Previously, programmes dealing with small business development fell under the Department of Trade and Industry and the Economic Development Department. Estimates of the contribution of small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs) to the economy vary.
In terms of contribution to GDP, an estimate of 52 to 57 per cent has been quoted by the Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry, Elizabeth Thabethe, who put the number of SMMEs in South Africa at 2,8 million and their contribution to employment at 60 per cent.