Anglo American Kumba Iron Ore’s Sishen mine recently trained 50 local small, medium and micro-sized enterprises (SMMEs) to develop their entrepreneurial skills, thereby ensuring that they are able to supply quality services within, among others, the mining and public sectors.

Sishen mine’s Enterprise Development (ED) office engages with many local SMMEs looking to register them onto the mine database to become potential suppliers to the mine. The majority of these SMMEs sadly do not have the experience required for the scope of work. This led to the need for a training workshop that aimed to upskill SMMEs so as to be able to present and explain well-planned and sustainable business ideas to ensure a high degree of success.

The ED office identified 50 eligible SMMEs within the John Taolo Gaetsewe district to take part in a two-week course presented by the North West University (NWU).

The main objective of the program was to develop a pipeline of local SMMEs that are ready to conduct business with the mine and other sectors. The programme was also necessitated by the need to grow the economy of JTG district municipality so that SMMEs do not focus on supplying services to the mine only, but to other sectors of the economy as well, so as to ensure that they are not dependant on the mine alone, but will be able to sustain themselves beyond the life of mine.

The Small Business Advisory Bureau (SBAB) at North West University conducted the training which focused on the following : 1. Introduction to entrepreneurship.

2. Entrepreneurial ideas and opportunities. 3. Entrepreneurial management skills.

4. Basic financial concepts. 5. Entrepreneurial administrative skills. 6. Entrepreneurial legal skills. 7. Entrepreneurial marketing skills. 8. Entrepreneurial planning skills.

To conclude the training, SMMEs underwent an intensive examination period where all they had to complete a portfolio of evidence as part of their course. Following which, they were rewarded with certificates during an award ceremony held at Sishen mine on Friday 01 February 2019.