This chapter presented the conclusion and recommendations for this study. It is crucial that when SMME development policies are set, the strategies of implementing the policy are borne in mind.
It is practically acceptable to invite key stakeholders when formulating policies, as they are the ones involved in the implementation of such policies (in this case the supporting institutions and the SMMEs’ owners). Furthermore, the monitoring and evaluation of the existing SMMEs’
development policies are more essential, as these might ease the implementation process and alert the concerned parties about the gaps that need to be filled without incurring much cost.
It has been evident through literature and the data gathered that Lesotho just like SA, has established public and private supporting institutions to develop MSMEs at the start-up and growth phases. Between the public and private supporting institutions in Maseru, it was found that there was no difference in terms of how frequently the various institutions provide services to MSMEs. The development programmes provided are still the same as the ones SA provides.
Sustainable growth development programmes designed to assist MSMEs to grow sustainably are offered. The relevant training offered at different stages in the businesses are supported by the view that the supporting institutions are concerned about the sustainable growth of the businesses.
The interviewed participants of institutions that provide finances in Maseru, proclaimed that
180 procedures to access finances have been simplified, to ease access of funds by the entrepreneurs.
The supporting institutions in Maseru, however, declared that when assisting MSMEs, especially at the start-up phase, they encounter many challenges. The main hindrance for them in assisting the sector, is that they are currently running short of finances. Moreover, the supporting institutions attested to the fact that, despite some challenges they face in assisting MSMEs, they are able to meet entrepreneurs’ needs/expectations. They stressed that entrepreneurs always indicate their satisfaction in the feedback given to the institutions.
In SA, it was found that there are also existing public and private supporting institutions established to develop the SMME sector. These supporting institutions assist the SMME sector at the start-up and growth phases. However, in some cases it was noticed that government provides services to SMMEs more frequently than private institutions. It was further realised that public institutions in Pietermaritzburg make it easier for SMMEs to access their services, and their support significantly impacts on business growth. Sustainable growth development programmes designed to assist SMMEs to grow sustainably are offered, just like in Maseru.
Relevant training signifies their passion for the SMME sector as they offer training at the different stages the businesses are in. In Pietermaritzburg, the institutions that provide finances also proclaimed that procedures to access finances have been simplified. The difference here is that in Pietermaritzburg, they are currently not faced with any financial deficits. However, entrepreneurs purported that collateral requirements and high interest rates, make it difficult to access funding, therefore, they are compelled to rely on their personal savings. Just like in Maseru, the participants from the supporting institutions in Pietermaritzburg declared that when assisting SMMEs at the start-up phase, they encounter challenges. Some of the challenges they mentioned include, shortage of qualified staff to assist entrepreneurs, and lack of business experience by the entrepreneurs. The participants from the supporting institutions confirmed that the services they provide are effectively influencing the SMME sector, as entrepreneurs always indicate their satisfaction in the feedback given to the institutions.
In both Maseru and Pietermaritzburg, SMMEs’ owner-managers, are aware of the existing public and private supporting institutions established to develop their sector, however, the utilisation of these institutions is very low. There are support programmes that are perceived by entrepreneurs to be a barrier to their access to finance, start-up and sustainable growth. In both study sites, access to finance is considered a massive barrier to SMME development. Most of the respondents had not received the services provided at the growth phase, perhaps because their businesses have not grown significantly and consequently they do not seek such services. The majority of the respondents, especially in Maseru, had not received training support however, the group that received training from both locations declared that the training received was relevant to their
181 current needs. Collateral requirements and high interest rates, amongst others, are announced to be cumbersome by the entrepreneurs in both study sites. They claim that due to these cumbersome requirements, they cannot easily access finances. This means they perceive the support programmes to be a barrier at both the start-up and growth phases. Amongst all these respondents, there are still some SMMEs’ owner-managers who indicated that they are satisfied with the services provided by the supporting institutions, while others indicated no satisfaction at all.
Many similarities have been highlighted between Maseru-Lesotho and Pietermaritzburg-SA, this means Lesotho may learn from SA and vice versa. It is therefore, important for Lesotho to strategically benchmark itself against SA in order to determine the gaps and try to develop relevant strategies that will assist Lesotho in remaining focused and aware of new developments.
Equally, SA can benchmark itself against Lesotho to be able to determine the gaps. According to Khoase (2007:62), there should be evaluation and monitoring of strategies which will lead to excellent implementation and execution of such strategies if the organisation wants to gain a competitive advantage.
It is highly recommended that future research investigates the impact (hence the value) of developing pre-incubation practices (such as providing planning and financial management skills through training) on the performance of newly established and existing Small, Medium and Micro Enterprises. Furthermore, additional future research may consider the possibility of analyzing the moderating role played by supporting institutions’ internal factors (for e.g: corruption perception) and economic environment factors (economic growth) on the study’s established relationship between supporting institutions and performance of SMMEs.
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