DRAFT GAZETTE 54032 INTRODUCES SWEEPING CHANGES TO B-BBEE CODES
- BEE NEWS
- Feb 12
- 2 min read
Yuneal Padayachy | 11 February 2026
On Thursday, 29 January 2026, the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (DTIC) took a fundamental step in South Africa’s Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE) transformation narrative by publishing Government Gazette Number 54032.
This introduces a suite of draft amendments to the B-BBEE Codes of Good Practice for 60 days of public comment. These proposals signal a forward-looking re-engineering of South Africa’s empowerment landscape and placing greater emphasis on measurable economic participation, strategic funding mechanisms, and equitable enterprise growth.
The changes underscore the DTIC’s commitment to outcome-focused measurement, where B-BBEE transformation spend is not only about volume but also about demonstrating enduring economic uplift.
The proposals represent one of the most substantial revisions to the B-BBEE regulatory framework in years, aimed at strengthening accountability, refining the empowerment scorecard, and incentivising transformation outcomes across the B-BBEE landscape.
The gazette includes a number of draft gazettes which include amendments to: Draft Statement 000 of 2026Draft Statement 004 of 2026Draft Schedule 1 of 2026Draft Statement 103 of 2026Draft Statement 400 of 2026Draft Code Series 600 of 2026
The Drafts are not merely technical changes; they reflect a policy direction with practical implications for business transformation, compliance strategy, and economic participation.
Some of the major areas that have been introduced are as follows:
Introduction of a transformation fund
A major proposal is the establishment of a transformation fund as an alternative compliance route to traditional enterprise and supplier development (ESD) spend.
Businesses could contribute a fixed percentage, 3% of net profit after tax, into this fund to earn a significant portion of B-BBEE scorecard points (20 points), centralising and scaling funding for Black-owned and Black-managed enterprises.
Whilst many have questioned the corporate governance aspects of the transformation fund, others have welcomed it and are eager to understand how beneficiaries can be supported in a sustainable manner.
Redesign of preferential procurement and supplier targets
The draft scorecards emphasise more nuanced supplier spend targets, including distinct weighting for procurement from 100% Black-owned enterprises and 100% Black-women owned enterprises, signalling a shift toward more outcome-oriented procurement transformation.
Equity equivalent investment programme for multinationals
Draft Statement 103 introduces the transformation fund as one of the programmes that can be implement under the equity equivalent investment programme.
Definition of the transformation fund
Draft Schedule 1 of 2026 defines the “transformation fund” as “an aggregated mechanism to accelerate economic transformation and support Black enterprises, particularly exempted micro enterprise (EMEs) and qualifying small enterprise (QSEs). It aims to pool resources from measured entities to create a scalable impact rather than fragmented individual ESD initiatives”.
Furthermore, majority of the Amendments have been incorporated under draft statement 400 of the General B-BBEE Codes of Good Practice and has been introduced under the other statements.
‘Disclaimer - The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of the BEE CHAMBER’.