The Background and History Of The DBSP

The Dynamic Business Start-Up Project (DBSP) was started in South Africa in 1996. It was started in response to the changing South Africa, especially in respect to the dismantling of the apartheid structures and to assist in rebuilding the country through the creation of jobs, through the promotion of entrepreneurship. Apartheid policy left the majority of South Africans generally poorly educated, with the prospects of finding gainful employment very low, especially for those of color. The DBSP was launched in response to this and as a way of assisting those within communities, who show a measure of entrepreneurial inclination, to start up businesses, thereby somewhat alleviating the sting of poverty and joblessness.

Over the years the DBSP has added two more programs to its original unique, community based business start-up initiatives, the Basic Business Start-Up Programme (BBS Program). The first, the Micro Business Start-Up Programme (MBS Programme) was developed in 2000 and is an upgrade of the BBS Program. The reason this was done was to cater for a more sophisticated market and to target those entrepreneurially-inclined people who have a reasonably good education. Then in 2013 we took the MBS Program and did some major upgrades to it in order to accommodate learners that have a very good, post matric education and caters very well for university graduates and those that have lots of work experience. This program - the Advanced Business Start-Up Program (ABS Program) is a much more comprehensive program than either the BBS and MBS Programs. For more on these programs Click here.

Each program accommodates carefully selected, entrepreneurially inclined learners, who go through a step-by-step, practical learning experience, at the end of which they establish a new business venture. Support is given by an aftercare phase to ensure the sustainability of the new businesses.

The BBS Program was developed by the DBSP in South Africa, along with professionals from the University of the Witwatersrand Business School's Centre for Developing Business, keeping the devastating affects of apartheid in mind. The upgrades were done by DBSP's development team who have over forty years of experience in working with new, as well as established entrepreneurs.

The intellectual property of the DBSP is held by Hi-Eye-Q Training & Consultancy C.C. (Close Corporation) and this entity also runs the DBSP's for profit arm. The non-profit arm of the DBSP is run through an entity called the Dynamic Business International Foundation (The DBSP Foundation) The DBSP Foundation is a Public Benefit Organisation, with 18A tax status in South Africa.

In 2007 the DBSP launched its training into Kenya - the first Country in which DBSP programs were run outside of South Africa - where the training was and still is extremely well received. In fact DBSP training is doing so well in Kenya that it is the country that has trained the most DBSP graduates and has one of the highest success rate (around 90%). Between 2009 and 2012, through a partnership with a United States-based organization, the DBSP spread to 15 other countries, most of whom are in Africa. The DBSP has also been introduced to Lebanon, in the Middle East and to Nepal, Indonesia and Myanmar in South East Asia. The DBSP also trained in Armenia. To see a list of the countries where the DBSP has a footprint Click here.

The goal of the DBSP is to spread its operations into as many countries as there is a need for entrepreneurial development training - both in the third world and first world contexts - and we look forward to substantial growth in the future, as joblessness and unemployment are key problems affecting almost every nation on the planet. In order to achieve this goal the DBSP looks for Strategic Partner Organizations and empowers these organizations to run the DBSP training programs. For further information on how to become a DBSP strategic partner Click here.