well thought-out decision. They had just failed from two attempts: in the business of selling customised shoes and in a cleaning company. The failed attempt in business propelled Lonwabo to go for a job interview. But instead of receiving a job, he was given an opportunity to sell two computers in the township. He called his brother, Luvuyo, who has a background in teaching; and they both sold refurbished computers in Khayelitsha, Cape Town.
Luvuyo admits that at first, people thought they had stolen the computers; but the trust they had built over the years was unshakable. They then realised that many of the teachers who bought the computers needed lessons, so Silulo Ulutho Technologies introduced training courses. Silulo’s breakthrough came in 2019 when they opened career and business centers. They saw a digital divide and the need for an immense digital transformation in townships. They train over 100 people daily, with over 60,000 people trained since they started. They employ more than 220 staff in 45 career and business centers in the Western Cape, Eastern Cape, and Kwa-Zulu Natal. “They talk about blue markets. A blue market is a market that no one has ever created before. People were going to formal markets where they knew their business would flourish. We moved into an area that not many people were keen about”, says Luvuyo. “Doing business in the township is not easy. There are infrastructure problems resulting from robbery and lack of affordability in the market you are dealing with; because you are dealing with the poorest of the poor with social ills from the previous system”, says Luvuyo. “We chose our environment. We never did any research, feasibility or viability to conclude that this is a model. We followed our heart. Entrepreneurship is about identifying a need, spotting an opportunity, taking a risk, and following your heart. Before it was called a township economy, we were at the forefront. We started from nothing and built something”, says Luvuyo. The Silulo team says that in the next five years, they want to have 300 centers across the African continent. And, in the next 20 years, they aim to be the leading business in townships and rural areas where access, skill, and affordability are solved; to create a pipeline for the collaboration of these communities with big companies and governments. “Automatically, we are becoming the biggest institution. We do not see anyone who will be bigger than Silulo in the next ten years. We have got a Silulo foundation now that is taking care of the unemployed youth and preparing people for the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR)”, says Lonwabo. In a couple of months, Luvuyo will be releasing a book titled, Dare To Dream, which shares his story of entrepreneurship.
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"DON’T GO INTO BUSINESS FOR MONEY. MONEY HAS FOUR LEGS. YOU CANNOT CATCH IT. BUT IF YOU HAVE A GOOD SERVICE MONEY WILL FOLLOW YOU.
The author says that before a company accepts investments, that specific company needs to be clear about their business; they have to build a profile that will attract investors to their space. “We started from a R10,000 seed fund. The most important thing we need to do as South Africans is to start. Don’t ask for money to start. Start small and stay consistent”, says Luvuyo. He says the power of entrepreneurship is enough to create impact and overcome poverty by creating employment. “We are not going to be liberated by politicians. This country is not going to be changed by the 4IR. Employment is going to be addressed by entrepreneurs. We need to make sure we take up skills in coding, languages, and for young people to innovate in becoming entrepreneurs. This is the time to do something, sell something, and start small”, he says. “Don’t go into business for money. Money has four legs, you cannot catch it. But if you have good service, money follows you. Some doors will be closed in your face, some doors will open. All of this is about patience. It takes time to build something. And you must take care of your health”, says Luvuyo. Lonwabo says business is difficult when you start, hence entrepreneurs need tenacity, patience, and a never-give-up attitude to achieve their goals. “Before we started making money, it took us five years; even in those five years, we were not making money. Even now, people are seeing a tip of the success. We know where we are going. "We are working with a lot of SMMEs from the townships, especially in East London. We are trying to change people’s perception of tenders and tap into entrepreneurship. It is the core of everything,” says Lonwabo. SJ
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"CAPE TOWN IS PLEASED TO BE CHOSEN AS ONE OF THE CITIES TO PARTICIPATE IN THE FORMULA E TOURNAMENT. THE EVENT WILL UNLOCK MAJOR INVESTMENT, JOB CREATION AND TOURISM POTENTIAL THROUGH IDENTIFYING CAPE TOWN AS THE RACING DESTINATION OF THE AFRICAN CONTINENT. WE LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING TOWARDS THIS EVENT. THE CITY HAS THE NECESSARY INFRASTRUCTURE AND SKILLS TO HOST AN EVENT OF THIS SIZE AND WE ARE CONFIDENT THAT THE EVENT WILL FURTHER CEMENT CAPE TOWN’S GLOBAL REPUTATION AS THE WORLD’S LEADING FESTIVAL AND EVENT DESTINATION. - CAPE TOWN MAYOR DAN PLATO. CAPE TOWN WILL HOST THE FORMULA E CHAMPS IN FEBRUARY 2022.
