Support for young entrepreneurs critical to economic growth
High barriers to entry into formal employment, new opportunities that now exist and the desire to be one’s own boss have encouraged young South Africans to start their own ventures. The term “side hustle” has become synonymous with today’s youth, who are starting businesses from a young age to combat the effects of a challenging economy. “With high levels of youth unemployment, we must place emphasis on entrepreneurship as an alternative avenue to job creation and economic growth,” says Belinda Rathogwa, Head of Client Solutions- Small Enterprises at Standard Bank. “A ‘side hustle’ could be turned into a ‘main hustle’ – a viable business that becomes the main source of employment.” This, Rathogwa says, cannot be achieved without dynamic support for young entrepreneurs. “There is a great need for information on how to run a business, how to secure funding as well as how to meet gain access to tools and systems that make it easier to run a business.” ...