Abstract
A study was conducted in the Gauteng Province - South Africa- to profile the formal and informal SMMEs, as well as the cooperatives. The current study analyses and presents the findings about the state and the role of cooperatives in the province. A brief overview of the SMMEs in South Africa has been provided, while the history of the cooperatives has been unveiled. The study adopted a descriptive approach as a design, while data collection was done through interviews with the use of the questionnaire. Findings reveal that SMMEs lack government support in general, while cooperatives suffer a number of challenges including lack of start-up and growth strategies in particular. The true profile of the cooperatives has been exposed through a number of variables such as gender, source of income, location of the business, success rates among others. The study ends with recommendations geared towards government interventions and necessary training to up the required skills.