Sasol has announced that it is providing a fuel sponsorship to Township Entrepreneurs Alliance (Tea).
The oil giant said that was in line with Sasol’s commitment to nurturing entrepreneurship in South Africa and supporting the socio-economic development of fence-line communities.
The sponsorship will enable Tea to conduct its mission of developing entrepreneurs in townships, rural areas and informal settlements.
Founded by Bulelani Balabala, Tea, a township organisation that has a national footprint, creates platforms for learning, information sharing, brand engagement and networking for entrepreneurs from disadvantaged communities.
Eight years in operation, Tea has impacted more than 80 000 entrepreneurs through its workshops and mentoring.
Tea connects the government, corporate South Africa and entrepreneurs together.
The fuel that Sasol provides will help Balabala and his team travel across South Africa for their workshops for the rest of the calendar year 2024.
The business workshops and exhibitions are hosted in all nine provinces, with one taking place every three weeks in a township.
They aim to equip township start-ups and small business owners with soft and practical skills. Business owners walk away inspired, having gained access to practical learning, and connected with entrepreneurs.
Further workshops this year will be in Ibhayi in the Eastern Cape, Sebokeng in Gauteng, Mokopane in Limpopo, Soweto and Tembisa in Gauteng.
The vice president of strategic marketing for energy marketing and sales at Sasol, Zanele Hadebe, said: “As a proudly South African company, we are delighted to join leading organisations such as Brand South Africa and the NYDA (National Youth Development Agency) in developing township and rural entrepreneurs. These organisations share our passion in developing the SMME sector.
“At Sasol, we understand that successful entrepreneurs in our fence-line communities hold the key to spurring economic development and job creation that benefits the whole country.
“Recognising that many entrepreneurs spend a lot of time on the road and that fuel is a major cost to them, the Sasol Rewards programme is a terrific way to stretch their rand further. They can earn rewards for fuelling up and these rewards can be spent on fuel, in a Sasol Delight store or with a range of our Sasol Reward partners that include various iconic South African brands.”
Balabala said: “Building entrepreneurship skills is essential to help address the youth unemployment crisis as it encourages the young people to start their own businesses. It is also vital to help existing entrepreneurs scale and grow their businesses in challenging times.
“We welcome our partnership with Sasol as corporate partners play a key role in helping us to bring our vision of enabling small business owners to thrive and grow.”
BUSINESS REPORT