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21 July 2008

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) will host its fifth national annual small business summit, from 1 to 2 August 2008, at the Pietermaritzburg Royal Showgrounds in KwaZulu-Natal.

The event will be hosted under the banner 'Consolidating Partnerships and Linkages for Sustainable Small Enterprise Development', with broad ranging participation of more than 500 delegates, including small business policy makers from the three spheres of government, business consultants, financiers, entrepreneurship educators, entrepreneurs, incubator specialists and academia.

The DTI seeks to strengthen policy and strategy dialogue, and forge networks among role players in the small business development sector of South Africa via the 2008 small business summit. The meeting will also serve as a platform for the National Small Business Advisory Council (NSBAC) to interact with stakeholders and receive public inputs within their specific focus areas.

In turn, delegates will also be given the opportunity to make inputs on the work of the NSBAC, which mainly focuses on strategies to address identified market failures affecting the sector and the impact of current and new legislation on small enterprises.

The Minister of Trade and Industry, Mandisi Mpahlwa, will also share his perspective on the department's achievements and how the DTI and its partners have been responding to small business sector development challenges.

Transport arrangements from Durban to Pietermaritzburg, and return, will be arranged for journalists on the first day of the summit, and will be dependent on demand. In order to finalise the necessary arrangements in a timeous and efficient manner, interested members of the media are kindly requested to confirm their attendance and transport assistance by the below deadline.

Interested media stakeholders should RSVP by 25 July 2008 to:
Bongani Lukhele
Tel: 012 394 1643
Cell: 078 526 8572
E-mail: blukhele@thedti.gov.za

Enquiries:
Sidwell Moloantoa Medupe
Cell: 073 522 6801
E-mail: msmedupe@thedti.gov.za

Issued by: Department of Trade and Industry
21 July 2008