Kimberly: The Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (dtic) is today hosting the final session of its workshops designed to bring essential services closer to entrepreneurs, innovators, and the broader community in the Northern Cape. Today’s event, being held at the Protea Hotel in Kimberly, marks the conclusion of a series of workshops that started earlier this week.

According to South African Government News Agency, Deputy Director-General of Investment and Spatial Industrial Development at the dtic, Yunis Hoosen, emphasized the workshops’ aim to unearth technologies from underdeveloped communities and townships. These events serve as networking platforms for technology development and commercialization, focusing on grassroots innovation and development. Hoosen noted, “This is a series of workshops set up to form partnerships and gain a better understanding of the needs of innovators to enable the development or adjustment of existing instruments to meet their needs.” The workshops are also slated t
o be held in two other rural provinces following their Northern Cape success.

The three-day event series was organized by the dtic in collaboration with the Northern Cape Department of Economic Development and Tourism, the Small Enterprise Development and Finance Agency (SEDFA), and the Phokwane Regional Innovation Networking Platform (PRINP). An integral part of these workshops was the presentation of the Khoebo Innovation Promotion Programme (KIPP). This initiative supports small, medium, and micro enterprises (SMMEs) and start-ups by providing financial and non-financial aid, facilitating their market entry with locally developed innovative products and services across various economic sectors.

Hoosen elaborated on the KIPP initiative, stating, “KIPP’s objective is to enable early-stage innovative SMMEs to penetrate the market with their locally developed innovations resulting in a more competitive economic environment and thereby facilitating economic growth in the South African Economy.” Since its ince
ption in 2020, the program has funded over 42 projects, committing R160 million across a wide range of economic sectors.

The workshops commenced at the Kuruman City Lodge on Tuesday and moved to the Hartswater Town Hall on Wednesday, culminating in today’s event in Kimberly.