South Africa continues to face one of the highest youth unemployment rates globally, with many young people struggling to find sustainable opportunities. The Metropolitan Collective Shapers (MCS) programme is designed to contribute towards turning this challenge into an opportunity for youth entrepreneurs by equipping them with the tools, skills, and networks they need to build thriving businesses that not only create jobs and build stronger communities but also drive inclusion for young people in economic growth.
While entrepreneurship is a significant contributor to job creation, figures show that around 70% of SMMEs fail within the first five to seven years. Small businesses owned by the under-34 age group represent only 6.8% of all SMMEs, which is an indication of the additional challenges that young entrepreneurs face, not only to survive but to thrive.
Young entrepreneurs are dynamic and innovative, tech-savvy and ready to use social media and technology to their advantage, but they face several obstacles that prevent many of them from creating sustainable businesses. These include financial investment, access to market opportunities and exposure. In addition to these, many young South Africans, facing endless hardship, also lack the life experience, resilience required to establish and grow a business that will be their legacy.
There are many South African corporates contributing financially to our vibrant SMME culture. But ignoring the deeper needs of entrepreneurs, like mentorship and mental health support, is to overlook the foundation of a young business owner’s success,” said Lindiwe Gumede, Chief Marketing Officer at Metropolitan. “Supporting the human behind the business, especially when it comes to building resilience and managing the daily stresses of running a business, remains a blind spot in most entrepreneurship development programmes. MCS takes a more holistic approach to business incubation, and this has greatly contributed to its success to date.”
MCS is now in its fourth iteration, and from three regional campaigns, the programme is now going national, putting the spotlight on the agricultural and logistics sectors. The programme has already helped several entrepreneurs achieve tangible growth. With proven results in the agricultural sector, Pete Mashaphu, a poultry farmer, doubled his flock and expanded his infrastructure using MCS prize money. Benjamin Nkanyane scaled his vegetable farm and now supplies national retailers as well as other successes.
MCS is now turning their attention to the logistics sector and looking for young entrepreneurs.
Named for the collective legacy it seeks to achieve along with participants in its programme, MCS enables young entrepreneurs to lift as they rise and to give back to their communities, whether with job opportunities, feeding schemes or in other innovative ways. The MCS programme offers young entrepreneurs both financial and non-financial support, including investment funding, business leadership coaching, national exposure, access to real market opportunities, ongoing mentorship, branding and media training. MCS is committed to building enduring success for the nation's most deserving entrepreneurs.
The programme is open to youth-led small businesses in the agriculture and logistics sectors.
To apply, visit: www.metropolitan.co.za – before 30 September
