The Black Industrialist Programme (BIP) is a key component of the Department of Trade and
Industry’s (the dti) Industrial Policy Action Plan (IPAP) and is aimed at boosting economic growth and
job creation.
The progress of the BIP was addressed at the Manufacturing Indaba in 2016 and the discussion will
continue at the 2017 Manufacturing Indaba at Emperors Palace in Ekurhuleni from the 27 – 28 June
2017.
A senior economist at the World Bank’s Global Practice, Dr Marek Hanusch, said at the dti dialogue
in March that policy makers should re-orient South Africa’s investment tax incentives (ITI) towards
trade, construction, manufacturing, and agriculture as that would encourage private investment and
increase job creation.
“What you need to do is look at the job multipliers so that you get the most jobs for every buck you
spend,” Hanusch said.
The BIP provides practical support for emerging black industrialists by equipping them with the
necessary equity to gain access to the private banking sector and finance to enable expansion and
provide working capital. Access to markets has for some time, prevented black entrants into the
industrial sector because of their limited marketing capacity and market research, which the BIP will
address, to ensure these enterprises have the capacity to explore these markets. The BIP will assist
by forming stakeholder relationships with corporations, banks, development finance institutions and
state-owned enterprises. The dti will also provide training so that the black industrialists have the
relevant skills and industry-specific knowledge.
