Assessment of Cooperatives in the Poultry Industry - 2013.pdf - Seda

Research Report: Addressing the Needs, Opportunities and Challenges of Cooperatives
and Collectively Owned Enterprises in the Poultry and Related Industries
3. Literature Review
3.1. Introduction
This chapter has a dual aim: to firstly provide an overview of relevant policies and legislation
applicable to cooperatives to which SEDA’s assessment of cooperatives in the poultry industry needs
to be aligned, and secondly to provide a development framework for the establishment and growth
of cooperatives consisting of both small and medium enterprises. The literature review provides the
national strategic direction of cooperatives in South Africa, where the provincial policy review
indicates the direction and available actions of government in the province in terms of cooperative
development. This serves to establish a consistent and conducive set of measures to promote viable
cooperative development, support and integration. The interventions and recommendations
provided in this study would also need to be integrated with the legislation and policies discussed in
this section.
3.2. Legislation
A number of legislative documents is discussed in this sub-section, and is inclusive of the following:
National Small Business Act (1996)
Cooperatives Act (No 15 of 2005)
Cooperative Amendment Bill (Section 75)
Meat Safety Act (2000)
The implications of each legislative document are also provided alongside each review.
3.2.1.
National Small Business Act (1996)
The White Paper on Small Businesses identifies different types of small businesses alongside the
challenges and possible interventions faced by each kind of business. In 1996 the White Paper was
enacted by government as the National Small Business Act, in which informal businesses are
classified under micro-enterprises, specifically survivalist operations, which are not registered and
are seldom regulated.
The act informs of government’s intention to improve the small (inclusive of micro-enterprise)
business environment by employing the necessary resources. From the act, two entities were
formed, namely the National Small Business Council and Ntsika Enterprise Promotion Agency.
Through the aforementioned the interests of small businesses are highlighted at a national level.
Among others, the focal points for survivalist enterprises are to enhance entrepreneurial skills and
improve literacy levels within.
The main objectives of the National Small Business Act are (Steyn: 2011):
25 | P a g e U r b a n - E c o n : D e v e l o p m e n t E c o n o m i s t s