South African small business owners should accept that the government does nothing for the sector and that announcements about relief for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are merely political rhetoric. Once we collectively come to that understanding, the current survival and future sustainability of the sector can be addressed meaningfully.

That the government enjoys publicity from headlines announcing a R1,4bn relief scheme or even the R200bn Covid-19 scheme, is disappointing. One merely needs to look at how much of this money has actually reached the coffers of distressed businesses to understand the blurry space between a publicity stunt and a meaningful intervention...