Small Business Development minister Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams will discuss enterprise and supplier development (ESD) and black economic empowerment (BEE) in a keynote session at the upcoming 17th annual Smart Procurement World Indaba, the organisers have announced.

“This year, we are excited to introduce the ESD Collaboration Caucus, an exclusive, invitation only breakfast session that will be the centerpiece of the 2023 Smart Procurement World Indaba,” reveals Smart Procurement chief operating officer Debbie Tagg. “The aim of this event is to facilitate honest dialogue between key corporate and public sector practitioners and stakeholders on the state of ESD and BEE in South Africa. Its role, impact, objectives and the latest roadmap for business will be in the spotlight. We are delighted to have Minister Ndabeni-Abrahams joining us to share her insights.”

Leading ESD and BEE practitioners and implementers will attend the gathering on 12 September 2023.

SMME enablement implementation partners are invited to participate and will have the opportunity to showcase their brand, demonstrate thought leadership and network with a community of corporate and private sector practitioners who need help in driving the mandate of ESD within their organisations.

The annual Smart Procurement World Indaba is South Africa’s largest, longest-standing event for procurement and inbound supply chain professionals. It takes place from 11 to 14 September 2023 at Gallagher Convention Centre in Midrand, Gauteng.

This year’s event will focus on risk, and will be held under the theme “Do Risk Right”. Tagg says that the profession proved its mettle in navigating risk in recent years, but needs to chart a course in an increasingly volatile, unpredictable and challenging environment. “Procurement and supply chain practitioners played a pivotal role in ensuring that their organisations managed production and delivery disruptions in recent years. The volatility, economic pressures, shortages and risk are not going to abate in 2023 and probably not until well beyond this year, according to experts’ predictions. As leaders, practitioners and procurement teams, we must come together to share our knowledge and expand our skills on how to build risk resilience. We must also learn to use risk to gain a competitive advantage.

“With the change of policies, workforce and technological advancement, procurement and supply chain functions are geared to lead their organisations. They are at the heart of insightful data, demand influencing and sustainability,” Tagg states.