The Department of Trade and Industry, (the dti) together with its agencies will host an open day event and exhibition showcasing their products and services at the dti campus in Sunnyside, Pretoria. The open day will take place tomorrow, 11 March 2016 and will be addressed by the dti’s Director-General, Mr Lionel October.
The purpose of the event is to give the public and small, micro and medium enterprises (SMMEs) an opportunity to engage and interact with the dti’s various programmes and agencies on how to start, grow and expand their business.
According to Mr October, the open day will also give an opportunity to educate and create awareness about the dti’s offerings and services to the public and other stakeholders.
October says this year's event will also be an opportunity to launch the dti mobile unit as a pilot project to improve the accessibility of the department’s services and products especially for people in rural and remote areas.
“This will be done by establishing a roving office that will operate in areas which are currently far from the present regional footprint consisting of the main office in Pretoria and three regional offices in the Eastern Cape, Western Cape and KwaZulu-Natal,” adds October.
“The mobile unit is therefore considered as an additional platform that will provide on-the-spot support to enterprises as part of a targeted intervention to narrow generic support to specific enterprise support in the form of small projects with defined objectives and fit-for-purpose strategic partners, particularly the local economic development sector and small enterprise development practitioners,” added October.
Agencies that will be exhibiting on the day include Small Enterprise Development Agency (Seda), Companies and Intellectual Property Commission (CIPC), South African Bureau of Standards (SABS), National Empowerment Fund (NEF), National Consumer Commission, National Consumer Tribunal, National Gambling Board, Proudly South African, Competition Commission and other divisions of the dti.
Enquiries:
Sidwell Medupe
Departmental Spokesperson
Tel: 012 394 1650
Cell: 079 492 1774
E-mail: MSMedupe@thedti.gov.za
Twitter: @the_dti
