R100m Gold Loan Scheme for SA jewellers

Minister of Trade and Industry Rob Davies says the R100m Gold Loan Scheme is expected to boost local jewellery production and encourage imports. Image: GCIS

The scheme is aimed at assisting emerging and established gold jewellery manufacturers with working capital loans. Under the scheme loans are provided at a fixed interest rate of 3% a year.

Davies said this intervention will allow jewellers to grow and be able to supply the local retail sector as well as export markets.

"The latest figures indicate that there are about 1,000 jewellery manufacturers left in the country and that production is down from 7,500 kilograms in 2004 to 3,500 kilograms ," said Davies.

The scheme was originally earmarked in the Industrial Policy Action Plan (IPAP) to provide a financial facility for gold manufacturers to access loans and terms for increased jewellery production.

The fifth iteration of the IPAP was published in April. The document represents a continuous consolidation and strengthening of industrial policy.

Imports rising, exports falling

Jewellers from Africa will get a boost in working capital through the DTI's loan scheme to assist them increase overall production levels. Image: Shane Hartdegen

Davies said the jewellery sector had imports worth more than R1bn in 2013, while exports were sitting at R467m. This is a contrast to exports worth R466m in 2004 and imports worth R280m then.

Davies believes the Gold Loan Scheme will assist local manufacturers recapture a larger slice of the local market, which is currently served by imported products. "It will also assist to increase exports to destinations such as the US, where South African jewellery can enter duty-free under African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) as well as to other foreign markets.

"The new scheme is one of the many programmes that are being used to support and grow the jewellery sector. The DTI, through numerous, schemes has provided support to more than 60 emerging and established jewellery manufacturers at a number of global exhibitions and will continue to provide such support," said Davies.

Divisional Executive for Corporate Strategy at the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC), Shakeel Meer, said: "Working together with the manufacturing sector and identifying challenges that they have to deal with on a daily basis provided valuable input in the development of the Gold Loan Scheme."

He urged entrepreneurs to make use of the scheme. Applications for the Gold Loan Scheme funding can be done online IDC or submitted at IDC offices.