Speaking at the Black Business Council Summit in Midrand on Friday, Ndabeni-Abrahams emphasised the need for businesspeople to understand how government and its systems work.
The purpose of the two-day summit was to consolidate a concept document that would steer the mandate and vision of the BBC through the advocacy of economic transformation.
“The business sector needs to understand how government and the systems works. Government is willing to support black business,” Ndabeni-Abrahams said. “Therefore it’s time for black professionals to rise up and be heard.”
She called on black business to avoid “fronting”, as this did not reflect well on black business’s efforts to grown their entities.
Fronting is the practice of some black business people who pretend that they own a business when in fact it belongs to some white business people who want to access government contracts reserved for only black business as a solution to historical of deprivation.
“Real economic transformation can only happen by supporting black business. If you believe in yourselves, it is possible,” Ndabeni-Abrahams said.
The two-day summit, which ended on Friday, was an interaction between government, labour, civil society and business on matters relating to the country’s economy.