Alternative funding models for social enterprise were unpacked by Entrepreneurship Lecturer Ms Lindiwe Kunene during her presentation at the Durban leg of the Pathways to Funding Do-Ference.
Ms Lindiwe Kunene. |
Alternative funding models for social enterprise were unpacked by Entrepreneurship Lecturer Ms Lindiwe Kunene during her presentation at the Durban leg of the Pathways to Funding Do-Ference.
The event was hosted by the Bertha Centre for Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship and the University of Cape Town’s Graduate School of Business.
The two-day workshop aimed to equip the audience of more than 500 entrepreneurs including investors, lawyers, and business development experts with practical knowledge and tools on how to overcome funding obstacles which is the greatest hurdle they face.
The event achieved this through interactive workshops, specialised one-on-one sessions and talks centred on raising early-stage finance that can advance the growth of a business.
Kunene’s presentation explored the use of Corporate Social Investment (CSI) and Enterprise Supplier Development (ESD) - which have replaced what used to be Enterprise Development (ED) and Preferential Procurement - in BBBEE to fund social entrepreneurial business.
‘The presentation and the continuing research on this stems from the notion that days of social enterprises being charity organisations awaiting instructions and funding from some parent corporate or government body are over,’ said Kunene. ‘The reality is that the social enterprises exist in what is referred to as the third sector in our economies. Where the public sector (first sector) and private sector (second economy) have failed to provide for the demands of the people, this third sector comes in,’ said Kunene.
Kunene said there was a call for social enterprises to be sustainable in their quest to fulfil goals.
‘The emphasis of my advice is embedded in social enterprises continuously engaging with their environment, collecting intelligence on who is doing what, where, and why, in order to stay ahead and take advantage of opportunities. This has manifested through work over the years with social enterprises and other organisations. Merging this experience with academic knowledge, uncovers solutions to assist entrepreneurship as a whole,’ she added.