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| Market Assessment of Business Development Services, South Africa, GTZ, 2004 |
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| Country(ies) | South Africa |
| Implementing agency(ies) | GTZ |
| Funding agency(ies) | BMZ |
| Date completed | June 2004 |
| Geographic setting(s) | Urban |
| Target Group(s) | Mixed |
| Sub-sector(s) | Multiple |
| Contact person(s) | Ms. Gabriele Trah, Mr. Shawn Cunningham |
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Description
The German South African programme on Business Development Services and Local Economic Development (BDS/LED) is helping to develop functioning markets for BDS that benefit local SMMEs by assisting them to realise their growth potential and create employment. Like many other agencies, GTZ believes that developing markets for business services is the best way to enable a large number of small enterprises to obtain the business services they need and want. Vibrant private sector BDS markets also stimulate the growth and competitiveness of local economies.
Methods for info gathering
SE interviews, focus group discussions, quantitative, qualitative
Summary of results
BDS interventions are intended to improve the performance of SMMEs. Reliance on the private sector to provide services to more enterprises demands a better understanding of how BDS providers can become financially self-sustainable and profitable. It also necessitates a better understanding of the actual demand for BDS in specific markets.
GTZ and South African SMME support institutions worked together on a pilot program to identify interventions that could promote development of markets and demonstrate the validity of this concept in South Africa.
In a follow-up to the market assessment, GTZ and its partners analyzed the data and created service profiles with information on the current and expected status of each service, market characteristics, and possible options for intervention.
Many of the gaps between supply and demand of the services the study focused on can be narrowed by stimulating interaction between small companies and service providers. Ultimately it would be ideal if service providers could learn to be more aware of the demands and specific requirements of consumers and if these customer could understand better their options and the characteristics of various service offerings.
Services
Accounting, Advertising, Advisory and Consulting Services, Business Information, Business Planning / Strategy, Computer Related Services, Environmental Management Services, Facilitating Business to Business Linkages, Financial Consulting, Legal Consulting, Management Training, Market Access, Marketing, Product Design/ Development, Production Consulting, Quality Management Services, Tax Services, Technology Consulting
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