Course description

Furniture manufacturing in tAfrica is highly dominated with more products coming from South Africa. Importantly, competition with the furniture manufacturing sector exists, in terms of,  African producers contending with high levels of imports. Additionally, South African furniture manufacturers are facing major competition from Asian and other African countries Imports, such as Botswana and Namibia. A further barrier within the sector includes the difficulty in sourcing raw materials, shortage of higher skills, access to funding, no effective protection against very low-cost imports in South Africa and the SADC, poor market access, limited export support and investment, and SMMEs are unable to supply large retailers.

The development benefits from manufacturing are particularly significant in the furniture value chain mostly because of its labour intensity, skills development, linkages with other sectors and export potential. The Furniture Masterplan indicates that furniture manufacturing is a labour-intensive industry, with strong backward linkages to South Africa’s established raw material supply base. Although the domestic market for furniture and household goods is under pressure, the industry has the potential to reinforce accelerated economic transformation and sustainable job creation, if world class manufacturing capabilities can be developed to enable local manufacturers to compete in both domestic and international markets.

Programme Benefits

• SMME support Business Development
• SMME support Supplier Development
• SMME supportMarket Access Facilitation
• Skills Development Training
• Job Placement Opportunities