Giving a keynote address at the Pitso yesterday, the Minister of Trade and Industry, Ms Dorcas Makgato-Malesu, implored key partners in SMEs development, trade and business facilitation to join her ministry in ensuring that the national dreams of business growth, economic diversification and poverty eradication were realized in the medium to long term. The Pitso themed: “SMEs, A Stepping Stone and Solid Foundation for Business Development and Economic Growth” was also meant to map the way forward on the next steps, on the guidelines, once adopted and finalised. Ms Makgato-Malesu said the aim of her ministry was to continue fostering stakeholder partnership in business facilitation, with particular attention to the development of SMEs, as these were a stepping stone and a foundation for business development as per the Pitso theme.