JOE Nkadimeng (not his real name) is a talented music student who managed to raise enough money to make it through his first year at university.

Joe did not arrive at registration for the second year. After a little investigation, Joe was found to be working in Johannesburg as a security guard. His lecturers were devastated and started a campaign to bring Joe back for the next year (it is too late to register him for this year).

The solution to Joe’s problem appears to be quite simple; all he needs to do is find a sponsor for the duration of his studies; the sponsorship would need to include accommodation. There should be no shortage of corporate sponsors who could be persuaded to contribute in exchange for a few points on their corporate social investment scorecard. But this is a short-term solution to a much larger problem.

Joe’s story is compounded by his domestic situation. He has taken the job to supplement his family’s income. Mrs Nkadimeng is a Johannesburg street hawker who ekes out a living of R400 a month. She is responsible for accommodation, food and clothing for four people. Joe’s monthly salary is vital to the family’s survival. Any sponsorship he receives will not solve the broader challenges he and his family face.

Mrs Nkadimeng is a typical example of SA’s second economy. The second economy is identified by the following features:

It is underdeveloped;

It is isolated from the first and global economies;

It contains a large percentage of people including the urban and rural poor; and

It contributes little to the country’s wealth.

Government has been concerned about marrying the first and second economies. A recent conference observed that the resolution of this problem does not lie in increasing welfare, as welfare can never overcome the scale of poverty and underdevelopment found in the rural areas and urban townships that contain the great majority of the African population.

There have been numerous policies designed to address the second economy — the reconstruction and development programme, the growth, employment and redistribution strategy and, most recently, the accelerated and shared growth initiative. The implementation of all these policies is to be found in the empowerment codes.

The most significant codes at play in Joe’s situation are corporate social investment and enterprise development. It would seem his ultimate solution lies in solving his mother’s problem.

She is living somewhere below the breadline and, while a regular welfare contribution will aid her situation, it will not lift her out of the downward spiral she is in. She needs enterprise development assistance, to move her into a higher income bracket. This aid must help her develop a sustainable enterprise so she is able to operate under her own steam.

The spectrum for enterprise development contributions is wide, the only real criterion being that the contribution should lead to the recipient becoming a sustainable enterprise. These contributions do not have to be purely financial, they could be a skills transfer or donation of machinery or equipment.

With Joe’s mother less dependent on him, the sponsorship of his education will make sense.

The good news for donating companies is they will be able to claim both enterprise development and corporate social investment points on their scorecards.

Joe’s story is largely based on fact. There is no shortage of these types of recipients in our economy but with the right kind of focus from both the government and corporate South Africa, we will start taking the correct steps to growing our economy.

If there are companies that would like to assist Joe and his family, they can be contacted through Caird Consulting (info@caird.co.za).

Janisch is CEO of BEE consultancy Caird Consulting.