Black Industrialists Scheme (BIS):
- BIS Interpretation Note 1, effective 1 February
- BIS Interpretation Note 2, effective 1 October
- BIS Interpretation Note 2, effective 1 October
- BIS Important Notice (1/)
- BIS Interpretation Note 1, effective 1 February
Black Industrialist Overview
An overview of the Black Industrialists Programme and its guidelines
Black Industrialist Programme
Objective
To increase meaningful participation of black-owned companies in the mainstream economy in line with the Industrial Policy Action Plan (IPAP).
The Pillars
The three pillars of the programme are access to 1) funding, 2) markets and 3) non-financial support.
Who Are The Beneficiaries?
The intended beneficiaries are entities that want to expand their current operations or start up a new operation and become self-sufficient within 10 years of participation in the programme. They should be directly involved in the day-to-day running of the business and have the relevant expertise.
The incentive will fund 30% to 50% of the project, capped to R50 million, and a pre-requisite is a co-funder (either a commercial bank or developmental funding institution) to match the grant funding.
The funding covers:
- capital investments (machinery and equipment, owned or leased buildings, commercial vehicles and assets purchased from business development services);
- feasibility studies and post-investment support; and
- business development support such as costs for patents, product development, IT and procurement systems etc.
Operational Model
the dti is rolling out the black industrialist programme through memoranda of agreement (MOAs) with the provinces, which in turn will implement their own programmes. KwaZulu-Natal has already launched its programmes, while MOAs have been signed with the Free State and Mpumalanga.
The black industrialist programme, which kicked off in 2016, has funded 70 companies and assisted with access to markets through memoranda of understanding with commercial banks and state-owned entities.
the dti uses various marketing instruments, such as missions, to give black-owned entities access to markets. There have been several missions into Africa, including Ghana, Nigeria, Uganda, Madagascar and Namibia. Black industrialists are also encouraged to use the Export Marketing and Investment Assistance (EMIA) programmes offered by the dti .
Black Industrialists Success Stories
Microfinish, a 100% black-owned automotive valve guide and valve seat manufacturer, is one of the success stories of the black industrialist programme. The company, which officially launched on 7 July 2017, employs 123 people and exports 95% of its products. Microfinish used the funding from the programme to diversify its offering to include the manufacturing of locomotive valves that were 100% imported. As a result, Microfinish grew its turnover by 60% in 2016 and the workforce increased by 40%.
Another success story is 90% black-owned United Industrial Cables, which manufactures, sells and distributes cables for various applications, including copper, aluminium and steel cables for the mining, transportation, communications industries and power utilities.
Black industrialists success stories
Profiles of selected BI beneficiaries and the success stories of the BI Programme. These profiled companies were launched in 2017 by the Minister or Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry.
On 4 November 2015, Cabinet approved the Black Industrialists Policy which aligns with the Industrial Policy Action Plan, the National Development Plan and the Nine Point Plan that was announced by President Jacob Zuma in the 2015 State of the Nation Address.
The purpose of Black Industrialists (BI) policy is to leverage the State’s capacity to unlock the industrial potential that exists within black-owned and managed businesses that operate within the South African economy through deliberate, targeted and well-defined financial and non-financial interventions as described in the IPAP and other government policies.
The policy seeks to achieve the following objectives:
- Accelerate the quantitative and qualitative increase and participation of Black Industrialists in the national economy, selected industrial sectors and value chains, as reflected by their contribution to growth, investment, exports and employment; and
- Create multiple and diverse pathways and instruments for Black Industrialists to enter strategic and targeted industrial sectors and value chains.
- In short therefore the broader objective is aimed at promoting industrialisation, sustainable economic growth and transformation through the support of black-owned entities in the manufacturing sector.
- the dti Black Industrialists Policy
- Black Industrialists Guidelines
- Application procedure:
- Black Industrialist Scheme Application checklist
- Important Notice before applying
- Black Industrialist Application form submit application form to biapplications@thedti.gov.za
- Non-Financial Support Application Form
For more information, please send an e-mail to: bienquiries@thedti.gov.za
The required documents for claiming:
- The claim form;
- The checklist (providing a full list of required documents);
- The credit order instruction form
- The Factual Finding Report (FFR) completed by an accredited auditor; and
- Asset (register) list
- Employee list
- Invoice Reconciliation Sheet
Submit all claims to biclaims@thedti.gov.za
Contact:
Contact details to be used for Incentive Applications and Claims from 27 March 2026
| Applications | BIapplications@thedti.gov.za |
| Claims | biclaims@thedti.gov.za |
| Enquiries | BIEnquiries@thedti.gov.za |