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MSMEs are the backbone of South Africa's economy, contributing over 60% of employment and a significant share of GDP, yet many still face barriers to market access, funding, and digital integration.

As Africa's digital economy continues its rapid expansion, the next phase of growth will be driven not only by large enterprises, but by the scale, resilience, and innovation of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).

Recognising this, the Small Enterprise Development and Finance Agency (SEDFA) has partnered with Converge Africa 2026 as the official sponsor of the MSME Pavilion, reinforcing its commitment to enabling sustainable business growth and inclusive economic development across the continent.

Taking place from 4–6 May 2026 at the Cape Town International Convention Centre, Converge Africa brings together leaders across e-commerce, fintech, payments, logistics, digital marketing, and cybersecurity to shape the future of digital commerce in Africa.

At its core, the event is driven by a unifying imperative: “Frictionless digital commerce. Transacting seamlessly, without borders.”

Empowering the businesses that drive economic growth

SEDFA's sponsorship of the MSME Pavilion reflects a strategic focus on supporting emerging businesses as critical drivers of economic participation, job creation, and innovation.

Through its holistic approach, SEDFA provides financial assistance, business mentoring, and technical training, while also supporting formalisation, market access, and targeted development programmes such as Empretec, Manufacturing Supplier Programmes, and township and rural enterprise initiatives.

“Facilitating sustainable international market access is a core pillar of SEDFA's business development mandate. Enabling meaningful market linkages for small enterprises is critical to boosting exports and, in turn, driving inclusive economic growth. The Converge Africa Conference 2026 presents a powerful platform to unlock both local and global opportunities positioning our enterprises to compete effectively and sustainably in an increasingly digital economy.” Group Executive Business Development Support, Mr Sipho Ngcai

A platform for visibility, access and growth

As part of its sponsorship, SEDFA will enable 10 high-potential SMEs to exhibit within the MSME Pavilion at Converge Africa, providing them with:

• Dedicated exhibition space to showcase products and services
• Access to over 1,400 attendees from 700+ organisations
• Opportunities to engage directly with corporate buyers, partners, and investors
• Participation in conference sessions and workshops through sponsored delegate access

This initiative creates a direct bridge between emerging businesses and the broader digital commerce ecosystem, enabling practical opportunities for growth, collaboration, and scale.

Connecting SMEs to the digital economy ecosystem

Converge Africa is designed as a fully integrated ecosystem spanning five core pillars: Payments & Fintech; eCommerce; Digital Marketing; Fulfilment & Logistics; and Digital Security. 

For SMEs, access to this ecosystem is critical.

The ability to integrate payments, optimise digital marketing, navigate logistics, and build trusted customer experiences determines whether businesses can compete and grow in today's environment.

SEDFA's presence within this ecosystem positions it as a key enabler, ensuring that smaller businesses are not excluded from the opportunities created by digital transformation.

Driving meaningful PR impact and industry recognition

Beyond the direct support of SMEs, SEDFA's sponsorship delivers significant strategic visibility.

Through integrated event branding, digital promotion, and on-site presence, SEDFA will be recognised as a champion of entrepreneurship and innovation within Africa's digital economy.

The stories of the participating SMEs, their journeys, and their engagement with industry leaders will generate powerful narratives that reinforce SEDFA's role as a catalyst for inclusive growth.

This aligns with a broader industry shift: economic development is no longer only about access to funding, but about enabling ecosystems where businesses can connect, learn, and scale.

A shared ambition for inclusive digital growth

As Africa's commerce landscape evolves, the importance of inclusive participation becomes increasingly clear.

SEDFA's partnership with Converge Africa reflects a shared ambition:

To ensure that the growth of digital commerce is not limited to established players, but extended to the next generation of businesses that will shape the continent's future.

“As a provider of integrated business development and financial solutions for small enterprises and cooperatives, SEDFA is positioning itself as a central role-player within the enterprise development ecosystem. Recognising the digital economy as a critical enabler and driver of growth, platforms such as the Converge Africa Conference 2026 present a strategic opportunity for SEDFA to engage directly with global leaders in e-commerce, technology, and fintech unlocking long-term, sustainable benefits for small enterprises.” Group Executive Ecosystem and Stakeholder Management, Ms Nthabeleng Mokitimi-Dlamini

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of VUKA Group.

About Converge Africa:
Converge Africa is a leading digital commerce event bringing together Africa's e-commerce, fintech, payments, logistics, and digital marketing ecosystems.

Taking place at the CTICC in Cape Town from 4 – 6 May 2026, the event is designed to enable collaboration, knowledge exchange, and business growth across the continent.

For more information, visit: (https://apo-opa.co/48UGzBU)

View the event programme (https://apo-opa.co/4dNKwvD)

Ticket Options (https://apo-opa.co/4tKyc3O)

Register online to attend and be part of Africa's fastest-growing digital commerce ecosystem.

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Enlit Africa's 2026 programme convenes decision-makers from utilities, private sector, government, industry and finance to tackle the business of delivering power across the continent – at a moment when system constraints, reform and investment urgency are converging. In South Africa, transmission constraints are limiting new connections and generation evacuation, municipal distribution and tariff reform is reshaping incentives and financial sustainability and the need for digitalisation is accelerating, raising both opportunity and operational risk. Across Africa, these same pressures show up in different forms: grid expansion and interconnection readiness, utility performance and collections, bankable project pipelines, procurement design, and the operational capability to deliver reliability at scale.

