AbstractsEconomics

ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The democratically elected government of South Africa has done a great deal of work in ensuring that all the citizens of the country participate equally in contributing to the economy of the country. Through policy interventions, an environment has been created whereby all entrepreneurs in the country can be part of the solution by creating meaningful jobs, alleviating poverty and reducing the inequality gap. However, as a country, South Africa has not performed to its full potential in entrepreneurial activities. According to the GEM report of 2014, the country’s entrepreneurial activity dropped by 34% since 2013 (Dludla, 2015). This is a huge concern for a country with one of the highest unemployment rates. According to StatsSA (2014), the current unemployment rate in the country is at 25 percent, while youth unemployment is currently 52.6 percent. There are various factors that negatively affect doing business in South Africa. These include crime and theft, corruption, low levels of education and access to finance (Schwab & Sala-i-Martin, 2014). The impact of some of these factors is amplified when it comes to previously disadvantaged entrepreneurs due to various factors, including the legacy of apartheid. Corporates and financial institutions have been proactive in developing interventions aimed at improving the success rate of black entrepreneurs. Some of these initiatives have been successful while others have failed to achieve their objectives. This study focused on the challenges faced by black entrepreneurs in the commercial forestry-contracting sector and explored roles that could be played by government, corporates and financial institutions in assisting black entrepreneurs in this sector to develop and become sustainable. The results of the study show that issues such as business experience, cost of crime and lack of business support were some of the challenges faced by these black entrepreneurs. The results also show that some of the interventions by the government were poorly marketed, resulting in minimum awareness from the contractors. AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Geen opsomming beskikbaar Advisors/Committee Members: Mathur-Helm, Babita.