Most procurement teams know that buying from a Level 1 B-BBEE contributor is good for their own scorecard. Fewer understand that “Black Women Owned” status carries its own distinct weight, separate from general black ownership, and that overlooking it can mean leaving real scorecard value on the table.
Ownership Is Not a Single Line Item
The Ownership element of the B-BBEE scorecard is more layered than it first appears. It’s not simply a Yes or No question of whether a business is Black owned. The Codes of Good Practice recognise specific ownership sub-categories, including Black Ownership generally, Black Women Ownership specifically, and further categories for Designated Groups such as youth, people with disabilities, and rural communities.
Each of these sub-categories can generate distinct recognition levels for a client procuring from that supplier. This means two businesses can both be verified as “Black-owned” and still carry meaningfully different scorecard value for a client, depending on how Ownership is actually structured and who holds the equity.
Why Black Women Ownership Specifically Matters
Black Women remain underrepresented in business ownership relative to their share of the population, and the B-BBEE framework was designed with that gap in mind. For a corporate or government entity working to strengthen its own Ownership scorecard, procuring from a business that is Black Women Owned (not simply Black-owned with limited female equity) can unlock recognition that a generically Black-owned supplier cannot offer in the same way.
This is one reason many large organisations now track Black Women Owned spend as a distinct metric in their own transformation reporting, separate from overall Black-owned spend. If your procurement team is trying to hit gender-specific ownership targets as part of a broader B-BBEE strategy, the supplier’s Ownership verification needs to reflect that specifically, not just imply it.
What Genuine Black Women Owned Status Requires
Claiming Black Women Owned status isn’t just a marketing line; it needs to be backed by verifiable Ownership structures. That typically means a B-BBEE Verification Certificate or Sworn Affidavit (for smaller entities) that clearly states the percentage of the business held by Black Women.
Phakamisa Group’s Position
Phakamisa Group is a Level 1 B-BBEE Contributor and a 100% Black Owned and Black Women Owned business. That means clients procuring across the group’s companies, spanning transport and logistics, procurement and trading, ICT, and distribution, gain recognition specifically tied to Black Women Owned status on their own scorecards, not just general black ownership.
Getting the Detail Right
B-BBEE compliance is ultimately built on detail, and Ownership sub-categories are one of the areas where that detail matters most. Businesses that take the time to understand exactly what a Supplier’s Ownership status means, rather than treating “Black-owned” as a single catch-all term, are better positioned to build a procurement strategy that genuinely strengthens their own scorecard.
Request a Consultation to discuss how procuring through Phakamisa Group can support your B-BBEE ownership targets.