Presentations
Contextual financial analysis for driving sustainable finance reforms for micro and small enterprises in South Africa (Elize Hattingh, Researcher TIPS; Kiara Muthusamy, Intern TIPS; Ntombiyesibini Phumelal, Intern TIPS)
Climate finance landscape: Overview of funding activities in South Africa (Jack Radmore, Energy Programme manager and Climate Finance Lead, GreenCape)
Lessons learned from the Green Outcomes Fund (Mandy Jayakody, Project manager, Green Outcomes Fund, Bertha Centre)
Overview of sefa 2022 (Letlatsa Lehana, Head Khula Credit Guarantee and representative for the Small Enterprise Finance Agency
Media
Finance gaps for local green entrepreneurs need to be addressed (Darren Parker, Engineering News - 20 July 2022)
Background
The COVID-19 pandemic and associated policy responses have disrupted economies and societies worldwide, increasing poverty, inequality and unemployment. Governments have responded through (often large) policy packages aimed at cushioning negative impacts on households and businesses, and reigniting the economy. Furthermore, strong calls for a 'better, fairer and greener' recovery have led many governments to commit additional resources towards the transition to a green economy. Green recovery efforts and a just transition to an inclusive green and inclusive economy offer an opportunity to develop and implement a shared vision of resilience and sustainability. Yet questions remain about the inclusivity and green credentials of recovery packages. South Africa is no exception and such debates are vivid in the country.
Small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs) are not only viewed as being critical for economic development and job creation but have the potential to be vital economic players to drive inclusive and sustainable development in low- and middle-income countries. Local Green Entrepreneurs (LGEs) are viewed as key adopters of radical environmental innovations (often neglected by established firms) in the production and manufacturing of environmental goods, services and technologies. Given their role as testing grounds for green innovations, which many established firms view as high-risk, LGEs have the agility to accelerate access to new markets and play a catalytic role in the diffusion and uptake of green innovations. Such enterprises can play a substantial role in developing inclusive pathways to sustainability and are at the forefront of climate responses and innovations (both adaptation and mitigation) and environmental sustainability.
Within this context, this webinar aims to unpack issues on access to inclusive finance for LGEs in South Africa. The workshop aims to influence national policymakers and sustainable finance stakeholders, including donors, and discuss crucial issues related to access to finance. Signature policy issues include the following: sectoral challenges; a lack of risk appetite from funders for early-stage finance; limited access to financial services; financial ecosystem challenges; narrow fit for purpose "green industry" financial products; and a draft SMME and Cooperative Finance Policy that is silent on how it plans to support SMEs in green industries.
Agenda
11:00 - 11:10 Welcome and introduction
Muhammed Patel, Senior Economist, Trade & Industrial Policy Strategies (TIPS)
11:10-12:20 Key inputs
Unpacking signature issues on inclusive finance for local green entrepreneurs in South Africa - Elize Hattingh, Researcher, Trade & Industrial Policy Strategies (TIPS)
Climate finance landscape: Overview of funding activities in South Africa - Jack Radmore, Energy Programme manager and Climate Finance Lead, GreenCape
Lessons learned from the Green Outcomes Fund - Mandy Jayakody, Project manager, Green Outcomes Fund, Bertha Centre
Overview of the Innovation Fund - Letlatsa Lehana, Head: Khula Credit Guarantee (SOC) Ltd and representative for the Small Enterprise Finance Agency (SOC) Ltd.
12:20 - 12:50 Discussion and Q&A
12:50 - 13:00 Wrap up
About the Speakers
Mandy Jayakody is contracted to the Green Outcomes Fund, a pioneering outcomes-based funding facility, promoting the uptake of SMME development in the Green Economy. Mandy has worked on projects in South Africa, Rwanda, Mozambique, Swaziland, Abu Dhabi, Saudi Arabia and the UK. She was recently appointed to serve on the council of the NHBRC. In 2018 at the African Construction Awards she was awarded "Young Entrepreneur Rising Star". Mandy was also a finalist in the 2018 Standard Bank Top Women Awards (Infrastructure category). She is a doctoral candidate researching Impact Investment in Affordable Housing.
Jack-Vincent Radmore is the Energy Programme Manager and Climate Finance Lead at GreenCape. Jack has a background in business sciences, finance and sustainable development. He specialises in innovation management, informal settlement upgrading and innovative finance. In his current role, Jack is responsible for the strategic direction of GreenCape's energy and climate finance activities in South Africa. Jack joined the Green Economic Development Agency, GreenCape, in 2014, and through his leadership, hard work and dedication to the field, he now manages GreenCape's renewable energy and climate finance work. As Programme Manager, Jack is responsible for managing all related activities in South Africa and has also led GreenCape's previous work in Kenya and Ghana.
Elize Hattingh is a Researcher: Sustainable Growth at TIPS. She has been actively involved in promoting the sustainable development agenda for more than 15 years. She was the Executive Coordinator for Waste to Wing, a Switch Africa Green Project and the Incubation Manager at the South African Renewable Energy Incubator. She also actively supports youth-owned entrepreneurs at Youth Bridge Trust and women-owned entrepreneurs at Future Females Business School with business development support.
Letlatsa Lehana is employed by the Small Enterprise Finance Agency as the Head of Khula Credit Guarantee (SOC) Limited (KCG), a licensed non-life insurer which is a wholly owned subsidiary of sefa. He has more than 15 years of senior management in finance experience at organisations such as ABSA Bank at Group Finance, Sasol Petroleum Nigeria Limited, Anglo American South Africa Limited, Eurasian Natural Resources Corporation and General Electric. He represents sefa’s interest at the on-going Partial Credit Guarantee study undertaken by the World Bank and National Treasury for the recapitalisation of KCG; he is a member of the European Union Project Steering Committee for the €30 million allocated to sefa under the programme – Employment Promotion through SMME Support Programme for the Republic of South Africa (EPSSP). He is also a member of sefa SME Lending Committee.
About the facilitators
Gaylor Montmasson-Clair is a Senior Economist at TIPS, where he leads work on Sustainable Growth. He has carried out extensive research on the transition to an inclusive green economy from a developing country perspective, with a focus on policy frameworks, industrial development, just transition and resource security.
Muhammed Patel joined TIPS in 2017. He holds a Masters in Economics from the University of KwaZulu-Natal, where his thesis focused on the relationship between income and health in South Africa. Muhammed's background spans work in industrial development, and competition and regulatory economics. While completing his Master's degree, Muhammed worked as a junior researcher at the School of Development Studies conducting research on the manufacturing sector of eThekwini. He also lectured undergraduate economics students over this time. In 2015, Muhammed joined competition and regulatory consultancy Genesis Analytics, where he spent two years working on competition and regulation cases. Notably, his work focused on the telecommunications and energy sectors.
