Johannesburg’s smallest businesses deserve more than a permit

A registration count is a beginning. The real test is whether a trader can open, earn and plan another day.

OPINION / EVIDENCE & PERSPECTIVE · THE DAILY PULSE EDITORIAL

A city can count applications without knowing whether the people behind them can make a living. In Johannesburg, that difference deserves attention. A spaza shop or street stall is a business with customers, costs and responsibilities. It should not become visible to public institutions only when an official wants paperwork or an enforcement team wants it moved.

This is an argument for taking small business seriously. Respect means safe products and fair rules. It also means a usable place to trade, clear communication and services that make compliance possible.

Count the steps between a form and a livelihood

In a report dated 18 September 2026, the City of Johannesburg said it had processed 4,043 spaza-shop registration applications across its seven regions. It reported 39 approved beneficiaries in a funding initiative with SEDFA, and more than 500 smart permit cards issued from more than 2,000 printed.

Those are the City's reported administrative figures, not an independent measure of business survival. The report explicitly distinguishes registration from approval of a trading permit. A reader should not mistake an application for permission to operate, or an approved beneficiary for money already received.

These distinctions matter because a progress announcement can sound more complete than the experience it describes. What happened after registration? How long did the next step take? What assistance reached the business, and when? Those are reasonable questions for officials and for the people using the system.

The street is part of the business infrastructure

In January 2026, researchers writing through Wits University argued that Johannesburg had failed informal traders. Their account described removals in October 2025 and called for better implementation of the City's informal-trading policy. That was an assessment at the time, not proof that every condition they described remains unchanged today.

The researchers pointed to practical needs: water, lighting, storage, shelter and toilets, alongside clear responsibilities and participation in decisions. Their argument also recognised obligations on traders, including appropriate use and care of trading spaces.

Our view is that these are economic questions. A usable stall and a predictable process can matter as much to a small operator as a conference about entrepreneurship. A city asking businesses to become formal should make the journey understandable and achievable.

Order should make earning safer

No one benefits from unsafe food, obstructed walkways or rules that only some businesses must follow. Customers, residents and neighbouring businesses have legitimate concerns. But enforcement should be transparent, proportionate and connected to a workable route into compliance.

That means telling someone which requirement is missing, where to obtain help and what lawful options exist. It also means listening before relocating an established trading community. Consultation should influence decisions, rather than become an event after decisions are already made.

The September City report sets out ambitions for stronger township trading infrastructure. Ambition should now be followed through in ordinary detail: completed facilities, usable permits, accessible support and the experience of traders themselves. The next progress report should show delivery as well as intention.

Johannesburg's business story is bigger than its skyline. It includes the shop a family relies on and the stall whose earnings support another household. A city that makes those enterprises more stable strengthens something worth more than a registration total: people's ability to plan tomorrow.