Good news for entrepreneurs looking to enter the export market to Europe. With the value of the Rand dwindling and these in the know saying that it will further deteriorate next year, there has seldom been a better time to focus you entrepreneurial thinking on the export market. With the news that The Swiss Import Promotion Programme or Sippo are now offering extensive support, both financially and knowledge, South African entrepreneurs who have been eying the market can now no longer have an excuse.

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Dave Marrs reports for Business Day from Johannesburg

EXPORT promotion is a familiar concept in SA, having been at the heart of government trade policies for decades. But the opposite, import promotion, would have most South African manufacturers scratching their heads -- the rand's relative strength over the past few years has meant importers have needed little encouragement to dump local suppliers in favour of cheaper imports.

Luckily for South African exporters, in addition to efforts to promote its own exports, Switzerland has a government agency under the patronage of the economic affairs secretariat dedicated to helping Swiss importers source new products.

The Swiss Import Promotion Programme (Sippo) has several goals, most of them altruistic, although Swiss consumers undoubtedly benefit from the increased competition and variety of goods on their shelves. Recognising that globalisation and the increase in worldwide competition has made it increasingly difficult for small and medium-sized companies in emerging markets to export their products to Europe, the organisation provides support of various kinds to ease their passage. It operates in more than 20 emerging markets, including Mozambique, Ghana and Egypt, and now SA.

Klaus Dürbeck, a senior Sippo consultant who visited SA recently to assess potential South African participants in the programme, says factors taken into account include the market potential of the product, whether helping the company grow will create jobs in emerging markets, and the environmental sustainability of the manufacturing process.

The first Sippo roadshow took place earlier this year and covered Cape Town and Port Elizabeth, focusing on agricultural products and additives such as essential oils, vegetable oils, plant extracts and natural colorants. The organisation is also helping promote the Fair Trade in Tourism initiative in Switzerland, and a number of meetings were held with local operators to this end.

Twenty manufacturers were short-listed for evaluation during the visit, and Dürbeck says he expects about half to make the grade -- three produce organic plant extracts, three make health-food ingredients and four make "nutraceutical" products. "The idea is that we will have a group of companies that we can include in the Sippo programme. Our specific focus is on helping them add value and prepare for the European market."

Project manager Franziska Staubli Asobayire says many small, medium and microenterprises in emerging markets lack the experience and capacity to produce the detailed documentation demanded from exporters by the European Union (EU), especially when it comes to food products. "Different countries in the EU also have different approaches to implementation procedures, and Sippo is able to pass on criteria and explain technical points."

Participation in the Sippo programme offers significant benefits for aspiring South African exporters, including financial assistance to participate in trade fairs across Europe. While firms are expected to pay a fee of $1500-$3000 per event, this is less than a third of the actual costs.

Once a company has qualified for inclusion in the programme, it can expect assistance for between three and five years, and a presence at up to 20 exhibitions, exposure that would be beyond the reach of a small company trying to break into the market on its own. "It takes time to learn how the system works," Staubli Asobayire says. "You need to participate in the same trade fairs for a few years in a row to succeed."

Sippo also has the technical expertise to advise small manufacturers on production techniques that can help boost quality to European standards. It monitors the EU market and passes on tender requests and other information that could help companies tie up export contracts, and advises on language and cultural issues that could become obstacles to doing business.

"It starts with simple things like what sort of information you should include in your initial e-mail, and what you should or should not do when you are in your booth at a trade fair," Dürbeck says. "These are simple but important things that can make all the difference."

Staubli Asobayire says it is important that the effect of the programme goes beyond the company involved to improving people's living conditions. "This is not a closed shop; we are open for discussion with companies and welcome contact with sector associations and export-promotion organisations.

"We have had a very fruitful meeting with the Medical Research Council's indigenous knowledge systems lead programme, for instance, and want to encourage universities and other research institutions to develop new products."

Information on Sippo's programmes, and contact details, can be obtained from its website at www.sippo.ch.


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