IDC denies politically connected elite has ‘hijacked’ black industrialist scheme

South Africa’s Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) has defended the integrity of the credit approval processes for its flagship Black Industrialist Programme and has given the assurance that the scheme has not been captured by individuals with connections to the governing African National Congress (ANC), as suggested in a recent media report. The programme, which is aligned with government’s Industrial Policy Action Plan, has become a core feature of the State-owned development finance institution’s lending activities in recent years. In 2017/18, approvals of R7.9-billion were made under the scheme out of total approvals of R16.7-billion.