South Africa-branded Formula E Gen2 car
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SUCCESSFUL JOURNALS | BUSINESS TECH
TEACHIFY 4 ENTREPRENEURS
BUSINESS TECH
IDENTIFYING A GAP IN SA'S EDUCATION SYSTEM By Noni Sophe
AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2021 | SUCCESSFUL JOURNALS
INTRODUCING INNOVATIVE LEARNING PROGRAMS Since the introduction of the World Wide Web in the mid 1990s, entrepreneurs around the globe have come up with innovative ideas to improve our socio economic issues. For South Africa, a country setback by numerous social ills, including unemployment, has never had a perfect time for the internet of things to disrupt the education system. Teachify, an organisation introducing the concept of online learning programmes has a positive contribution to make towards South Africa's economy. They saw a gap in the education system of South Africa. Director and Coach at Teachify, Mncedisi Mabhele says the idea came when they researched that the current South African market is hampered by unstable businesses. "Businesses and organisation are not doing well and have not been doing well for a while now. "Therefore, Teachify enables people who ordinarily wanted to be employed to start their own businesses. We do not only lean on theory, but we also teach practical skills needed for the business and individual or group interested in a program,” he says. Teachify has offices in East London and Johannesburg. They provide learning opportunities that invigorate school leavers and other young people into successful and competent entrepreneurs in diverse industries.
“What sets us apart from what the University is offering in the country is the realistic and practical aspect of the job. Our course material is not only theory-based but has well-thought-out practical guidelines,” says Mabhele. With traditional learning at the forefront, Teachify also aims at launching more online courses that cover skills highly demanded locally and internationally. Their sole focus is to practically train people to be successful entrepreneurs. Teachify boosts a track of highly trained coaches with active businesses. They are prepared to transfer their skills to aspiring entrepreneurs. Their carefully selected modules and practical interventions have a high impact on a businesses success rate. The following are some of the courses currently available at Teachify: FinTech (Financial Technologies) 4IR (4th Industrial Revolution IoT (Internet of Things) Information Technology Programming Cybersecurity Data Analytics Data Science Digital Marketing Project Management. Through their course material, Teachify believe they will produce successful entrepreneurs and world-class professionals who will change the fortunes of South Africa. For more information, visit: www.teachify.co.za SJ
NONI SOPHE IS A PUBLIC RELATIONS AND COMMUNICATIONS AGENT. FOR MORE INFORMATION AND TO ARRANGE AN INTERVIEW, CONTACT HER AT NONISOPHE@GMAIL.COM OR AT 078 233 9509
A AU UG GU USSTT//SSEEP PTTEEM MB BEER R 22002211 || SSU UC CC CEESSSSFFU ULL JJO OU UR RN NA ALLSS
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YOUTH UNEMPLOYMENT
BUSINESS TECH
BATTLING SOUTH AFRICA'S RISING YOUTH UNEMPLOYMENT Young people can leverage on digital technology, creativity and extremely low levels of entrepreneurship in the country, but what can government and business do? By Masibulele Lunika
AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2021 | SUCCESSFUL JOURNALS
"GOVERNMENT TURNED TO ENTREPRENEURSHIP AS A WAY TO ABSORB TO LABOUR AND CREATE NEW JOBS. This year’s youth month is perhaps the toughest for young people since 1976. Youth’s unemployment figures have reached a record high, seating at an eye-watering 76.7% under the expanded definition of unemployment which includes discouraged job seekers. This is according to research by Statistics South Africa (Stats SA), who recently reported the rate's rise to a record of 43.2% in the first quarter of 2021 from 42.6% in the last quarter of 2020. This has left young people in a search for alternative solutions to counter these rising figures, when government intervention and efforts are little to none. While some may look at this as an opportunity for young people to tap into their youthful creativity and embrace digital technologies, others are much less hopeful due to their poor experiences with government institutions meant to help them in their entrepreneurial journeys. Poor government intervention During this year's #YouthDay speech, President Cyril Ramaphosa said young people must ask themselves 'what they can do for the development of the country', rather than asking 'what the government is doing', similar to the youth of 1976.
