Free State Business 2019 edition

FOCUS
Bringing services
to the people
The Free State Development Corporation is bringing services
closer to the people through its strategic partnership programme.
CIPC Commissioner Adv Rory Voller (left) and FDC CEO Ikhraam Osman (right)
at the SST official launch at Rent-A-Desk.
The strategic partnership between FDC (Free State Development
Corporation) and CIPC (Companies & Intellectual Property
Commission) brings relief to SMMEs (small, medium and
micro-enterprises) by bringing services to their doorstep.
The CEO of FDC, Ikhraam Osman, and CIPC Commissioner,
advocate Rory Voller, launched an Electronic Self Service Terminal
(SST) at Rent-A-Desk on 2 June 2017. This initiative assists aspirant Free
State entrepreneurs and SMMEs as they are now able to register their
companies with CIPC at a minimal cost of R175. In addition to cutting
the transport cost of having to travel to Pretoria for registering their
business, they receive their registration certificate within two days
after registering.
According to CIPC, the facility is a government response to meet
the needs of emerging businesspeople by bringing services at low
cost to their doorstep.
FDC CEO Ikhraam Osman indicated that Rent-A-Desk is a co-working
space of affordable shared services that provides SMMEs and other
businesses an opportunity for collaboration and networking, secure
parking facilities, boardroom, full reception services and high-speed
Internet. Other advantages include housekeeping services, access to a
fully equipped kitchen, printing and email facilities.
Botshabelo Industrial Area
In November 2017, the Free State Premier, Ace Magashule, and his
delegation conducted site visits to Botshabelo Industrial Area to
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assess the state of development
of manufacturing entrepreneurs.
Companies visited included CMT
operators, tyre manufacturers,
roofsheet manufacturing, LSF
frames, trusses and hall panel
manufacturers, PVC ceiling
manufacturers and suppliers,
household electric goods
manufacturers and broiler
producers.
The purpose of the visit
was to assess for himself the
state of the development of
manufacturing entrepreneurs
and the conditions under which
they operate. This was intended
to ensure that government
enterprise development support
programmes respond to specific
needs of manufacturers such
as ensuring that provincial
government and municipalities
source from local manufacturers
to help to sustain their business
and generate much-needed jobs.
The FDC and DESTEA
(Department of Economics,
Small Business, Tourism and
Environmental Affairs) were
directed by the Premier to
implement targeted market
access and product development
interventions to enable the
Botshabelo SMMEs to grow their
business and facilitate access
for them to the incentives that
are available for their business
expansion projects.