Township Economic Development BootCamp

The Township Economic Development BootCamp known as the TEDBootCamp is an Enterprise Development Accelerator aimed at promoting and accelerating entrepreneurship and promoting the ownership of the township economy which will eventually lead to the greater ownership of the South African economy.

The TEDBootCamp is an Enterprise Development Programme that is aimed at nurturing and supporting the development of the Township Economy through accelerated youth entrepreneurship, the aim is to promote the ownership of young people into the Township Economy which would eventually be conducive to the ownership of the broader South African economy

The programme is aligned to the 2020 National Youth Policy as well as the Youth Employment Accord and also the Sustainable Development Goals.

The project has been piloted in Mangaung Metropolitan Municipality townships in the Months of June and July and has assisted many youth led businesses in townships with access to networks, access to information as well as access to markets and by various procurement spaces.

Companies which have been assisted are in the areas of ICT, Marketing, Building and Construction, Education and Training and also in Manufacturing and our aim is to reach all Free State, North West and Northern Cape townships in the next 5 years and to build stable Accelerator Hubs across townships and rural areas which will support and mentor Township and rural youth entrepreneurs

Through this programme we aim to lend a hand in turning things around and helping young people to triumph over poverty through job creation and entrepreneurship.

The Purpose of the TEDBootCamp is to promote the black ownership of the township economy through accelerated Youth Pan African Entrepreneurship, this is guided by the fact that the ownership of the township economy is conducive to the greater ownership of the South African economy.

The TEDBootCamp programme will be rolled out in townships through BootCamps, Enterprise Development Workshops, Elevator Pitches as well as to mobilize various procurement departments of some of the top JSE Listed Companies as well as government departments to be part of the TEDBootCamp programmes with an aim of making the people to be exposed to the various opportunities that can benefit their business ventures.

The support, mentorship and incubation that we aim to give in the promotion of township entrepreneurship will be through the following platforms:

• Entrepreneurship BootCamps
• One on One Mentorship Sessions
• Township Entrepreneurship Procurement Workshops
• BBBEE Capacity Building Workshops
• Township Women Entrepreneurship Business Breakfasts
• Township Entrepreneurship TurnUp Braais
• Township Entrepreneurship Innovation Showcases
• Township Innovation Summits

Through the programme we aim to develop over 3 000 sustainable township entrepreneurs over a 5 year period

Aims and Objectives of the Township Economic Development Programme:

• To build, mentor, incubate sustainable pan African businesses within the Townships.
• To build a vibrant township economy that is driven by domestic entrepreneurship.
• To address the high percentage of small businesses which do not last for over 2 years
• To accelerate entrepreneurship development so that small businesses will grow and become job creators in the economy of South Africa.
• To contribute to the growth, development and success of businesses that fall under our incubation and acceleration programme.
• To provide relevant and progressive products and services to businesses which we mentor and incubate.
• To ensure that businesses which we mentor and incubate become leaders and trendsetters in their respective sectors through effectiveness and productivity.