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Sasdc Diversity Council By executing our mission of Collaborate, Certify, Connect, Capacitate and Celebrate, the South Africa

SKILLS DEVELOPMENT IS THE BEGINNING. BUILDING CAPABILITY IS THE GOAL. Training is most impactful when it equips people a...
16/10/2026

SKILLS DEVELOPMENT IS THE BEGINNING. BUILDING CAPABILITY IS THE GOAL.

Training is most impactful when it equips people and businesses to turn knowledge into action.Young people need practical workplace experience, while MSMEs need the skills, support and market access to grow, compete and create employment.
These resonated during the SASDC MSME Labour Market Dialogue, where conversations around youth work readiness, learner placements and MSME growth highlighted the importance of aligning skills development with real-world needs.

At the South African Supplier Diversity Council (SASDC), capacity building is at the heart of what we do. Our training programmes are designed to strengthen the knowledge, practical skills and business capabilities required for meaningful economic participation and sustainable growth.

But building capability also requires opportunities to apply what has been learnt.
Through our capacity-building initiatives, supplier diversity work and Project EMBRACE, SASDC continues to support the development of capable individuals and businesses equipped to participate in and contribute to an inclusive economy.

Capacity building develops the foundation. Capability puts it into action.

Read the full article: https://www.sasdc.org.za/index.php/resources/latest-news/114-the-missing-link-between-skills-development-and-employment

How can we better connect capacity-building initiatives to meaningful employment and sustainable business growth?

WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO TURN OPPORTUNITY INTO EMPLOYMENT?At SASDC’s MSME Labour Market Dialogue, participants explored the ...
15/10/2026

WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO TURN OPPORTUNITY INTO EMPLOYMENT?

At SASDC’s MSME Labour Market Dialogue, participants explored the challenges affecting business growth, youth readiness and the successful placement of learners in the workplace.
Three key themes emerged from the group discussions:
Growing MSMEs: Improving market access, building sustainable income and addressing the challenges that limit business growth.
Preparing Young People: Bridging the gap between academic learning and the practical skills needed to succeed in the workplace.
Making Placements Count: Creating meaningful learner placements with structured skills development, clear objectives and measurable outcomes.
The message is clear: creating sustainable employment requires more than opportunities alone. It takes capable businesses, prepared young people and collaboration that connects skills to real workplace experience.
A big thank you to all the participants who contributed their insights to these important conversations.

In your view, what is the biggest change needed to help MSMEs create more sustainable employment opportunities?

Read the full article here: https://sasdc.org.za/can-msmes-really-be-expected-to-create-jobs-without-fixing-the-conditions-that-hold-them-back

FROM DIALOGUE TO ACTION: STRENGTHENING MSMEs AND CREATING PATHWAYS TO EMPLOYMENTHow can we help MSMEs grow while creatin...
14/10/2026

FROM DIALOGUE TO ACTION: STRENGTHENING MSMEs AND CREATING PATHWAYS TO EMPLOYMENT

How can we help MSMEs grow while creating meaningful opportunities for young people?

At the SASDC MSME Labour Market Dialogue, participants explored MSME growth, youth readiness and the importance of meaningful workplace placements.

The message is clear: sustainable employment requires capable businesses, practical skills development and collaboration that connects young people to real opportunities.

Through Project EMBRACE, SASDC continues to support conversations that advance inclusive economic growth.

What can businesses do to create more meaningful pathways into employment?

Economic opportunity is rarely created by one organisation working alone.A young person may need skills, workplace expos...
30/09/2026

Economic opportunity is rarely created by one organisation working alone.

A young person may need skills, workplace exposure and an employer. An entrepreneur may need business development, finance, market access and a customer. An MSME may need procurement opportunities, capability building and partnerships to move into a larger value chain.

These needs sit across different parts of an ecosystem, which is why working together matters.

Project EMBRACE brings together different pathways and partnerships around skills development, entrepreneurship, enterprise development, market access and employment. The objective is not to suggest that one programme or organisation can solve every barrier.

It is to strengthen the connections between the organisations, businesses and institutions that each contribute something to the pathway.

When the ecosystem connects, opportunities become more accessible and more sustainable.

