As we enter Heritage Month, South Africans once again have an opportunity to celebrate the languages, traditions, stories, food, music, creativity and craftsmanship that make us who we are. But perhaps Heritage Month should challenge us to do more than look back. It should also make us ask: what are we building from the legacy we have inherited?

Having worked closely with South African entrepreneurs, I have seen first-hand that our heritage is not something that belongs only in museums, festivals or history books. It lives in our businesses. It is reflected in the products we manufacture, the food we produce, the designs we create, the services we offer and the stories we take with us when we enter new markets.

Our entrepreneurs are increasingly showing that what we create here can travel far beyond our borders. I have had the privilege of seeing MSMEs take their businesses into international spaces, exhibit their products and proudly showcase South African-made goods to the world. In those moments, entrepreneurship becomes about more than making a sale. It becomes a way of saying: this is who we are, this is what we can create, and this is what South Africa has to offer.

And the world is listening.

I was reminded of this at the 2025 Global Entrepreneurship Congress in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA, where thousands of entrepreneurs, investors, policymakers and ecosystem builders from around the world came together. South Africa’s presence was felt not only through entrepreneurship and business conversations, but through culture. At one point, Amapiano filled the atmosphere. Thousands of kilometres from home, hearing a sound so deeply rooted in our culture was a powerful reminder that our heritage travels with us.

Our music, much like our products, ideas and businesses, can cross borders, create connections and introduce the world to who we are. It showed me that entrepreneurship can be one of the ways through which our heritage continues to evolve, reach new audiences and create value.

This is why entrepreneurship matters.

South Africa has an estimated 3.2 million MSMEs, run by approximately 2.6 million entrepreneurs, with MSMEs contributing about 40% of the country’s GDP. The latest Global Entrepreneurship Monitor also reports that 15% of South African adults were starting or running a new business in 2025, up from 11% in 2023. Almost one in five adults now intends to start a business within the next three years.

These figures represent more than economic activity. They represent people: mothers, fathers, young people, manufacturers, farmers, creatives, artisans and business owners who are taking what they know, what they have inherited and what they can imagine, and turning it into something that creates value.

The opportunity before us is to ensure that these entrepreneurs do not have to choose between preserving their heritage and building modern, competitive businesses. They can do both.

Indigenous knowledge can inspire innovation. Traditional craftsmanship can become a global brand. Local manufacturing can reach international markets. Our stories can become tourism experiences, creative products and digital content. The things that have been passed down to us can become the foundation for businesses that create jobs, generate income and contribute to economic growth.

But this requires us to think about heritage not simply as something to preserve, but as something that can continue to grow.

Heritage is not static. It evolves with every generation. The entrepreneurs of today have an opportunity to take what is uniquely ours and reinterpret it for new markets, new technologies and new audiences without losing the identity at its core.

That is where entrepreneurship becomes particularly powerful. It creates a space where culture, creativity and commerce can meet. It gives people the opportunity to build businesses around what they know, what they create and what they value, while allowing those ideas to reach beyond their communities and, ultimately, beyond South Africa.

This Heritage Month, let us therefore celebrate with purpose. Let us not only preserve what was handed to us; let us build upon it. Let us create businesses that carry our identity into boardrooms, exhibitions, markets and countries around the world.

Because our heritage is not simply where we come from. It is also part of what we have to offer the world.

And our entrepreneurs can be the bridge between the richness of our past and the possibilities of our future.

Let us build that future: proudly South African, proudly entrepreneurial and proudly rooted in who we are.

Tsakani Nkombyane is a Programme Officer of 22 On Sloane