Cape Town - Licensed informal traders can continue business in Cape Town for the second year running without having to dig deeper into their pockets.
This follows the City’s approval of a zero percentage increase on informal trading permits for the 2023/2024 financial year.
This approval by council follows a zero percentage increase on the permits for the 2022/2023 financial year; a 12-month informal trading permit fee amnesty for 2022; and the writing off of informal trading permit Covid-19 related arrears from April 1, 2020 to December 31, 2021.
Mayco member for economic growth James Vos said the City recognises the informal trading sector as a major contributor to the local economy and the livelihoods of many Capetonians.
“The motivation for this zero percent tariff increase can be seen as a direct contribution by the City to create more jobs in the informal trading sector.”
At the same time Vos said the issuing of informal trader permits is one of the 10 indicators in Cape Town’s Ease of Doing Business Index launched in May.
Vos said the tariffs are location, size and infrastructure dependent and generally range from R69 a month for “street trading” to R1 500 a month for lockable container trading. The 2020 income was R4 367 293.
Asked how the City could afford the zero tariff increase and how the gap in earnings would be covered, Vos said: “From a Municipal Finance Management Act compliance perspective, the gap is funded from the department’s operating budget.”
Meanwhile, the South African community-based small business co-operatives sector is expected to benefit from a recently signed memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the South African Department of Small Business Development and the German Co-operative Raiffeisen Confederation.
The department briefed Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Business Development about the MOU, which aims to facilitate job creation through supporting and capacitating communities, officials and groups for the development of viable and sustainable co-operatives.
The department’s director of co-operatives business support, Vukile Nkabinde, said the agreement aims to ensure a responsive local government that is effective, efficient and economically able to promote local economic development.
“It will do this through co-ordinated delivery of capacity building and support to municipalities and cooperatives.
“In this way, local economies will be supported and the scope for growth will increase.”