Opportunities, Challenges and Risks: The South African Business Environment Profiling Opportunities and Challenges of Running Small and Medium-Sized Businesses in the Post-Apartheid Vhembe District of the Limpopo Province of South Africa

This chapter analyses salient opportunities and challenges associated with running Small and Medium-sized Entrepreneurial Ventures (SMEV) in the Vhembe district of the Limpopo province of South Africa. Drawing from the experience of eight Vhembe-based Small and Medium-sized entrepreneurs, the chapter identifies and discusses what is entailed in engaging in and sustaining an SMEV in such a context. While some of the identified opportunities include an SMEV-friendly environment for start-ups, access to business networking and clientele base, a less complex market and cheap running cost, some prominent challenges include limited access to finance, lack of basic infrastructure to harness managerial and technical or entrepreneurial skills required for running SMEs, the non-existence of specific entrepreneurial-government policies, and insecurity emanating from violent attacks and theft within South Africa’s rural setting. Based on the review, the chapter inter alia recommends accelerated efforts in improving rural infrastructures and amenities and providing more SMEV-friendly policies to foster rural development and entrepreneurial engagement. Such efforts not only encourage SMEV start-ups, they also provide opportunities for SMEV developments.