Bosa Demands Clarity on R500 Million Fund Aimed at Township Spazas
Build One South Africa (Bosa) is urging Trade, Industry, and Competition Minister Parks Tau and Small Business Development Minister Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams to appear before Parliament and clarify the source and management of the R500 million fund announced by President Cyril Ramaphosa.
The fund, aimed at supporting local businesses, follows a wave of food poisoning incidents across the country.
President Ramaphosa revealed the initiative last Friday, highlighting 890 reported cases of food-borne illnesses since September, with Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal being the most severely affected.
Other provinces, including Limpopo, the Free State, and Mpumalanga, have also seen numerous cases.
Several deaths have been linked to hazardous chemical pesticides such as Terbufos and Aldicarb.
Terbufos is registered for agricultural use, but Aldicarb has been banned in South Africa since 2016. Both are often misused in informal settlements for pest control due to inadequate waste management.
In response to the crisis, Ramaphosa announced the R500 million fund, which will be jointly managed by the Departments of Trade, Industry and Competition, and Small Business Development.
The fund aims to support township and rural businesses, including spaza shops, through business refurbishments, technical skills training, regulatory compliance, and capacity building.
While Bosa has welcomed the initiative, it has expressed concerns about potential mismanagement and a lack of transparency.
Acting spokesperson Roger Solomons called for Ministers Tau and Ndabeni-Abrahams to appear before Parliament’s Standing Committee on Appropriations to clarify the fund’s source and allocation.
“This cannot be another slush fund for politically connected individuals or a vehicle for corruption,” Solomons warned.
He emphasised the need for oversight and detailed plans for the fund’s implementation, management, and auditing.
Bosa has raised critical questions, including who will oversee the fund, whether it will be independently managed or handled by government departments, and how beneficiaries will be selected to ensure fairness.
Solomons also called for clarity on how the fund’s success will be measured, the metrics for tracking its impact on township economies, and measures to prevent corruption, such as quarterly reporting.
To ensure accountability, Bosa proposed the establishment of a multi-stakeholder oversight committee, comprising representatives from civil society, businesses, and independent auditors.
Solomons also urged President Ramaphosa to ensure the fund does not become another unfulfilled promise or a channel for corruption.
Additionally, Bosa reiterated its call for townships to be designated as Special Economic Zones (SEZs) to address the legacy of apartheid-era spatial economic exclusion.
Solomons argued that SEZs could boost job creation and provide opportunities to uplift marginalised communities.