The post-1994 South African government has introduced multiple initiatives, programmes and passed various legislations which were aimed at assisting previously disadvantaged individuals to participate in the mainstream economy. These interventions by government are aimed at advancing mass participation in the economy by all groups of the society. Because of the laws during the apartheid regime, blacks in particular found themselves excluded in business opportunities and thus prohibiting them to actively participate in the economy. This study was therefore aimed at considering the impact made by BEE procurement policy on the BEE entrepreneurial activities in Fezile Dabi District. Fezile District is one of the four District Municipalities within the Free State province. The study aims to assess the impact of procurement policy as one of the elements towards BEE entrepreneurship activities. The study used both literature review as well as the empirical study to come to the conclusions revealed in the last chapter. The empirical study which was conducted using the questionnaires surveys over the four local municipalities within the District revealed that small business owners agree and believe that the BEE procurement policies introduced by government are very good instruments to enable them to enter the business sector and participate actively in the economy. However the challenge acknowledged by the small businesses is that despite this good legislation the implementation at the Fezile Dabi District is not properly executed. Lack of transparency and favouritism in awarding contracts and tenders were revealed as the biggest challenges facing the District. Practical recommendations were made to address these challenges and improving the system. / MBA, North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

The post-1994 South African government has introduced multiple initiatives, programmes and passed various legislations which were aimed at assisting previously disadvantaged individuals to participate in the mainstream economy. These interventions by government are aimed at advancing mass participation in the economy by all groups of the society. Because of the laws during the apartheid regime, blacks in particular found themselves excluded in business opportunities and thus prohibiting them to actively participate in the economy. This study was therefore aimed at considering the impact made by BEE procurement policy on the BEE entrepreneurial activities in Fezile Dabi District. Fezile District is one of the four District Municipalities within the Free State province. The study aims to assess the impact of procurement policy as one of the elements towards BEE entrepreneurship activities. The study used both literature review as well as the empirical study to come to the conclusions revealed in the last chapter. The empirical study which was conducted using the questionnaires surveys over the four local municipalities within the District revealed that small business owners agree and believe that the BEE procurement policies introduced by government are very good instruments to enable them to enter the business sector and participate actively in the economy. However the challenge acknowledged by the small businesses is that despite this good legislation the implementation at the Fezile Dabi District is not properly executed. Lack of transparency and favouritism in awarding contracts and tenders were revealed as the biggest challenges facing the District. Practical recommendations were made to address these challenges and improving the system. / MBA, North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015