SA’S PREMIER ENTREPRENEURIAL COMPETITION OPEN FOR ENTRIES 2015 Sanlam / Business Partners Entrepreneur of the Year® competition launches  Nazeem Martin South African entrepreneurs rarely receive the acknowledgement they truly deserve, and should be praised for the role they play in the creation of jobs and economic development in the country. This is according to Nazeem Martin, managing director of Business Partners Limited , who was speaking in light of the 2015 Sanlam / Business Partners Entrepreneur of the Year® competition launch which took place in Johannesburg today. Now in its 27th year, the pre-eminent entrepreneurial platform continues to pay tribute to the fearless entrepreneurs who remain dedicated to not only fostering a culture of entrepreneurship in the country, but also to their business and staff.  Martin says that considering South Africa’s unemployment rate is at 25% and that it was recently announced that South Africa will have the 8th highest ...

MODERATE IMPROVEMENT FORECAST FOR SMES IN 2015, BUT CONDITIONS TO REMAIN CHALLENGING Nazeem Martin  The single biggest challenge South African small and medium enterprises (SME) owners’ encountered in 2014 was the perilous state of the economy, which resulted in established businesses stagnating, as well as a decline in new businesses creation.  According to Nazeem Martin, MD of Business Partners Limited, a specialist risk finance company for formal SMEs, 2015 will be similarly challenging for South African small businesses due to the continued sluggish economic growth and the inability of Eskom to ensure an adequate, consistent and reliable power supply.  He says that overall, 2014 was a tough year for businesses and this was primarily attributed to generally adverse conditions. “Many factors during the year undermined businesses confidence and hence their desire and ability to grow and contribute towards economic growth in the country,” says Martin.  M...