Anchored by Enlit Africa's year-round platform, the 2026 programme is shaped around the event theme: Compounding impact: small changes, outsized outcomes. The programme is designed to move beyond diagnosis and focus on practical levers that shift outcomes: what unlocks grid capacity, improves distribution performance and tariff credibility and turns data into operational capability at scale.

Pan-African participation: where Africa's power business connects

Enlit Africa, part of VUKA Group, is designed as a working platform for the continent's power ecosystem – utilities, regulators, municipalities, developers, financiers and technology providers – to align around delivery: projects that reach financial close, grid access that becomes real connections and operational improvements that translate into performance. With participation expected from 30+ African countries and international stakeholders Africa, Enlit Africa's role as a continental convening point rather than a single-country conversation is reinforced once again. 

Level 2: the executive deal layer (limited access)

A defining feature of Enlit Africa is the Level 2 experience: a curated, executive environment designed to move beyond “conference attendance” into decision-grade engagement and deal flow. Level 2 brings together utility leadership, project owners, financiers and delivery partners in formats built for outcomes, not commentary.

Key elements include the Utility CEO Forum (closed-door) and the Projects & Investment Network (P&IN), alongside structured meeting zones and focused discussions where attendees can stress-test assumptions, clarify bankability requirements and move opportunities forward with the right stakeholders in the room. For delegates attending with investment, partnership, procurement or project-development intent, Level 2 is where the show is designed to convert insight into next steps.

“Delivery improves when finance, regulation and operations are aligned to the same outcomes. Enlit Africa creates the platform for that alignment to move from theory to execution.” – Marcel du Toit, Event Director, Enlit Africa

Transmission constraints: unlocking grid access and delivery

Across the programme, Enlit Africa 2026 addresses the constraint that increasingly defines feasibility across many markets: grid access. Sessions focus on the bottlenecks blocking evacuation and expansion, the delivery models and coordination required to scale build-out and the investment conditions that determine whether projects move from pipeline to operation – including practical discussions on infrastructure delivery, regional integration and the conditions that make projects bankable.

“Across Africa, the constraints are compounding: grid access, distribution performance, revenue certainty and the rapid shift to digital operations. Enlit Africa is where the business of power is discussed properly: what gets financed, what gets delivered and what keeps systems performing. The 2026 theme, ‘Compounding impact', reflects our focus on the small, targeted changes that unlock outsized outcomes.” – Claire Volkwyn, Head of Content, Enlit Africa

Municipal distribution and tariffs: making reform workable

As market evolution and procurement models change, municipalities and distribution utilities face a dual challenge: maintaining system performance while keeping tariffs credible, affordable and financially sustainable. Enlit Africa 2026 brings practitioners into the same room to unpack what distribution readiness looks like in practice, how tariff structures respond to new market signals and what technical and governance interventions help restore service reliability and revenue performance.

Digitalisation: from pilot projects to critical infrastructure

Utilities and large users are moving from digital ambition to operational dependency: smart metering, improved visibility and data-driven forecasting are becoming core to performance. The programme explores deployment realities, data governance and security and the operational capabilities required to turn digitisation into measurable outcomes rather than added complexity.

Water Security Africa: a dedicated focus

Alongside Enlit Africa, Water Security Africa runs as a co-located event. Water is a continuity risk for cities and industry and requires its own commercial and delivery logic. The Water Security Africa programme convenes stakeholders around water resilience, utility performance, reuse and recovery, regulatory enabling conditions and investment-ready delivery models.

Enlit Africa 2026 will take place on 19–21 May 2026 at the CTICC in Cape Town, South Africa. The full programme and registration information are available at: www.Enlit-Africa.com

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of VUKA Group.

Contact:
Marcel du Toit, Event Director
marcel.dutoit@wearevuka.com

About Enlit Africa:
Enlit Africa convenes stakeholders across the power sector value chain to address the commercial and operational realities of delivery. The programme brings together leaders across finance, utilities, government, industry and technology to accelerate bankable investment, system readiness and measurable outcomes.

Enlit Africa is supported by leading industry sponsors already confirmed for 2026 including ACTOM, Conlog, Eskom Rotek and Standard Bank (platinum sponsors), Siemens (gold sponsor) and G3-Alliance (silver sponsor) alongside additional confirmed sponsors including Grundfos, Hengtong, Holley Technology, Lesedi, Nuriflex, Steinmuller Africa, Triveni Turbine, Aberdare Cables, Allbro Industries, Hexing Electrical, Landis+Gyr and Megger. www.Enlit-Africa.com

About Water Security Africa: 
Water Security Africa is a dedicated programme focus running alongside Enlit Africa, convening stakeholders around water resilience, utility performance, reuse and recovery and bankable delivery models that strengthen continuity of supply and long-term system sustainability. www.WaterSecurity-Africa.com

About VUKA Group: 
VUKA Group connects people and organisations across Africa's energy, mining, mobility, green economy, and retail sectors through events, content, and strategic networking. Venture partners to The Global Trust Project and leaders of NPO Go Green Africa.  www.WeAreVUKA.com