GCINA NTSONGA
KAVEER BEHAREE
While others may see this statement as positive advice to encourage youth to take initiative, others look at it as very rich, a sign of a failed government running away from claiming responsibility. The president did, however, announce that the government would be piloting a new skills development model that will in the first phase, create training and job opportunities for young people in digital skills and global business services. Founder and CEO at Ubiquity AI, Kaveer Beharee, says this is just another government promise that will yield little to no results. Judging from his experiences with seeking funding for his startup company, Beharee sees no hope in the SA government fulfilling their promise unless drastic changes are made to address job creation and spur entrepreneurship. “From an economic policy perspective, it is important to understand that our country has an abysmal record in creating a conducive economic environment for job creation,” he says. “In fact, the center of job creation efforts by our government is absorbing labour in the public sector - in which our government has among the highest wage bill in the world, with very little productivity growth and almost always inflationplus wage increases," he says. "So, despite government’s ballooning debt, which goes towards expenditure and not investment, no wonder there’s been very few results resulting in job creation in South Africa,” he says. “Consequently, government turned to entrepreneurship as a way to absorb to labour and create new jobs. The problem is: what efforts government has undertaken? Clearly, they have failed as SA has the highest unemployment rate in the world - especially among youth - equaling the performance of failed economies like Zimbabwe and Venezuela,” says Beharee.
WANDILE TSHABE
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Entrepreneurship as a main solution Many young entrepreneurs believe that a huge chunk of how to become successful in today’s environment involves creativity, and being entrepreneurial instead of waiting on unreliable job creation promises and government intervention that may take ages. Co-founder and Director at No. Land Farming, Wandile Tshabe says entrepreneurship provides a great opportunity to address various social challenges. “It encourages one to interrogate these challenges in creative ways and address them directly, rather than allowing current circumstance to inhibit them from creating a better and more sustainable life and future for themselves,” he says. Tshabe believes young people can begin with a change in mentality around the idea of work, moving away from viewing it as employment but rather a tool to create an environment that adds value to society and an opportunity to improve the livelihoods of others. “I think if we employ this mentality as the youth, entrepreneurship will be seen as a way to ‘pay it forward’ to others whilst also improving your own life/situation,” he says. This view is shared by Gcina Ntsonga, Chief Operations Officer at Africanize.co who says entrepreneurship needs to be bred from a grassroots level. Ntsonga believes that entrepreneurship should be among the top three of any young person’s life goals, instead of a last resort. “Entrepreneurship is something that we’re missing from a high school level. We should be breeding it into our young people from the beginning of high school. "If you really think about it, there is not enough business competition in South Africa. The way we do business studies is just a regurgitation of what the teacher said, you’re not really entrepreneurial in the course. There is nothing about it that could ignite a student’s passion for business and that’s where we’re missing it,” he says. Extremely low levels of entrepreneurship According to The Unseen Sector 2019 report by The World Bank and International Finance Corporation, building small businesses that contribute to the economy and create jobs is one of South Africa’s biggest development opportunities. “However, the MSME sector in South Africa has been relatively stagnant over the last decade.”
