SAB Youth Entrepreneurship Competition 2013 winner announced

In second place is Lyle Truter of Cape Town, owner of Tru PVC Products, which specialises in PVC pipe fabrication and fittings and in third place, is Ricardo Hood, based in Sasolburg in the Free State, who owns SIH Training that provides training in welding and artisanship.

Big prizes

As the winner, Maqanda receives a grant for his business of R500,000 and an international business learning trip to Beijing, worth R100,000. This is in addition to an initial grant of R157,000 which he received for his business after reaching the national and final phase of SAB KickStart earlier this year.

Truter and Hood receive grants of R250,000 and R150,000 and international business learning trips to Utah and Tokyo, respectively valued at R100,000 each. Each received a grant of more than R100,000 at the start of the national phase.

Maqanda, originally from rural Dutywa in the Eastern Cape, is a Masters graduate in Electrical Engineering from Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University and established the company, which specialises in electrical design for the mining sector, in 2008 after working in the public and private industry.