On Wednesday, 21 August 2024, the Centre for Social Entrepreneurship Rapid Incubator (CSERI) Durban University of Technology (DUT), hosted a remarkable graduation ceremony at the scenic Durban Botanical Gardens. The event was a celebration of excellence, bringing together entrepreneurs, business leaders and key stakeholders to honour the Small, Medium and Micro Enterprises (SMMEs) who completed their transformative training and incubation programme at CSERI.

Solomon Nyamurima, Director of CSERI at DUT, warmly welcomed all attendees, including DUT SMMEs alumni and stakeholders. He highlighted the Centre’s mission, established in 2015, to ignite and nurture entrepreneurial spirit within DUT and across the province, fostering meaningful impact within communities.

“Last year in May, we had an induction of 105 SMMEs, but as the journey progressed, others could not meet the criteria to qualify, leaving me with 45. I am proud to say that 36 SMMEs have graduated, while nine had to be relocated and that increased the success rate to 80%,” he said.

He highlighted that graduating SMMEs had sustained more than 130 jobs and created more than 40 jobs. More than five SMMEs are turning over one million and employing more than five employees respectively. He also emphasised that the SMMEs were diverse, focusing on various sectors such as construction, clothing and textile, retail, events, décor, arts and craft, hospitality, real estate, food and beverage, chemical manufacturing, printing and advertising, the beauty industry, creative arts, agriculture, ICT, hygiene, education, food processing and recycling manufacturing.

Nyamurima stated that he had learned a great deal from the SMMEs and also praised the role of artificial intelligence in their journey. He also thanks his team for teaching him how to use artificial intelligence.

Small enterprise development agency, STP Manager Sandile Longwe shared some changes that would be made between 2025 and early 2026. The president had signed the bill that SEDA and SEFA would become one organization called Small Enterprise Finance Development Agency (SEFDA). SEFDA would assist SMMEs with financial support. “The board always asked me what we did, so I wished them to see these programs and understand that whatever we did had an impact on developing SMMEs. In the new organization, maybe we could get a bigger budget so that we could support more,” Longwe added.

He further mentioned that as a business owner, it was crucial to find a mentor who could guide and give advice accordingly. He stated that SMMEs had to attend conferences so that they could grow.

Business executive coach, Trevor Clark, shared powerful tips on how to make a business successful. Clark mentioned three key words which are ownership, accountability, and responsibility. Having couched many SMMEs who wanted to succeed, Clark has helped entrepreneurs like Thokozani Ndwandwe in achieving his goal in business.

“I used the entrepreneurship ladder which has helped numerous SMMEs, and it includes the following students, employees, self-employed, owners, investors, and entrepreneurship,” Clark added.

DUT Director of Procurement, Nonhlanhla Gumbi, wished all the graduates great successes in their journeys. She also announced the new structure from Procurement, she started by introducing Ziningi Ngubo, who is under analyst and supply data-based management and Nirupa Kemraj, Associate Manager, who focuses more on IT, selling of books, academics and research. She continued by mentioning the new system that DUT uses that is known as Software Application Programme. Gumbi explained the role of artificial intelligence, indicating that at DUT they had moved everything to digital which is submitted on emails. She also highlighted that the employment rate in South Africa is the biggest issue.

“SMMEs will now have to contribute to the economy by employing the youth, who are unemployed,” said Gumbi.

DUT SMMEs alumni, Thokozani Ndwandwe, shared his business journey as the founder of Nolanga Trading Enterprises. The Nolanga Trading Enterprises is based at Newlands West and was established in 2006, but he started working in 2009. He stated that he had a coach, Trevor Clark that assisted him in making his business successful. He also mentioned that he had a team at Gqeberha Motherwell on a Transnet Project. He graduated in October 2023 and resigned in November 2023 to focus on his business.

Ndwandwe said that he had pitched his legacy project because he saw that his community struggling in accessing needs. In December 2025, he will be opening a small shopping centre at Mandeni and it was approved by Umlalazi Municipality and Ingonyama Trust.

Siphelele Fanteso, a graduate of Siks Electrical and Security Systems, expressed his gratitude to all stakeholders and the Centre for Social Entrepreneurship and Rapid Incubation for empowering him with the skills and opportunity to succeed in his business. He proudly shared a notable milestone, announcing that Toyota would be conducting an audit for his business on 29 August 2024, in recognising his company’s work in meeting international standards. He thanked DUT Procurement for their financial support, which had contributed significantly to his business’s growth and success with the funding to the tune of R60 000.

Business development officer, Brightness Nyawose announced the top 10 entrepreneurs who had excelled in their pitching. They were Sisanda’s African Pride, Luhnyezi Farming, Cleanfest, Pepita Trumpet, ZiyaMedic Wear, Noccy’s Nails, Pam’s Bakery, Corelab, Siks Electrical and Security Systems, Toks Logistics. These outstanding entrepreneurs had showcased remarkable talent and dedication to their businesses, demonstrating a clear understanding of their products and services, and effective communication of their vision to the audience.

In her closing remarks, Nyawose expressed her heartful gratitude to all stakeholders for their invaluable contributions to the growth and development of the SMMEs. She extended warm congratulations to each graduate, wishing them a resounding success in their entrepreneurial endeavours. Nyawose also took a moment to thank the Botanical Gardens for their kindness in consistently providing a beautiful and conducive venue for their event.

Pictured: Bheka Nxumalo

Phiwayinkosi Sibiya