Based on StatsSA's research, there were 2.309 million MSMEs in 2017 compared to 2.019 million in 2008. Given the limited growth in MSME numbers, it appears that the sector is not making as meaningful a contribution to the South African economy as expected. “South Africa’s rate of established entrepreneurship is extremely low compared to other African countries. Given its GDP per capita, South Africa should have a rate of early-stage entrepreneurship three times greater than the current rate. With fewer start-ups and a low rate of survival, there is a thin pipeline of businesses with a high chance of scaling,” notes the report. Employability in the digital age Another key challenge for young people is figuring out how they can become more employable in today's digital landscape. This is a huge advantage when compared to previous generations of young people. According to The World Development Report 2019: The Changing Nature of Work, digital technologies have the potential to help build skills not just for a privileged few but for all workers— including those with low education and limited opportunities—and to boost productivity and create better jobs in all enterprises. Today, the internet is flooded with numerous free study opportunities for young people willing to learn on-demand trades and those seeking to upskill themselves. “We see where the world is going, towards technology and services on demand and if you’re someone wanting to be more employable, you need to have the skills of the future, like IT, programming, financial understanding, stats, analytics, science, technology, and all that stuff, because that’s where the world is going,” says Ntsonga. “If you want to be more employable that’s the best way and if you didn’t study those, it’s not the end of the world, there are online platforms where you can learn like Coursera, Harvard online or even LinkedIn learning who partner with universities. There are many platforms where you can learn these skills without necessarily having to go through formal education,” he adds.
"THERE IS NOT ENOUGH BUSINESS COMPETITION IN SOUTH AFRICA.
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"WHAT IS OUR GOAL, PRIORITIES AND STRATEGY FOR NOT ONLY RETAINING OUR SKILLS BUT ATTRACTING SKILLS TO EXPLOIT HIGH GROWTH ECONOMIC SECTORS OF THE FUTURE?
How can businesses help? In contrast to the great advantage of a digital landscape in today’s age, a disadvantage for many youths across Africa is a lack of access to the tools, skills, and resources to take advantage of these digital avenues. Through their Corporate Social Investments, big companies can help in empowering youth in townships and rural areas with the resources needed for the jobs of the future. Ntsonga recommends businesses should join the Yes program by the president, a youth unemployment service where they can get paid by the government to pay a young person’s stipend. Over the past decade, the share of the continent’s under-20 population has expanded by more than 25% and is projected to be the continent’s largest age cohort by 2070.
What can government do? Beharee, who has over 20 years as an economic journalist, believes that our youth do not have the skills, the support from government or the money to exploit entrepreneurship. “This is an absolute tragedy as the economies around the world adapt to the fourth industrial revolution. If SA did more than just acknowledge the Fourth Industrial Revolution, and actually put up resources and efforts to promote and exploit it. We do have a chance of reversing our paltry job creation record,” he says. Beharee recommends that the government follow Tunisia’s example and enact new proentrepreneurship legislation that provide companies with tax incentives to use start-ups, promote training, expand access to funding and foster new ecosystems for innovation. He also advises that, “unlike our President that blows hot air about the Fourth Industrial Revolution,” we follow France’s example and develop a national strategy with targets, strategies and budgets that enable our youth to make informed choices about sectors and careers with huge potential. “Quite simply government should put up or shut up. I have had the pleasure of engaging the French government as an AI entrepreneur. It’s a national strategy to position and exploit the Fourth Industrial Revolution to future-proof the French economy. Consequently, France is attracting talent from around the world - especially Africa - to drive their economic growth. What is our goal, priorities and strategy for not only retaining our skills but attracting skills to exploit high growth economic sectors of the future?” SJ
MASIBULELE (MASI) IS A FREELANCE REPORTER & COPYWRITER SPECIALIZING IN TECHNOLOGY AND SCIENCE ACROSS VARIOUS PLATFORMS. MASI MERGES A HISTORY IN DIGITAL MARKETING, RADIO, PRINT, AND ONLINE JOURNALISM TO PRODUCE WELL-RESEARCHED AND EASYTO-READ COPY. LUNIKA.MN@GMAIL.COM
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