State-owned financing institution, the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) allocated R23.4 billion towards the black industrialists programme for the year 2025.
The revelation emerged in a parliamentary written reply by Parks Tau, the minister of trade, industry and competition (dtic). He was responding to IFP member of parliament Thokozani Langa who had sought answers as to how much the department had allocated to ensure that black-owned businesses gained access to capital intensive export oriented and advanced manufacturing sectors. This included the number of black industrialists who have been offered funding.
“The Industrial Development Corporation allocated R23,4 billion towards black industrialists in 2025. A total of 48 black industrialists benefited from this allocation. The IDC has implemented a range of inter-ventions to improve access for blackowned businesses. These include targeted funding programmes for black industrialists,” Tau explained.
President Cyril Ramaphosa announced during the ANC manifesto ahead of the 2024 general elections that if his party was to be re-elected to power, high on his government’s agenda was to transform the economy. He said this was to be achieved through the lobbying of banks to relax their loan requirements in order for a new crop of black industrialists to be unleashed.
“We are going to tell the banks to relax their requirements so that it is easy for our people to get funding when they want to start companies because we want to create black industrialists,” Ramaphosa promised throngs of ANC supporters.
According to Tau, the Black Industrialists Programme so far implemented funding to black entrepreneurs who own and lead industrial businesses in strategic manufacturing and value-adding sectors.
“The dtic ensures that black-owned businesses gain access through its Black Industrialist Scheme. This incentive specifically supports the participation of black industrialists in the manufacturing sector and relevant value chains, technical and business support interventions that assist enterprises with project development, market access, operational expansion and capacity building,” he said.
The IDC is a state owned entity responsible, among other things, for providing funding and strategic part-nerships aimed at growing the country’s industrial capacity. It also funds new and existing businesses through venture capital, bridging finance and equity. The IDC is also the biggest shareholder in the phosphate rock mining company Foskor.
Recently, IDC secured an important equity stake in Vision Sugar Group through its partnership with Tongaat Hulett.
The deal involves the IDC acquiring an estimated 33% stake in Tongaat Hulettt South Africa and strategic equity across Vision Sugar’s operations in Mozambique, Botswana and Zimbabwe.