Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), continue to fail and discontinue operations at one of the highest rates in many developed and developing countries, such as South Africa. The chief goal of this study was to create a foundation for increasing the sustainability of SMEs. The methods utilised in this inquiry for gathering and analysing data were quantitative. The study's target population, the Central Supply Database of the Provincial Department of Finance, was utilised to count the number of South Africa's officially recognised SMEs. A non-probability sampling method was used to choose 400 small business managers and owners as the study's sample size. The study's findings indicate that there are a few key reasons why SMEs fail and discontinue operating in South Africa, including a lack of strategic business planning, insufficient funding, subpar management, a lack of innovation, a lack of business research, and insufficient human capital education and training. 

Keywords: Economic growth; Sustainability; SMEs; Survival; failure; South Africa

https://doi.org/10.56249/ijbr.03.01.38