My good friend Greg Durst of Endeavor sent me an email regarding small business in South Africa.
- 87% of black entrepreneurs are in the informal sector – which makes it hard to find the next black Adrian Gore.
- According to Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM), only 5 South Africans are entrepreneurs out of 100 business people, compared to 15 in China and Indonesia.
- Because of affirmative action white entrepreneurs out number black entrepreneurs 2 to 1, despite only being 15% of the population.
This is interesting stuff. I know that the last few GEM reports have noted that the levels of entrepreneurship are dropping. There are numerous reasons for this and I think that the levels of red tape that companies have to go through to be registered and then operate must also play a roll.
I blogged about who starts businesses some time last year. And the stats I have confirm Greg’s stats.
White males – 25.5%
Black females – 19.6%
Indian males – 18%
White females – 14.7%
Black males – 14.6%
Indian females – 8%
Coloured males – 5%
The percentages are the number of people per group starting their own businesses. In other words 18% of all Indian males are now self employed.