Mbabane – African Alliance has introduced a new supply chain financing model aimed at helping small enterprises overcome cashflow challenges.
Speaking on the second day of the inaugural MSME Workshop held at Royal Villas, African Alliance General Manager Victor Langa said the financing plan will allow businesses to receive payment for their invoices within two to three days. Approved invoices will be uploaded on the African Alliance portal, where the company will confirm with the buyer that the goods or services were indeed delivered before releasing payment to the supplier.
Langa explained that many businesses struggle because buyers operate on payment cycles of 30, 60, 90, or even 180 days. “This financing will help ease cashflow problems, as African Alliance will pay the supplier and later collect the payment from the buyer once it becomes due,” he said.
Small business owners attending the workshop welcomed the initiative. Palesa Nodumo Gwebu, Director of Fruits Lovers Market, said cashflow was one of the biggest challenges entrepreneurs faced. “We often have to wait for long periods for buyers to pay, yet we also need money to finance other purchase orders,” she said. Gwebu, however, sought clarity on the interest rates, to which Langa responded that charges would range between 2% and 5% of the total invoice value.
Entrepreneurs agreed that the rate was reasonable, noting that having steady cashflow would help them take on more business opportunities. Langa emphasized that “a business without cashflow dies a painful death,” adding that the initiative aims to preserve and grow small enterprises.
Mavela Sigwane from FESBEC also praised African Alliance for the initiative, saying it would save businesses from costly banks as before they were forced to get overdrafts from banks and by the time the buyer finally pays they have nothing left as all the money will go into serving the overdraft and its high interest rates.
Langa also said that the financing is open to businesses across all sectors.
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