From beneficiary to economic participant How do we measure meaningful development impact? Not only through attendance or...
30/09/2026

From beneficiary to economic participant

How do we measure meaningful development impact? Not only through attendance or programme completion, but through what happens beyond the programme.

Employment. Business growth. Market access. Improved economic circumstances.

Project EMBRACE encourages a broader understanding of impact, one that looks at whether people and businesses are better positioned to participate in the economy.

The goal is not simply participation in a programme. It is participation in the economy.

Much of the green economy conversation focuses on reducing environmental impact, changing production systems and buildin...
30/09/2026

Much of the green economy conversation focuses on reducing environmental impact, changing production systems and building more sustainable businesses.

There is another question worth asking: who gets the opportunity to supply into that economy?

Connecting supplier diversity with sustainability can create pathways for Black-owned and women-owned businesses to participate in emerging green value chains, while strengthening broader transformation and business objectives.

For corporate buyers, procurement decisions can influence which businesses gain access to markets. For MSMEs, access to those markets can mean the chance to build capabilities, establish commercial relationships and grow.

Through Project EMBRACE, SASDC is looking at the intersection between economic inclusion, supplier development and the transition towards a more sustainable economy.

Because the green economy should be sustainable in what it produces, and in how many businesses it brings along as it grows.

Small and growing businesses are often recognised for their potential to create employment. Yet job creation is closely ...
30/09/2026

Small and growing businesses are often recognised for their potential to create employment. Yet job creation is closely tied to whether a business can actually grow.

That growth can depend on practical factors such as:
• Access to markets
• Procurement opportunities
• Cash flow
• Skills and capabilities
• Business systems
• Access to appropriate support

For an entrepreneur, winning a new contract can create an opportunity to employ additional people. But the business also needs the capacity and resources to deliver on that opportunity.

This is why Project EMBRACE looks beyond entrepreneurship as an idea and towards the conditions that enable businesses to participate, grow and create economic opportunities.

If we want MSMEs to contribute to job creation, the conversation also needs to ask:

What does it take for those businesses to become sustainable employers?

Training is a starting point. It is not the destination.For young people, completing a course or developing a new skill ...
30/09/2026

Training is a starting point. It is not the destination.

For young people, completing a course or developing a new skill does not automatically translate into economic opportunity. The connection between learning and work matters.

Young people need opportunities to apply what they have learned, gain workplace exposure, understand what employers require and build pathways into employment or entrepreneurship.

This is why initiatives such as CADET, Work Integrated Learning and Job Market are important within the broader Project EMBRACE ecosystem. They allow us to look beyond the question of “How many people were trained?” and towards a more important one:
What pathways exist for those skills to become economic participation?

Project EMBRACE continues to explore how partnerships between businesses, education and training institutions and other ecosystem players can strengthen that connection.

Because skills create greater impact when they lead somewhere.

September gave us an opportunity to look at the many ways businesses, entrepreneurs and communities contribute to a more...
30/09/2026

September gave us an opportunity to look at the many ways businesses, entrepreneurs and communities contribute to a more inclusive economy. We explored what it means to support local business, the role of SMMEs within tourism value chains, and how innovation can turn food loss and waste into new opportunities.

Across these conversations, one message remained consistent:
Economic opportunity means little if people and businesses cannot participate in it.

Participation requires more than recognition. It requires access to markets, the right capabilities, meaningful connections and opportunities for businesses to demonstrate what they can do. This is at the heart of SASDC’s work, creating pathways that enable Black-owned businesses to Lead, Partner and Grow within corporate value chains.

As September comes to a close, we take forward the conversations, ideas and opportunities that can help build a more inclusive economy.

September may be ending. The work continues.

What happens after the training ends? Training should not be the finish line. The real measure of enterprise development...
30/09/2026

What happens after the training ends?

Training should not be the finish line.

The real measure of enterprise development goes beyond the number of people trained. It is about whether knowledge can be applied, businesses can access markets, revenue can grow and sustainable employment can be created.

Project EMBRACE challenges us to think about what happens after the programme, and whether support translates into lasting business capacity.

The real question is not only who was trained, but what happened next.

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