{
  "id": 5022885,
  "title": "From employees to employers: How SA's Indian community can help build the SADC Vision 2050",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/02/from-employees-to-employers-how-sas-indian-community-can-help-build",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-09-02T05:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "IOL",
    "slug": "iol",
    "url": "https://iol.co.za/thepost/opinion/2026-09-02-from-employees-to-employers-how-sas-indian-community-can-help-build-the-sadc-vision-2050/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Recent attendance at a SADC Public Lecture left the author convinced that governments cannot single-handedly achieve the region's vision for the future. As an Indian South African academic at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, the author believes the Indian community must take an active role. The SADC Vision 2050 aims for a peaceful, inclusive, competitive, and prosperous region. However, to make this vision a reality, the author asks what individuals and the community are doing to contribute. A major mindset shift is required in employment and entrepreneurship. Instead of viewing employment as finding a job, South Africans should embrace the idea of creating opportunities for themselves and others. This includes fostering innovation, entrepreneurship, problem-solving, and economic participation. The author's ancestors, who arrived with little, built families, businesses, communities, schools, and institutions through hard work and perseverance. Young people should not only focus on qualifications for employability but also on transforming their knowledge and skills into businesses, services, innovations, and job opportunities for others. Universities must not limit entrepreneurship education to business students; students from various disciplines should be encouraged to identify problems and develop sustainable solutions. The author outlines four ways to help move the SADC agenda forward: strengthening entrepreneurship through mentorship, networking, market access, and business knowledge; investing in skills development, particularly digital skills, financial literacy, AI, innovation, and business management; creating opportunities for young people by encouraging them to view problems as business opportunities; and supporting local enterprises by mentoring entrepreneurs and developing marketable skills. Collaboration among business, government, universities, civil society, and communities is crucial to solving complex challenges. The SADC Vision 2050 is not only about economic prosperity but also creating a sustainable, inclusive, and resilient future for children and grandchildren. The author's Indian South African community must apply its legacy of resilience, enterprise, education, and community building to contribute to the South African and SADC region they want for future generations. Instead of waiting for opportunities, the author urges creating them.",
  "summary": "Join Dr Andrisha Beharry-Ramraj as she explores how the Indian South African community can leverage its rich history of resilience and innovation to spearhead efforts towards fulfilling the SADC Vision 2050, transforming challenges into opportunities for a brighter tomorrow.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}